Alan Jacobson is a man I want to be when I grow up. He’s been living the curious and gratifying existence of a photographer for many moons.
Jacobson believes what I believe: you do a job once and you do it right. You approach business as an opportunity to serve others. Your professional improvement is a never ending obligation not because it sounds good as a marketing slogan but because a good night’s rest depends on it.
Your favorite photography studio was part of a write-up about wedding photojournalism in KC Magazine’s February issue. Check it out, Glow Imagery is on page 17. (Not our picture on the cover.)
Glow Imagery featured in the February issue of KC magazine. (Cover photo not Glow Imagery's)
Mike Westerman is the owner of Premier Sound, providing DJ services in Kansas City.
Mike Westerman of Premier Sound | DJ services of Kansas City
Company: Premier Sound Business type: DJ/entertainment Website:www.premiersoundkc.com Owner: Mike Westerman Phone: (816) 517-1927
Q: How long have you been in the industry?
A: I’ve been in the industry close to 9 years. I started Premier Sound a little over a
year ago because I saw a need in Kansas City for a DJ service that specialized in
weddings. Q: What size is your music library?
A: I’m approaching 30,000 songs. I have a little bit of everything, and I update my
library weekly. But I look at it this way. Quality is better than quantity. So I
always consult with my clients in advance to make sure I’m playing what they want.
Q: Are you the DJ at the receptions or do you have a team of DJ’s?
A: I’ve DJ’d on my own for years. But I’ve partnered with a great DJ for Premier
Sound, Jeremy Legg. He’s been at this for as long as I have, and has a good read on
crowds. My wife of 10 years, Crystal, also DJs with me. We’ve really tried to
offer a personalized experience for our clients that you just can’t get with some of
the bigger companies. And I want to make sure we stick to that philosophy
regardless of how much we expand.
Q: What equipment do you provide?
A: We have sound systems for smaller parties all the way up to large ballrooms. We also offer lighting solutions for all kinds of events. Lighting has come a long way in recent years with L.E.D. technology, so we’ve started incorporating it into our system. It runs cool, uses far less energy, and has a huge advantage over traditional lighting in that you it provides a near infinite array of colors and patterns.
Q: How much time do you require for set up?
A: It really depends on the event. Most of our equipment can be set up in 30-45 minutes. But any time I can get to the venue and set up earlier in the day, or even the day before, I will. That allows us to make sure that not only all of the equipment is working correctly in advance, but it helps us to tune it for the particular venue. Q: What is it that you love the most about being a DJ?
A: I love music. I love performing. But the best part is when a previous client tells
me what a great job we did for them, or how their friends can’t stop talking about
their reception. Helping people have a great wedding day is really rewarding. Q: If a couple requires you to MC, are you capable of doing so?
A: Absolutely. But we typically steer clear of a lot of the cheesy games and jokes.
There is definitely a market for that. But we’ve found that most of our clients are
looking for a more elegant and upscale feel to their wedding.
Q: In your experience, what are some of the dos and don’ts when working with a DJ?
A: Remember that your reception should be looked at like a gift to your friends and family members. So DO work with your DJ to make it fun and memorable for everyone invited. Planning the day out with your DJ in advance is essential to ensure that everything runs smoothly. With that in mind, DON’T make your song playlist all about you. Work with your DJ to make sure music is being played that everybody will dance to. Your guests will thank you. Q: What’s the craziest thing you have seen as a DJ?
A: Actually what I’ve learned from that is that part of being a good DJ is knowing how to control the event to make sure everybody has a blast, without any problems along the way. They want it to be a night to remember, not a night they can’t remember. But, yes, I’ve seen a lot of crazy things. A professional never discloses the happenings of a great reception though. What happens at a reception, stays at a
reception. Right?
Q: What makes you different from other DJ companies?
A: We are all about building good relationships. With our clients. With other vendors. I’m a firm believer in building a great network of high quality people around me, and not stepping on others to get ahead. I think that philosophy
benefits everybody involved. Also, being a smaller local company allows us to be very accessible to our clients. I give every client my personal cellphone number and email address, and they know they can reach me 24/7 directly anytime they need something.
Another great aspect of our company is that 99% of what we do is weddings. So clients can have complete confidence that we know what we are doing, and will treat their special day with the respect and professionalism it deserves.
Today I thought I would experiment with a neat little embedded movie gallery from a group of wedding images from Arrowhead Yacht Club in Greenwood, Mo. Love this place!
For a few years now we have been big fans of the wedding florist creations at Victorian Gardens and its owner Amy Cason. Amy has done the flowers for a number of our clients and all have been very pleased with Amy’s work. No drama, no hassles, and only good surprises is what you can expect from this Kansas City wedding florist. We spoke with Amy recently to learn more about her and her services and to introduce her to our current and future clients.
Q: How long have you been in business?
A: I have been a floral designer for 14 years.
I’ve had a passion for flowers and natural elements for even longer though. I remember picking flowers from my mothers garden, taking time to place each flower in its special place until the flowers looked perfect. I dreaded the first frost because it meant I’d have to wait until spring to see the little heads of daffadills and crocus poking through. The desire never subsided and I knew that this is what I was designed to do.
Q: What are your artistic sensibilities, the styles you love, you favorite flowers and palettes?
A: I love the variety and addition of taboo flowers. Years ago certain elements would have been unheard of. Thistle was a weed and grasses and branches were never added. Now pods, mosses and many other elements are adding textures and details. Nothing is off limits and floral design is now more of an art form and an expression of ones self. Picking a favorite flower, for me, would be like picking one of your children as your favorite. I love to use each one in its own form and design style. I love the power of monochromatic, the effect of one color in a grouping is quite striking.
Q: What is it you love about being a florist?
A: Every bride has a vision of what her day is to look like. Some since they were a young girl or others that have just started to plan the day with their new love. I love bringing that vision to life and helping their dreams come true.
I also enjoy the artistic design of bringing several element together to create a complete and finished look. Transforming a blank space into a breath taking venue or complementing an already lovely location by magnifying or accenting its beauty.
Q: What are some popular trends, styles right now?
A: What I love about this era of floral design is that anything goes. There are no traditions and making your wedding day more of your style is what is in. If you love punk or want to wear a short sun dress with guys in suits or have your ceremony in a theater , whatever depicts you is what make this your day. Popular styles are using your personal collections and incorporation them into your design.
Q: Do you offer rental items, such as vases, potted plants, arches, trellises, candelabras or urns?
A: We can rent whatever your needs or wants are. Candelabras, urns, vases, plants, arches, chuppahs, mandaps , pillars and anything you might need. just let us know.
Click on the images to view a gallery of photos featuring the floral creations of Victorian Gardens
Q: Do your preserve bouquets after the wedding?
A: No, we do not preserve bouquet but we have a list of people who do.
Q: How many weddings do you service per day? Do you have a maximum number you’re willing to do?
A: We try to only book one wedding a day. You do not need to worry about your florist being late or problems occurring. However if we do have weddings that have only personal flowers that they need and no setup is required then we may book two on a day but never more than that.
Click on the images to view a gallery of photos featuring the floral creations of Victorian Gardens
Q: What makes your service and products different?
A: My personal touch to each bride and attention to detail. I love when a bride adds any sentimental items, or heirlooms from her collection. The more creativity brought in the more personalized and unique each wedding becomes. We’re also different from those vendors that don’t deliver or instead require the bride to make arrangements to pick-up their own flowers or those vendors that just drop them off at the wedding. Those vendors have no personal attachment to the brides and It seemed to make their day much more hectic.
I realized that I could supply better product without the mark up, while offering a personal touch with the delivery, set up, and helping remove items for the clean up afterwards. This helped to personalize each wedding for each bride. Each bride is different and should be treated as such.
Q: Do you decorate the cake with flowers or should the cake baker?
A: I usually decorate the cake but if the person is there that made it and wishes to place the flowers, I am fine with that. It is their form of art and if they have a vision and wish to finish it I respect that as a fellow artist.
Q: What’s the craziest experience you have had as a florist?
A: The craziest experience I have had was having to almost completely cover a cake with flowers because it was dropped on the way into the reception and had to be pieced back together.
This blog is now a Do-Follow comment blog with CommentLuv. The vast majority of our clients reading this will not understand a word of the previous sentence nor do they need to. Those who do, be advised: We aggressively filter for spam and require all comments be moderated before being published. YOU MUST ADD TO THE DISCUSSION IN A SUBSTANTIVE WAY. Comments such as “Nice work” or “great pictures” from people I don’t know will never see the light of day. Put a little bit of sincere thought into your comments and we both will enjoy the benefits. Publication of comments are the sole discretion of the administrator… that’s me.
Thank You,
Chris Cummins
chief photographer - Glow Imagery
EDITOR’S NOTE: In an effort to better serve our clients, we will be running a series of blog posts throughout 2010 profiling various Kansas City wedding vendors we have worked with before and we feel offer excellent services to couples planning their wedding.
Our first vendor spotlight is of Elite Sounds, a Kansas City wedding DJ. Elite Sounds is owned by Craig Loftis and they can be contacted at (816) 305-7291. We worked with Craig at an event in early August of 2009 and were impressed. One of the main criteria I use to judge a DJ is if they have a feel for the reception, can keep the dance floor pumping and actually make the effort to learn the correct pronunciation of the wedding party’s names (this is kind of a biggie for us.) Elite Sounds succeeded on all counts.
Here’s what the bride from that evening, Amanda Durnal, had to say:
I really enjoyed Craig. He was organized but flexible and kept my dance floor full. His reception plan sheet is very detailed and allows the couple to practically design their night and then he sticks to the plan. He helped us think through some of the things that we may have overlooked (special songs, announcements, etc) with his planning.
THE INTERVIEW:
How long have you been in the industry? I have been in the industry since 2001
What size is your music library? Our music library features tens of thousands of songs.
Are you the DJ at the receptions or do you have a team of DJ’s? Elite Sounds has four DJ’s all of which have roughly 10 years of experience in the business. Our DJ’s have not only performed for thousands of wedding guests, but have also opened or worked with nationally touring artist such as Jessica Simpson, LL Cool J, Mya, Christina Millian, Tone Loc, Vanilla Ice, & C & C Music Factory. Each client has the opportunity to meet their DJ before booking if they would like.
What equipment do you provide? We provide PA, microphone and lighting.
How much time do you require for set up? Our set up time is 1.5 hours.
Do you take requests? We take requests that fit into the music guidelines given by the bride and groom.
If a couple requires you to MC, are you capable of doing so? Our DJ’s have experience working for local radio stations such as Jack FM, 95.7 The Vibe, and Magic 107.3 so we pride ourselves on the ability to be able to offer great emcees when needed.
Will you get every song a couple wants, or do they have to provide you with the ones you don’t have? We offer what we refer to as an “endless music library” meaning we will get any song that a client wants with no additional cost to them.
How will you be dressed? We prefer to dress just like a guest.
What makes you different from other DJ companies?
Since 2001 Elite Sounds Entertainment Group has set the standard for DJ entertainment in Kansas City for wedding, corporate, school, and nightclub clients alike with their eclectic song selection, mixing, and versatile style.
Ask any previous client, and they will tell you why Elite Sounds was voted Kansas City’s Best DJ Company during KMBC’s A List competition this past year! Elite Sounds has found their niche in the market by providing technically polished Club DJ’s skilled in the art of seamlessly mixing records spanning from the 60,s , 70’s, and 80’s all the way to current Top 40, Rock, and Club. Although most guests don’t understand what the DJ is technically doing, they do understand and appreciate how Elite Sounds differs from the competition!
Elite Sounds Entertainment Group has quickly become the go-to company for clients such as Ralph Lauren Fragrance, Sprint/Nextel, The Buckle Inc., Harrah’s North Kansas City, Cumulus Media, as well as hundreds of brides looking for a modern vibe not achievable by most. Once you experience Elite Sounds you will understand why they are considered the premiere DJ company in the Midwest.
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