Tag Archives: Orange

Advice

To Do or Don’t? Song Requests on RSVP

There’s been a trend of couples asking their guest to send in a song request along with their RSVPs. Is this helpful? Should you do it?

With a little planning, the song request (suggestion) thing can be a great idea. It would be wise to put a disclaimer on the invitation card that their song might not make the list, but that they are helping to create one. Say you have 120 guests with 120 different selections, and they expect to hear their songs for 3 minutes. That would be a program of 360 minutes or 6 whole hours. There simply won’t be time for the you to get married or to have your First Dance!

The best strategy is to create one set of top priority selections, including your parent’s first dance, and the request from the bridesmaid who remembered THAT special moment during college. Label these MUST PLAY. Second, spreadsheet the rest of the suggestions and identify the songs which you agree with, and requested frequently, all the while exercising veto power.

Remember that there is only 60 minutes to each hour so for cocktails and dinner, you’re limited to about 17 ~ 20 songs each. You get about about 30 songs per hour you can program at maximum during dancing, depending on how fast the DJ mixes the songs.

Last but not least, don’t forget to leave room for music that YOU and YOUR FIANCE are actually dying to hear during dinner & dancing!

South OC, Wedding Footage

Dove Canyon Country Club Wedding DJ – Dove Canyon, CA [HD VIDEO]

This is a video on a well produced Latino wedding reception I did at the Dove Canyon Country Club in Dove Canyon (adjacent to Coto de Caza / Rancho San Margarita) neighborhood in Orange County, CA

The couple had an awesome vision for the wedding, and I was honored to bring it all to life. They used Blended Uplighting, Monogram Lighting (often referred to as GoBO; Go Between Optical), Cake Spotlighting, Sweetheart Table Spotlighting & an Area Wash for the Dessert Table.

Once the sun went down, the room was perfect! Lighting is definitely recommended in this room, during the Fall & Winter months, when the sun goes down earlier in the day.

I find myself more often at Coto de Caza’s Country Club, but would love to be at this one more often. The couple was super sweet and grounded, and really appreciated my work. I’m looking forward to being back there soon!

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Wanna see better photos from this wedding? Please visit Lin & Jirsa’s blog.

North OC, Wedding Footage

Yorba Linda Community Center Wedding DJ – Yorba Linda, CA [HD VIDEO]

This is a video from a wedding I DJed at the Yorba Linda Community Center with uplights and wireless satellite speakers (6 total).

The bride and groom were very down to earth, and very community oriented. They had most of their decorations made by family members who apparently have quite a bit of experience in theatrical work (always nice to have resources like that!) but they were clear from the get-go that having a wild dance party was their most important desire for the reception. I’m glad that they showed their satisfaction in the form of a Yelp review!

To be completely honest, the energy of the crowd was so intense, it would have been impossible to screw up the dancing portion. They really ate up the line dancing and participation songs, but also danced to the clubby music too.

I also got a chance to work with a Hawaiian food place called Ono Grill, which is about two blocks from my shop on 17th street, so that was a total treat! Unfortunately the owner, who I knew most, wasn’t there, but the food was delicious none the less!

Yorba Linda CC is a relatively plain venue, but very easy logistically to move in and out of, and they have an auditorium sized video screen and projector build right in, which from what I understand, comes with the room with no extra charge. It’s right down the street from the Nixon Library, but it’s a fraction of the cost to rent, and they allow outside catering. I definitely recommend the Yorba Linda Community Center for large modular weddings, and if you’re looking into doing DIY on the flowers and decorations (which is not advisable for most other locations because of logistics).

Can’t wait to be back!

Special Offer:

Book this package for the Yorba Linda Community Center at $1300* (Normally $1400; you MUST mention this post at the time of inquiry).

Includes:

5 total hours of lighting, DJ & MC services
Cocktail Hour Music:

  • Stand-alone sound system (3 speakers)
  • 1 handheld microphone for addressing crowd

Reception Package:

  • 800watt PA system
  • 1 Satellite Speaker
  • DJ console (Media Used: MIDI, Vinyl, MP3s)
  • 10 channel mixer
  • 1 wireless microphone for toasts
  • 4 piece dance lighting

Uplighting (Standard):

  • Up to 18 fixtures of static, one color uplights (Par38 Halogens or Par64 LEDs, depending on color)

*Offer may not be combined with any other offers.

Central OC, Wedding Footage

Tustin Ranch Golf Club Wedding DJ – Tustin, CA [HD VIDEO]

Super short video on a Reception I DJed at the Tustin Ranch Golf Club, Clubhouse, with uplighting and Cake Spotlighting (Pinspots on this one) services, both look great at this location. It was a very relaxed atmosphere, and the crowd really went for the country line dancing, which is always fun!

This is my company’s hometown, Tustin, CA, but I don’t find myself there as often as I would like to. The staff is always courteous and helpful there, and the logistics of the location is pretty short and simple. Also, cocktail hour on the patio side has a built in PA system, so you’ll be able to get the venue to cover the music for that hour. This is a terrific location for your North OC wedding.

 

Special Offer:

Book this package with Ceremony Service for $1520* (Normally $1670; you MUST mention this post at the time of inquiry).

Includes:
6 total hours of sound, lighting, DJ & MC services
Ceremony Music & Microphoning Package:

  • 2 Speakers (150 watt rms each; appropriate for congregations of up to 180)
  • 1 Countryman Wireless Microphone (discreet headset worn by officiant)
  • 1 Lapel Wireless Microphone (worn by groom for vows)
  • 1 Handheld Wireless Microphone on Stand (for readings by bridal party / guest)

Cocktail Hour Music

  • Stand-alone sound system
  • 1 handheld microphone for addressing crowd

Reception Package:

  • 800watt PA system (appropriate for crowds up to 180 guests)
  • DJ console (Media Used: MIDI, Vinyl, MP3s)
  • 10 channel mixer
  • 1 wireless microphone for toasts
  • 4 piece dance lighting

Uplighting (Standard):

  • Up to 18 fixtures of static, one color uplights (Par38 Halogens or Par64 LEDs, depending on color) (appropriate for Up to 180 guests)

Cake Spotlighting:

  • Spotlight projector illuminates your cake from high altitude

*Offer may not be combined with any other offers.

Wedding Footage, West OC

Newland Barn Wedding DJ [HD VIDEO]

Short video from a wedding I DJed at Newland Barn / Newland House Museum, in Huntington Beach, Surf City USA. It’s a super relaxed private yard with an indoor section inside a bar like structure.

It’s a great location that gets tons of sun, and also has a small indoor area to put your buffet in, or in this case, the dance floor. This particular client decided to pipe and drape the room, and had me provide back uplighting in blue, which was incredibly effective (smaller rooms are easier to saturate). They were a sweet and down to earth B&G, I couldn’t ask for better clients.

The key to DJing a reception at this location, or any location that is open air and this sprawled out, is to have a widely dispersed sound system, which requires (reliable) wireless audio signal transmitters. I’ve got a set of speakers playing the same program (music / microphones during speeches) back at the barn from the house museum, so the dinner reception area is covered with sound evenly. This allows the music and speeches to not be too loud for some of the guests, while the guests in the back are struggling to hear what is going on. Please inquire if you’d like to learn more about this.

Looking forward to be back at this location!