A little late, way too early

I was trying to get all of my things together this morning for a meeting. Demo DVDs, package lists, contract, business cards, etc.

All the while I was kicking myself for not doing it last night. Running late, I raced out the door, drove to the designated coffee shop, pulled into the parking lot @ 9:01 a.m. for a 9 o'clock meeting.

Sweating, I look around the coffee shop for the prospective client. Didn't see her. I think, "Whew, she's running late." I grab a drink, sit down, get out all of my materials, boot up the laptop and wait... and wait... and wait.

9:15 a.m. - I wonder if she's forgotten about our appointment. It happens, I understand.

9:20 a.m. - I finish looking through my email to see if she sent a cancellation notice.

9:30 a.m. - Frustrated, I go back to the original emails where we set the date. Whoops.

As it turns out, all of that rushing around was for nothing. I was a little late to a meeting I was a week too early for. Oh well, at least I'm already prepared for next Saturday.

Keeping up

Be careful what you wish for.

Last year was tough for many businesses across the board. In the wedding industry, many couples rightfully cut back on expenses as their big day approached. 2009 was not terrible for Shared Moments Video, but it certainly wasn't great either.

Despite the down year, I made a significant investment in new HD cameras, a new computer, and new editing software. It was tough to swallow considering my perfectly-good, well maintained standard definition equipment was completely paid for. My SD cameras probably have two more full wedding seasons left in them. But technology has passed them by.

I was not about to be the last man standing with standard def gear. Upgrades were necessary to keep up with consumer demands - and they were costly.

So here we are in 2010, mid-May, and I am absolutely slammed. That's great news for the bottom line, not so great news for my life outside of business.

But given the alternative, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Latest project complete

A client recently asked if I could put together "one of those videos where you edit pictures to music." His wife's 50th birthday was coming up and he wanted something nice to show at the party.

You mean, a montage? Sure. I do those.

He gave me 100 pictures, a few video clips, and a CD with a favorite U2 song. After a few instructions I was sent off to work my magic.

I showed him the finished video two days before the party and he ordered eight copies on DVD. He was very excited. He said I "far exceeded his expectations."

I just uploaded it to the website. Here's the link.

Most couples include photo montages with their wedding videos. Many include growing up pictures, their courtship, engagement photos. Others also include honeymoon pictures which make a nice addition to the end of a wedding video.

Photo montages also make a great gift for Mother's Day and Father's Day or a birthday for someone special in your life. It's a lasting memory that's sure to bring tears to their eyes.

Give me a call and I hope you give a great gift at an affordable price. 540-293-5979.

Busy, busy time of year

Is there a wedding planner guidebook out there that reads "between the weeks of March 1st through March 17th make sure to call and email Shared Moments Video"?

It sure seems that way. Thanks for your interest in SMV! I am returning emails and phone calls as quickly and thoroughly as possible. For those waiting for a demo DVD to arrive in the mail, the USPS is not posting a great batting average this year.

If you're on the fence about booking give me a call and let's talk about your wedding plans. We'll go over your options and discuss the best course for your wedding video. - 540.293.5979

Either way, don't wait to make a decision. 2010 dates are booking faster than any other year I've been in business. That's a great thing.

Pulling my hair out

After spending two hours of a perfectly good Saturday (actually it snowed 10 inches at my house, but that doesn't make for a good story) making changes to my website I've had to spend another two hours this morning fixing those changes.

Why?

Because Windows' Internet Explorer continues to be a thorn in my side. I build my web pages on my Mac. So easy, so simple. Mozilla's Firefox browser has no problem reading the pages I build. The Mac fonts show up nicely.

Too bad I can't say the same thing for IE. Too bad so many people continue to use IE. It's a terrible browser. It offers no security. It can't read Mac fonts. It's junk. Seriously, if you're reading this from IE, make the switch to Firefox. It's free and only take a few seconds. You'll thank me for it.

Internet Explorer costs me time. Time I could be spending with my children. Time I could be spending shoveling my driveway.

If you notice anything weird about www.SharedMomentsVideo.com first try hitting the refresh button once or twice. For some reason the pages are not loading properly.

If that doesn't work, please send me an email ( info@sharedmomentsvideo.com ) and let me know what you're seeing. Tell me what page you're on and what browser you're using. I have been troubleshooting for hours now and I'm sure there are things I have missed.

I have spent too much time and effort building and rebuilding my site for some stupid bug to cause me to lose business.

Thanks in advance.

Looking forward to the 2010 wedding season

The wedding season begins in a few weeks with various bridals shows in the Roanoke area.

I'm looking forward to getting out and meeting hundreds of brides, talking up my new services and showing off my new HD cameras.

In the meantime, I'll be busy producing demo DVDs and brochures to hand out to couples. Lots of work to get done.

Busy, busy.

Holiday crunch time

It's the most wonderful time of the year? Yeah, right. Try being in the wedding video business!

I was blessed/cursed with lots of weddings this year and that means lots of editing. Naturally, couples want their wedding video to show family and friends around the holidays and I always do my very best to accommodate as many folks as I can. That means hours, upon hours, upon hours in front of the computer editing footage.

This year, in addition to being blessed with lots of work I've been cursed with six-weeks worth of sinus infections. That equates to 20-days on antibiotics, a truck-load of tissues, who knows how many Sudafeds and... I'll spare you the rest.

Anyway, the backlog of editing only intensified as my never-ending sickness never ended (and still hasn't). But I'm going to keep plugging away and keep my fingers crossed that everyone has a happy holiday (myself included).