One of my last weddings of 2011 was at Estancia and now I am grateful to start off 2012 with the first wedding of the year at this great La Jolla wedding venue as well! The ceremony was held at a different location so our couple hired me as their La Jolla wedding DJ for the reception only. Cocktail hour kicked off just outside the ballroom on the patio. During this time guests were “signing” the tree guestbook with a signature & a thumbprint. I think our couple will enjoy this unique wedding idea much more than a book with a few signatures which typically gets tucked away in a closet.

Once guests entered the Grande Ballroom they were treated to lots of warm lighting. I provided amber uplighting throughout the room and over by the cake. I also used some atmospheric lighting up on the ceiling to create some interest. This all really made a huge difference in the look & feel of the ballroom. After dinner I was able to project the couple’s slide show up onto the wall with about a 15 foot image size. It looked really clean without having to use a screen.

After the meal & slide show we invited our couple out for their first dance. We started off dancing with a few slow songs which all of the couples enjoyed. We then moved into some “please all” type music to get dancing going. Guests were easing into party mode a little slower this evening. After the cake cutting & bouquet / garter toss they were ready to dance. The photo booth opened up and the party was underway…

Our couple wanted to keep a classy atmosphere but still wanted to add a little color & movement later on so once the formalities were done I switched the atmospheric lighting over to change colors. It gave it more of a party feeling without all the blinking and flashing lights. This was a perfect lighting option to add that interest. The crowd finished strong and we actually played about 30 minutes past our planned ending time.

Below are some professional photos from Teale Photography:

Click Here To View More Professional Photos From This Wedding.

San Diego Wedding Lighting & Extras Provided:  9 uplights,  atmospheric ceiling lighting,  & video projection equipment

LA JOLLA WEDDING DJ MUSIC:

Bridal Party Introductions – “Home” by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros

First Dance – “The Way You Look Tonight ” by Tony Bennett

Father/Daughter Dance – “In the Midnight” by Van Morrison

Mother/Son Dance  – “You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You” by Dean Martin

Anniversary Dance – “Wonderful World’” by Louis Armstrong

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Coordinator = Jennifer Destein

Photographer = Teale Photography

Cake = Flour Power Bakery

Photo Booth = Recorded Memories

For more information about this event or if you are looking for a La Jolla wedding DJ click here to contact Positive Energy Productions or call us at 858.490.0445.

Today I was near downtown at the El Cortez to provide San Diego wedding DJ and lighting services for a ceremony & reception. It was in the forecast to likely be a very rainy day here in San Diego. Our bride and groom knew this was going to be a problem for their planned outdoor ceremony so they had a tent setup outside on the El Cortez patio. The ceremony and our bride’s uncle performed ceremony which was held facing the fireplace. He was really able to add a personal touch to the couple’s stories & vows.

Our couple met in high school and one memory that was brought up during the wedding ceremony was the fact that our groom always remembers his first kiss on the cheek with her. He graduated a few years before her & went on to college at USD. During this time they broke up for a while & moved on their lives. They both went their separate ways during college. Seven years went by… They didn’t totally lose touch during this time because when they were both in San Diego during holidays and summer they had a similar group of old friends. Our bride eventually moved back to San Diego. Once back they began to spend more time together and both realized they felt a little differently towards each other. They were a little older, wiser, more understanding, & slightly more mature. They learned how to value each other and eventually decided to get engaged & married. The bride’s uncle ended the ceremony with a great saying: “It only takes a few minutes to marry the one you love but it takes a lifetime to learn how to love the one you marry.”

Once inside the reception room our couple used lots of gold linens, candles, and manzanita branch centerpieces to complete their fall themed wedding. As a unique wedding favor our bride and groom decided to give each guest a personalized bottle of champagne. Our couple hired me as their San Diego wedding DJ but they also knew that they wanted to hire me to provide quite a bit of lighting for the reception ballroom inside the El Cortez. Our couple felt that the reception room tends to be on the darker side of things so it needed quite a bit of lighting to really make it look good. We were originally going to also add some lighting to the outside patio space and on the fireplace but because of the rain we had to pull everything inside. I used 20 uplights in various fall themed colors, cake spotlighting, and a gobo monogram projected down onto the dance floor to give the room a really warm and interesting look.

After the meal we kicked things off with the toasts. Our bride and groom made a very personal slide show that I projected onto an 8 foot screen as their “thank you” to family & friends. We then moved into the first dance and opened up the dance floor. Guests were a little slow to start dancing early on in the evening but after the cake they really warmed up and let loose. Everyone ended up having a great time.

San Diego Wedding Lighting & Extras Provided:  20 uplights, gobo monogram projection, cake spotlighting, and slide show projection equipment

SAN DIEGO WEDDING DJ MUSIC:

Ceremony Bridesmaid’s Song:  Forest Gump Theme – Soundtrack

Ceremony Bride’s Processional Song:  Canon in D – O’Neill brothers

Ceremony Recessional Song:  The Prince of Denmark’s March – Wynton Marsalis

Wedding Party Introductions Song:  Galvanize – Chemical Brothers

Bride & Groom Entrance Song:  Sweet Child Of Mine – Guns n Roses

First Dance Song:  Until – Sting

Mother/Daughter & Mother/Son Dance Song:  I Hope You Dance – Lee Ann Womack

Bouquet Toss Song:  Girls Just Want To Have Fun – Cindy Lauper

Cake Cutting Song:  Pour Some Sugar On Me – Def Leopard & Sugar Sugar – Archies

Last Dance Song:  November Rain – Guns and Roses

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Photographers =  Your Inner Song Photography

For more information about this event or to hire us as your San Diego wedding DJ click here:   Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

The Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) is a modern San Diego wedding venue tucked within Balboa Park. One nice thing about this space is that there are many options nearby for an outdoor ceremony in the park. Our couple hired me as their San Diego wedding DJ for the reception but also decided to have their ceremony in the Casa Del Prado courtyard. This allowed for a semi-private ceremony in a very busy place. There is no electricity in the area so I had to use a battery powered system for music & microphones. The bride’s uncle performed the ceremony. He was extremely nervous in the beginning but ended up doing a nice job for them and made the ceremony personal.

After the ceremony guests headed out of the courtyard over to the cocktail hour located on the East Lawn in front of the Botanical Gardens building. This lawn area is also next to the reflecting pond which makes for a scenic backdrop.  Balboa Park does not allow any electrical powered amplification so I once again had to use a battery operated sound system in the cocktail hour area.

Our couple lives in Tanzania so of course there was an African theme throughout the entire wedding reception. This theme was evident in the personalized table runners & linens that they had hand made in Africa. An artist they met in Africa designed the beaded table number card holders. For unique wedding favors they gave out packets of spices from the Zanzibar region and also colorful handmade Zanzibari scarfs for all of the women. They brought these back from Dar Es Salaam & Zanzibar’s Stonetown. You can see the handmade scarves displayed on the hand railing at the entrance to the museum.

Instead of a traditional wedding cake our couple decided to have a variety of different flavored cupcakes with a smaller cake on top for the two of them to cut. Check out the “mustachio” cupcakes! These were a white chocolate pistachio cake with pistachio butter cream and of course different shaped mustaches to top them all off.

The museum is an all white space so you really need to bring in some lighting to warm things up and create more of a wedding environment. I provided 10 red uplights around the reception gallery that added some necessary color.

This is probably my most musically unique wedding this year. They hired me as their San Diego wedding DJ over the phone since they were planning from a distance. Once they arrived in San Diego a few weeks before the wedding our couple gave me lots of DJ friendly African music that they brought back with them. We all knew that typically (American) wedding guests will only dance to songs they have heard many time times before so all of us were not sure if their guests would dance to this music since it was unfamiliar to most of them. We talked it over and thought we would test out the waters that night and see what happens. I listened to and categorized all of this music in advance. This allowed me sort the music by beats per minute and to seamlessly mix in their African songs in between some mainstream dance music and popular American favorites. It was sort of a back and forth between the styles all night. They actually ate it up and had a great time. I honestly think the seamless beat mixing really helped keep that momentum going from a familiar song into an unfamiliar song and then back to something familiar again. Essentially I didn’t give them a chance to have a “conscious moment” to think: What song is this? Do I like this song? Do I want to dance to this song? It just happens. This was a really fun and unique wedding that I will definitely remember.

San Diego Wedding Lighting & Extras Provided:  10 Uplights,  Battery Powered Sound System for Ceremony & Cocktail Hour

SAN DIEGO WEDDING DJ MUSIC:

Ceremony Wedding Party Entrance – “A River Flow in You” by Yiruma

Ceremony Bride’s Processional - “Neria” by Oliver Mtukudzi

Ceremony Recessional – “L.O.V.E.” by Natalie Cole

Bridal Party Introductions -  “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” by Shakira

First Dance – “Malaika” by Harry Belafonte and Miriam Makeba

Cake Cutting – “Closer to the Bone” by Louis Prima

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Catering =  Personal Touch Catering

Coordinator =  San Diego Weddings by Gina

Florist =  Haydee’s Creative Flowers

Photographer =  Amazonas Photography

Cake & Cupcakes =  Elizabethan Desserts

Transportation =  Haynes Antique Car

For more information about this event or to hire us as your San Diego wedding DJ click here to visit us:   Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

Tonight I provided San Diego wedding DJ and lighting services for a wedding at the Inn At The Park Hotel, otherwise known as Park Manor Suites, which is a historic 1926 all-suite boutique hotel and is a San Diego wedding venue that is located near Balboa Park and downtown. The reception space “Top Of The Park Penthouse” is located on the top floor.

There are two nice outdoor patio areas for a ceremony or cocktail hour which can be a perfect setting to enjoy great views of downtown. For some reason there are always amazing sunsets overlooking the water and city when I work here. There is a nice dining area and a permanent bar / dance floor. Jim Harmon is always great to work with. He is always attentive to every detail and truly cares about the outcome of each event.

As you can see in the photo below our bride and groom a made their grand entrance into the hotel from below. One unique wedding idea was to have all of the guests throw flower petals off the seventh floor balcony area as they arrived. It made for some great photos. As their San Diego wedding DJ and MC I then introduced our couple into the ballroom. They made their way directly onto the dance floor and started off immediately dancing (not the first dance) as the mariachi played. They were truly having a great time and I knew it was going to be a fun night!

After cocktail hour guests were seated in the dining area for dinner. As I mentioned earlier I was hired as their San Diego wedding DJ but they also hired me to provide lighting for the reception room. To really set the cake off I spotlighted it from a distance as you can see in the photo at the top. I also set 10 purple uplights throughout the space. After dinner I then invited everyone to gather around the dance floor for the couple’s first dance. This immediately lead into open dancing. They were ready!

It was mainly a Latin group tonight so as their San Diego wedding DJ I was able to play a huge variety of music. I enjoyed going back and forth mixing cumbias into hip-hop and merengue into faster 128 bpm dance music. They enjoyed the variety and it really kept everyone up on the dance floor.

San Diego Wedding Lighting & Extras Provided:  10 uplights, cake spotlighting, and slide show projection equipment

SAN DIEGO WEDDING DJ MUSIC:

Wedding Party Introductions Song:  Raise Your Glass – Pink

First Dance Song:  The Book Of Love – Peter Gabriel

Father & Daughter Dance Song: Y Cómo Es El – Marc Anthony

Mother & Son Dance Song:  Wonderful World – Louis Armstrong

Cake Cutting Song:  Lucky – Jason Mraz with Colbie Caillat

Last Dance Song:  Que Bonito! – Rosario

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Photographer = TLS Images

For more information about this event or to hire us as your San Diego wedding DJ click here:   Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

San Diego wedding DJ company Positive Energy Productions gives a real wedding recap of an outdoor ceremony and indoor reception at the Admiral Kidd Club. This San Diego wedding venue is located near downtown San Diego and Point Loma. Perfect weather and a great view of the skyline made for a great day. This wedding couple found me through a referral from their friends who used me as their San Diego wedding DJ back in 2007. It was great to bump into them again and speak with them for a few minutes.

When I arrived early to begin setting up equipment it seems that the military bases have all changed their vendor policies. They will only allow vendors to begin setting up equipment one hour prior to the start time of the reception. This makes things very difficult for vendors because it limits what we can do. Today I was also providing ceremony music so one hour before start time of the reception is exactly when I was supposed to start music outside at the ceremony. How am I supposed to set equipment up inside when guests are arriving and I am playing music outside? Doesn’t make sense and doesn’t make things easy for vendors. We will see how long this lasts…

The ceremony was held out on the grass overlooking downtown San Diego. I thought the flowers worked well with an early fall themed wedding. Our couple incorporated a unique wedding idea into the ceremony. At one point in the ceremony they sealed a bottle of wine in an engraved wooden box along with two personal notes. They plan on opening the box and the wine on their 1st anniversary.

Cocktail hour was held outside on the large deck. Guests were treated to a nice sunset before entering the Skyline ballroom. The table centerpieces had some interesting varieties of flowers, fruits, etc. and some rustic lanterns were also spaced out on multiple tables.

After dinner we opened up the dance floor. Guests quickly filled up the space and were ready to turn up the volume.

Dancing continued until the end and the floor was packed. They normally are very strict here about the ending time but guests were having such a good time they allowed me to play for an extra 20 minutes or so. A great way to end the evening!

MUSIC:

Ceremony Bridesmaids Entrance – “I’m Forrest…” (Forrest Gump) by Alan Silvestri

Ceremony Bride’s Entrance – “You Got What I Need” by Joshua Radin

Ceremony Recessional – “Everything” by Michael Buble

Bridal Party Introductions – “Yeah 3X” by Chris Brown

Bride & Groom Entrance - “Dynamite” by Taio Cruz

First Dance – “Custom Dance Mix” by Positive Energy DJ

Father/Daughter Dance – “Custom Dance Mix” by Positive Energy DJ

Mother/Son Dance  – “My Wish” by Rascal Flatts

Cake Cutting – “You are the best thing’” by Ray Lamontagne

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Coordinator =Annika Stackhouse

For more information about this event or if you are searching for a San Diego wedding DJ click here to contact Positive Energy Productions or call us at 858.490.0445.

Today I headed over to the Bahia Resort to provide San Diego wedding DJ services that included ceremony sound support and lots of lighting! The ceremony was held out at the gazebo overlooking the pond with about 150 guests. The bride and groom wanted instrumental songs from the Beatles playing as people arrived. We then started off the ceremony with another Beatles song and a few readings by family members. Once the ceremony was over guests then headed up to the top of the tower into the Mission Ballroom.

At the entry into the reception we were greeted by a nicely displayed table with a large centerpiece and all of the table name cards. This reception venue has great views of Mission Bay and the Sea World fireworks. The room was decorated with lots of shades of purple which seems to be the hot color this year.

I provided 12 uplights in the room along with the cake spotlighting. In the photos below you can see how the lighting comes to life as the sun goes down. Adds quite a bit of color and drama to the room. You can also see the cake spotlighting really start to make a difference at a distance. Once it was dark we were able to show a nice slide show video highlighting our couple growing up and then their relationship together.

We planned the cake cutting to take place exactly at the same time as the Sea World fireworks are going off in the background. I am looking forward to seeing some professional photos of this if they were able to capture our couple, the cake cutting, and the fireworks all at the same time.

Once we started dancing guests were ready to get up and have some fun. We had a fun photo booth over in the corner that really picked up once the party got going! Overall a very nice crowd and a great group of vendors. It always makes our work easier when we have a good team that can work together to get the job done.

Late Night Wedding Snack!

Extras Provided:

12 Uplights

Cake Spotlighting

Slide Show Projection Equipment & Screen

MUSIC:

Ceremony Bridesmaid’s Entrance – “Here Comes The Sun” by Beatles

Ceremony Bride’s Processional – “Marry Me” by Train

Ceremony Recessional – “I Do” by Colbie Caillat

Bridal Party Introductions – “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO

First Dance – “Time After Time” by Javier Colon

Father/Daughter Dance – “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac

Mother/Son Dance  – “In My Life” by Beatles

Cake Cutting – “Build Me Up Buttercup” by Foundations

Bouquet Toss – “Hey Ladies” by Beastie Boys

Garter Removal – “I Wanna Sex You Up” by Color Me Badd

Last Dance – “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Coordinator = San Diego Weddings by Gina

Florist = Nancy Stevens Wedding Flowers

Photographer = Courtney with True Photography

Cake = Sweet Cheeks Bakery

Photo Booth = The FotoBox

For more information about this event click here:  San Diego Wedding DJ

Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

Tonight’s wedding was held in downtown San Diego at the Omni Hotel. Typically the ceremony or cocktail hour is held outside on the Palm Terrace and then guests move inside to the main ballroom. Even though I have performed as the DJ for many weddings down at the Omni Hotel in the past this was actually my first wedding here that had their entire reception outside on the Palm Terrace. It was a perfect evening and a nice change of pace.

Our couple’s ceremony was held on Coronado Island so they hired me as their San Diego wedding DJ for the reception only. Even though I was only providing music and entertainment for the reception this event was a long one coming in at 6.5 hours.

The yellow flower centerpieces made for some dramatic contrast against the black and white patterned table linens. The fireplace and water fountains acted as a nice backdrop behind their head table.

A few unique wedding items were when our bride ended up surprising her new husband with a grooms cake. As they were ready to cut the wedding cake the staff wheeled out his cake that looked exactly like a large can of SPAM. He grew up in Hawaii so everyone got a great laugh! The couple then cut their wedding cake with his sword. Another unique item was when his grandmother performed a traditional hula dance for the new couple.

Our couple had their first dance outside on the terrace patio and we then invited everyone to make their way inside for the party. After all of the formalities and events were done we still had three hours of dance time left! They made it until the end…

MUSIC:

Bridal Party Introductions – “Sexyback Instrumental” by Justin Timberlake

First Dance – “When You Got a Good Thing” by Lady Antebellum

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Photographer =  Courtney with True Photography

Florist =  Rae Florae

Cake =  Sweet Cheeks Baking Company

Linens =  Concepts Event Design

For more information about this event click here:  San Diego Wedding DJ

Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

The Admiral Kidd Club is a San Diego wedding venue located near Point Loma and the airport. They have a few different ballrooms available depending on the size of the group. Their largest ballroom upstairs can accommodate around 300 to 350 guests. Our couple invited about 125 guests so we were in the Harbor Lounge located on the downstairs level.

The Friday evening event began with our couple’s wedding ceremony on the grass area overlooking San Diego bay and downtown. After the ceremony wrapped up guests moved directly to the outdoor patio area for cocktails & appetizers. One funny fact about this location is that they actually have to have a server on “seagull duty” to keep the seagulls away from the food!

Purple seems to be one of the popular colors this year. It keeps popping up wedding after wedding. The Harbor Lounge is pretty much white top to bottom so it needs a little help to warm it up. This can be achieved through the use of colored linens, chair covers, centerpieces, and the lighting. I provided some purple uplighting for the room to help add some color to the space.

As their San Diego wedding DJ I was able to play a little more current music than normal tonight. On the whole it was a younger crowd. We didn’t forget about the older generation but they seemed to tire out a little earlier in the night. Definitely some fun moments out on the dance floor.


Extras Provided: 6 Uplights

MUSIC:

Bridal Party Introductions – “I Gotta Feeling” by Black Eyed Peas

First Dance – “Come Away With Me” by Norah Jones

Cake Cutting – “Sugar, Sugar” by Archies

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Photographer = Kristen Peelle Photography

For more information about this event click here =  San Diego Wedding DJ

Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

I am back at the Museum Of Contemporary Art in La Jolla, CA. to provide sound for the ceremony, wedding DJ services, and lighting throughout the museum. The art is constantly changing and is always an interesting backdrop. The art that was up for this wedding almost seemed like they selected it for this wedding. The large lady with sunglasses looked great behind our couple’s head table.

There were many personal touches to this wedding. One of their friends designed the invitations, the bride’s brother recorded a song which we were able to play during dinner (which was a total surprise for him), another friend made their cake, and yet another made cupcakes.

The reception area is mostly a blank canvas consisting of white walls and white/grey flooring. This is an excellent opportunity to add in lots of lighting to increase the drama and incorporate the individual colors of the wedding into the space. Tonight I provided 16 uplights and also spotlighted the cake.

I helped our couple create a custom first dance by increasing the speed of the song to fit their dance. I also cut portions out and joined the segments together to reduce the overall length down to a comfortable two and a half minutes. I wasn’t too sure which way this wedding was going to go when it came to dancing. I was truly surprised at how wild the group was. It turned out to be a blast and they really had a great time! A final sparkler exit to help see our couple off…

Click here to view the professional video highlights from this wedding.

Click here to view some of the professional photos from this wedding.

MUSIC:

Bridal Party Introductions – “Haretaraii ne 14″

First Dance - “Catch My Disease” by Ben Le

Last Dance – “Wonderful Tonight” by Eric Clapton

SAN DIEGO WEDDING VENDORS:

Coordinator = Theory Weddings and Events

Photographer = One… Two… Snap… Photography

Videographer = Side By Side Video

Catering = Tapenade Restaurant

Florist = Modern Bouquet

Rentals & Decor = Classic Party Rentals

For more information about this event click here:  San Diego Wedding DJ

Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445

Well it’s been a while since I have DJ’d a wedding at Bernardo Winery (back in 2003 to be exact!). Pretty nice San Diego outdoor reception space with a garden / winery type setting. The only major thing that has changed since I was there last is the fact that the DJ has to plug into their sound system and use their speakers for the entire event. This is because they have multiple houses located directly next door and they have gotten many complaints in the past. I will try to be nice about this… let’s just say the volume is WAY too low for dancing. It is appropriate for a crowd that is not looking for a big dance party. I would describe the maximum volume just slightly louder than “cocktail hour” volume. Difficult to inspire a party without a little more volume! That can be worked around with the correct casual group. The major problem I had was the volume when it came to using the microphone for introductions, announcements, events, and toasts. Either too soft or totally distorted! Anyways back on track… I think the bride did an excellent job designing all of the wedding elements for this event herself. It really fit the rustic feel of the outdoor winery location.

The ceremony was held off to the side of the reception space under the gazebo. Perfect weather for our couple…

Cocktail hour was then held under the covered patio area & Cake

Colorful candy bar that disappeared in minutes! Always a hit.

One unique wedding item was the guestbook. Each guest was invited to “leaf” their fingerprint on the tree in the photo below along with their signature. A fun way to display the “guestbook” at a wedding.

Dancing was fairly reserved this afternoon/evening. I think it was appropriate for the winery setting and the limited volume we were aloud to play music at.

MUSIC:

Ceremony Bridesmaid’s Entrance – “Canon In D” by Pachabel

Ceremony Bride’s Processional - “Wedding March” by Wagner

Ceremony Recessional – “Signed Sealed Delivered” by Stevie Wonder

Bridal Party Introductions – “Good Life” by One Republic

First Dance – “Marry Me” by Train

Last Dance – “Carolina In My Mind” by James Taylor

For more information about this event click here:  San Diego Wedding DJ

Positive Energy Productions  |  858.490.0445