...Post Wedding Review Part 3: RP Weddings and Filterpan...

Che and I have been together for the past ten years when I proposed to her, and I kept telling people that she’s been waiting for me to pop the question for several years already, it just so happened that her hunch was right in 2014. Our wedding planning actually started barely an hour after my actual proposal – only because the video I made for the event was about 35 minutes long, we needed to gather for about 10 minutes so that we can take photos to share, and about 15 minutes to order food.

We agreed that our wedding should be about us, and we get to have the final say on everything. We understand that too many times, people intervene and cause unnecessary stress. We set a budget, and agreed that we will handle it ourselves (to be clear, that conversation ended with Che saying “ako na bahala”) so that we can firmly decide on the wedding details ourselves without anyone else dictating their opinions.

After being together for so long, we have already figured out each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Since Che wouldn’t be in the Philippines to be hands-on with the wedding preparations, we decided to get a wedding planner. We had one name in mind – Pam Manansala of RP Events/RP Weddings. Che didn’t want to get all buddy-buddy with some stranger, and we needed someone we could trust. We didn’t even ask for her rates, we just knew she was our girl. Thankfully, she accepted.

Next on our list was our photo and video team. Despite the many weddings we’ve been to and the excellent coverage we saw from those, we also had one name in mind for our own wedding – Filterpan. The team is led by RJ and Patty Ranieses, Che’s batchmates from college (as was Pam). We were never close in college; I knew RJ because Che briefly worked with him in the Communication Arts Students’ Association, and I knew Patty because of her eccentric fashion in college that later turned into an online business – The Ukay Queen, which Che was secretly (at least from me) a loyal patron of. That was about all the interaction I had with them. However, as Facebook friends, Che and I were able to follow the couple’s story through good and bad times .We saw how strong Pat and RJ are as Christians, and we were constantly inspired by their stories of faith in the face of adversity and gratitude in whatever blessing or challenge that they receive. We wanted to be comfortable with our photo and video team, so though we weren’t that close, we knew that they were the right team for us.

RP Weddings

Pam was with us from Day One. Right after we came from our anniversary trip, Che and I decided to scout Makati and Taguig for Churches. Pam was right there with us. When we decided to have the wedding at Fernbrook, Pam was right there with us. When Che left for Singapore and I needed to attend wedding fairs, Pam went with me in place of Che to speak with suppliers to find ways to bring costs down.

Speaking of details, Pam kept a tracker from the first month of the wedding to make sure that we don’t forget anything. We received an email every month from her, detailing payments to be made, payments already made, and stuff we still need to take care of. She introduced us to our designer, Geoffrey Zordilla, our Hair and Make Up artist, Kristine Ramos, and our band, Next of Kin.

Pam documented the preparations as much as she can. Here we are, choosing color swatches for everyone, with Pam taking notes and this picture. 

As Che was kept in the loop at all times, through various messaging apps and video conferences when time allows it. With Pam being with me every step of the way in the Philippines and with all the updates, it’s as if Che never left the Philippines.

As the wedding day drew near, Pam and I braved Divisoria for some of the wedding details before I flew out to Singapore before the wedding. She even prepared a checklist of the stuff we need to get, and agreed on the things that will be prepared near the wedding day. When Che and I got back in Manila a couple of weeks before the wedding, Pam was with us for final meetings with our suppliers.

Considering our friendship, I can’t say without bias that getting RP Weddings for your own wedding will give you the same attention that she gave us, but one thing’s for sure, the girl knows what she’s doing and you won’t have to worry too much in preparation for your wedding. She probably won’t walk with you in Divisoria, but if time allows, I’m sure she’d find a way to help you out.

Pam was in the same hotel that we were the day before the wedding to get stuff ready. Her team was ready when called, and even helped organize Che’s mini-Bachelorette party on the eve of the wedding. Her team was on call even after midnight, when stuff we prepared for the wedding were brought to the hotel by Pao (Che’s brother) and Jon (my cousin).

On the actual wedding day, Pam coordinated the food for people, and had one of her staff, Nikki, attend to me for anything I need. She was our go-to person during the preparations. Even as I broke my phone, I had Nikki to relay my concerns to her if I had any.

When I got to Fernbrook/Palazzo Verde, I only saw Pam prior to the start of 

the ceremony, as I understand she was busy attending to other concerns on the day. We trusted Pam to be the host of our guests, since we couldn’t attend to everyone on our wedding day. Our trust was rewarded with a nicely-coordinated wedding from start to finish.

Here’s a summary of some pros and cons with RP Weddings:

Pros:

• Details, details – You won’t lose track of your progress with Pam. Of course, you need your own checklist to support her reports, as you may have some other details you need.

• No loss of connections – Pam has been mounting events for quite a while now, and she has worked with various suppliers over the years. If you need someone for something, she might know how to connect you with them.

• A calm third voice – Planning your wedding could lead to arguments between you and your partner. Pam has this stoic personality that provides you a sense of calm when making decisions, and she’s always neutral on just about any of these decisions. The bride isn’t always right for her, especially if the groom is firm with his opinion.

Cons:

• Sharing another passion – apart from RP Weddings, Pam is also operating a really nice steakhouse near FEU Fern (near Ever Commonwealth) called Steak It Out. They have student-friendly pricing but with food that’s a hit for any taste bud. Be careful bringing more than 300 pesos in your wallet when you go there especially if you’re watching weight. That said, don’t expect Pam to answer your concerns within three seconds of when you sent your message.

Barely 30 minutes in Steak It Out, and our plates are already empty. Yours would be too if you tried their food. 

• On the day mishaps – Prior to the wedding, we hashed out details to entertain people in between the wedding rites and the reception. In particular we spoke about the games we wanted our guests to play while they waited. When I unpacked my things in Singapore, I saw one of the games still unopened from its packaging. I guess the staff wasn’t familiar with how we wanted the games to be utilized. Also, for one of our wedding games, we needed Kapeng Barako but the staff provided 3-in-1 coffee. She also wasn’t too visible for me on the day of the wedding, and though I know some of her staff, they don’t understand what we want done as much as Pam does. These are minor details that didn’t ruin the wedding, but could have made it more fun if done right.

• Inability to keep THAT GUY in place – as mentioned a lot of times in my previous blog, THAT GUY was such an emotion killer. I’m not sure if they were limited by the parish office, but I hoped could have been more involved in the church so that I wouldn’t have met THAT GUY.  

Filterpan

Che and I didn’t have a concept for our prenup photo shoot. We wanted to ask Pat and RJ, but Che realized that she wasn’t much of an actress to project for the camera. After throwing ideas, Che had this bright idea of asking Pat and RJ to join us on our already-booked trip to Korea to do the shoot there. I was hesitant because of the expenses, but agreed thinking they were still busy with Taavi.

Surprisingly, they said yes without hesitation. Apparently, they have been praying to God to have a getaway as a couple, as they haven’t had any time for themselves since Taavi was born. We became instruments of God for this lovely couple. From a financial standpoint, I didn’t like it, but other than that, I was really happy they said yes. Besides, Che took care of the financial part.

Our concept of the prenup shoot was to be as natural as possible, because Che can’t keep a straight face for too long. We went to places we’d want to visit, ate the food we wanted (a lot of it) and even got lost by riding the wrong bus, but through it all, it didn’t feel like a shoot. It just felt like being out with a friend who likes to take photos. It helped that we were joined on our trip by Aaron and Joyce, who were contemplating on going to Japan or Korea before I insisted join us to the latter. They were mainly convinced because they learned Pat and RJ were going to be with us, which means someone could take great photos of them. Aaron and Joyce were so comfortable with the camera that Pat and RJ had to ask us to repeat their poses.

Team Korea enjoying the almost-melting snow

 We rode the wrong bus and got lost, went to Myeongdong to eat street food, ate a lot of those triangular rice cakes, went to Everland, went up to Namsan Tower, rode a bus that took us to where there’s still snow, and got left by the bus that had us scrambling to find a ride back to the metro because Pat and RJ had to fly back that night. Too bad that they weren’t able to join us in Nami Island, I believe they would have taken incredible shots there.

We were happy with the first batch of photos that came out, and I was too excited when I saw the teaser video. I was too happy with the prenup video that I already showed it to some close friends  even before I was allowed to share it on my newsfeed.

During our last meeting before the wedding, we plotted out the schedule by which everyone will be shot by their team. On the day of the wedding, that schedule wasn’t followed to the letter, but they got the job done nonetheless.

The Filterpan team was so fun to work with, I almost feel like I already knew them for a long time already. I was so comfortable with them that I wasn’t able to cry while I was reading Che’s gift for me. I didn’t know their names, but I loved them instantly. They asked me to do a lot of stuff, and they shot in multiple angles of me doing the same thing – kind of like those that you see in Korean dramas. Che said they asked her to do a lot as well. They have creative shots even for video that I was excited to see how they treat later for the SDE.

When the SDE was played, everyone told us they loved it. Che and I were happy, but we agreed that we thought there could have been more. Maybe it was all those shots that they took that made us want to see more, but overall, they did a pretty good job capturing the day’s events.

They also gave us a coffee table book of our prenup shoot that I think is awesome. It’s now displayed on our flat’s living room.

Right beside our mini-Christmas tree laden with Polaroids. 

We’re still waiting on other photos of the wedding and the full wedding video, but I have no doubt that it will turn out amazing. I’ll update this blog once we get them though.

Here’s a summary of my review for Filterpan:

Pros:

• Feel love in the air – As if you’re not already in love with your partner, Filterpan will inspire you to love even more. It could be Pat and RJ’s infectious love for each other, or their team’s light-hearted nature. Either way, your photos and videos will look amazing because they will capture that intensified love you have for each other. You can choose to have a concept where you have to act out scenes, but I think they work best in capturing natural, candid moments of you.

• Ease of Negotiation – As I mentioned, we weren’t really close with Pat and RJ through college. However, since getting them for our wedding, we talked as comfortable as friends who see each other regularly. I’m sure you’ll feel the same way.

• Creative executions – I’m sure Filterpan isn’t the only one who could offer creative executions, but their unique way of telling your story through their coverage is what really drove us to pick them as our photo and video team.

Cons:

• Photo booth date was wrong – There were 92 photos on their photo booth’s Facebook page that was uploaded right after the wedding displaying the wrong date. It means that 92 printed copies had the wrong date on it. They managed to fix the issue, but we can’t get back the printed copies from our guests. Anyway, what matters is that our guests were at the wedding, and there’s a fixed copy on Facebook.

• Patience is essential – Che and Pam kept bugging Filterpan about the release of photos and videos, but I’m not really sure when you’d need it. If only considering Che and Pam’s inquiries, I’d say Filterpan was sometimes late for their outputs. However, if you have the patience for it, I am telling you it is all worth the wait. Let Pat and RJ do their magic.

• The team needs to work on handling crowds – As much as I love the team, I thought they weren’t able to handle a larger group. They were fine shooting me and my family, but when they were organizing people for the group shots, they look flustered at times. Some of them look really young, so I guess they’ll be able to work on their confidence as time goes by.