queenofthe1ring's Journal: NSTAAFPB

"No such thing as a free photo book."

Oh tricksey David's Bridal and Shutterfly. Sending me a free photo book for purchasing an expensive dress. Thinking I was getting a deal, I have spent the better part of a week editting and agonizing. But I will finish today. Because I'm pretty sure I will develop an ulcer if I don't.

The funny thing is that at walmart, for the same price as the 20 page 8x8 book I am working on originally costs (I had better get it for free) I could get a 34 page 8.5x11 book. So if I want additional copies that I cannot get for free, I will likely just redo the whole thing on walmart, and get an additional ulcer.

Things I have learned: Have photographer shoot digital, my hp scanner (while better than the dell I used to have) cannot do the quality I need, people eventually agree with me even though they will tell me I'm wrong up until I make them sit and look at the proof.

Even better option: Eliminate the photographer

[Kymermosst]

At our wedding, wy wife and I simply brought our two SLRs and gave them to friends who we knew had a good eye for photos, asked family members to bring digital cameras if they had them, and passed out disposable film cameras to everyone who didn't bring a camera of their own.

We asked for people to mail the digital pics to us, and we developed all of the film onto CD-ROM.

We figured that among the thousand+ pictures that would be taken, a portion of them would be as good as any photographer. We were right.

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[queenofthe1ring]

His sister had brought her SLR, and I have a few of the pictures that she took. Lots of family had digital cameras, but none of them have sent any pictures. I'm not even sure how many cameras were there. I do like the pictures that the other people took of the ceremony and what not, but no one but the photographer took any posed pictures, so I'm stuck with what I've got there.

I had wanted really nice pro photographs, because his sister (which was the option he was leaning on me to take) had shot one

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[Kymermosst]

Eh, well, at least the main stress is over with. There's always something you wish you had done with the wedding, I wouldn't dwell on it too much.

That being said, I really wish we'd stood up to my in-laws and not invited some certain relatives on her side that had stolen things from us in the past (long story). But grandma-in-law insisted we invite them, and so mom-in-law bullied us into it. Sigh. The reception would have been much better without them.

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[queenofthe1ring]

Wow, that's terrible. I actually sent invitations to friends that bitched and whined about how much they wanted an invitation and to come. And they didn't even return the response card let alone show up. It's not until after the wedding that I realize who I should have invited instead. People suck.

I have one of those.

[Some Woman]

I got a free Shutterfly photobook for buying my camera on Amazon. Then I got a free Shutterfly mug and mousepad for buying a memory card for my camera. I don't mind the freebie book (which contains photos of the cruise we took shortly after I bought my camera), but I don't think I would ever actually buy one from them.

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[queenofthe1ring]

How is the print quality of the book? I ordered some of their "free trial" print photos, which was kind of hit or miss for quality. I just ordered my photo book today, and it will hopefully be here in a week. I hope that it looks nice...

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[Some Woman]

The print quality was decent, but I think I still prefer regular photo albums for quality. I was disppointed with the quality of the cover I chose. It seemed a little cheap (well, it was free for me so I shouldn't complain too much).

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[Some Woman]

Also, for general photo prints and photo products, I think that Kodak Gallery [kodakgallery.com] is higher quality that Shutterfly.

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[queenofthe1ring]

Thanks, I will have to check them out. I was actually considering buying one of their cameras.

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[Some Woman]

Which camera were you considering?

I have a Kodak Z7590* and am deeply enamored with it. It isn't an SLR, but fulfills my immediate needs and then some. My sister is a graphic designer for a large media company and her coworker recommended this camera to her. Three people in my family now own it. Yeah, we drank the Kool-Aid.

[*] They no longer make it, but it was a member of the Z Series [kodak.com]...and by the way, holy-crap-price-drop-much? It was at the top of my price range when I bought it and now I could have

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[queenofthe1ring]

I do like the z-series cameras the best. They seem to be the step up from my current camera that I want, and can reasonably afford. I would prefer something a bit more compact than that though, since my current camera is also a behemoth. The one thing that makes me a little grumpy about their cameras is that they all seem to use SD memory, and I already bought a 512 mb XD card not that long ago (512 is the highest that my current camera supported).

I like that most of their cameras seem to have more

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[Some Woman]

I would prefer something a bit more compact than that though, since my current camera is also a behemoth.

Yeah, when I bought my camera it was tough deciding between the little camera that will fit in your pocket and take good photos, or the giant camera that requires a diaper bag (okay, it only feels like it :^) that takes awesome pictures. I decided to go with the latter, because I really like the additional options that it gives me. I have additional lenses and a a filter set for it. Without the abilit

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[johndiii]

You deleted the journal entry before I could reply... :-) This is your latest comment, so it gets the reply.

There are negative things, but try and see the positive. Hold on to the good things. Deal with the bad things and then let them go. It seems likely that what I see here is somewhat skewed, because you are venting. Be careful, though. What you believe about a marriage can often become its reality.

And a couple of questions, just for you to ask yourself. Do you feel like an equal partner? Do you

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[queenofthe1ring]

Thanks for the comment. Looks like I just beat your comment with my deletion. I decided it wasn't really a prudent entry. I always try to only put the truth in my entries, but sometimes my rage gets the better of me. It's all true, it's just harshly worded.

Right now I am choosing to believe that things will work out in the long run.