This year has been a busy year with lots of amazing weddings & sessions!! I still have a few more weddings to go before I call my wedding season to a close for 2016, but I thought I’d post a handful of tips for brides when it comes to photos and your wedding day!! My goal is to every once in a while post tips to my brides, families, seniors, etc… There won’t be any rhyme or reason to them, just things I think my clients and others would benefit from!! These are totally in a random order but they are all things I’ve thought about after weddings this year or even in groups I’m in with other wedding professionals. Here are a few tips I’d give my brides or any bride prior to their wedding day!!
1. Ask your guests to put away their cameras, phones, ipads, etc… during the ENTIRE ceremony. So many times this year I’ve seen guest block the grooms view (and more than likely they didn’t even realize it) of his bride walking towards him because they wanted a photo of her and y’all it makes me sad because I know how badly that groom wants to see his bride. There’s also a chance that the devices might get in the way of the photographer and shots could be missed because of it and you may not want photos with all these devices sticking up in the air, out in the aisle, etc.. At some point this year I saw another photographer post a photo of a guest walking in front of them during the first kiss and the photographer didn’t get the photo. So all of that to say… if you want distraction free photos, but more importantly want your guests to actually be present during the entire ceremony simply ask that they not pull out their phones or cameras!! Be gentle and kind about it and let them know that you’re all about sharing the photos after you receive them!!
2. Have a nice hanger for your dress. Most dresses leave their bridal stores on those not so nice plastic hangers. While those hangers do the job, they aren’t the prettiest for photos of your dress. It doesn’t have to say anything or be anything fancy. A plain wooden hanger will do the trick!!!
3. In the room that you are getting ready in, be sure to keep it uncluttered and clean. That way you don’t have soda bottles or bags in your photos!!
4. Have all three rings with you when the photographer arrives. I start with detail photos and one of the details I photograph on a wedding day are all three rings together (engagement ring, brides wedding band, & grooms wedding band). So just be sure bride has all three rings. I always make sure that everyone who needs the rings gets them prior to their ceremony!!
5. Think about lighting. I’m not a huge flash photographer. There’s nothing wrong with flash but I definitely prefer natural light = WINDOWS!!! I can make any lighting scenario work, but if you want the best photos (with me as a photographer) then know that the more natural light the better. ESPECIALLY in the room you get ready in.
6. Celebration lighting. Most people don’t even think about the lighting that a DJ might have. I’m all for fun lighting (my favorite are the Edison bulbs that are strung across rooms) but a lot of dj’s will have the flashing small lights and strobes. There is nothing wrong with them, but please know I can not remove the colored dots that they may leave on you and your guests while you are celebrating!! 🙂
7. Have the bouquets delivered when the photographer arrives, that way they can be used for detail photos and photos can be taken of the flowers!!!
8. All aspects of a wedding day are important… but the thing that is most important is the actual marriage between the bride & groom. This is y’alls day. In my humble 😉 opinion that means the two of you need to walk away with photos that capture the two of you on that day so you can remember it for the rest of your lives. If you are wanting a lot of photos of just the two of you be sure to carve out a good amount of time for just that!!
9. If you’re wanting to take photos in different locations or around town, know that we may need transportation so we can hop in and out quickly and then get the two of you back so you can celebrate with your family and friends!! Also, if we’re traveling all over for photos… make sure give us time for these photos!!
10. Pad your wedding day timeline with extra time!! 🙂 🙂 Hopefully nothing will go wrong or get behind on your wedding day. But just in case, I would pad your day with extra time because you never know what could happen. I know when I work through timelines with my brides I pad the photography timelines to account for anything and everything. Yes that means sometimes we get done and have extra time, but that’s okay… it means the bride & groom aren’t being rushed and hurried and that’s always a good thing!! And it also means I can take more photos of the bride & groom which is always an amazing thing!!!
11. There is no such thing as over communication with your family and bridal party about photos before and/or after the wedding. If everyone is where they are supposed to be and on time it makes photo time easy peasy!!
12. This is the most important tip I have for any bride AND groom….. Enjoy your wedding day!!!!!!!!!! OHHH and remember that at the end of the day the most important thing is that y’all are married & you get to spend your lives together!!!!
This was fun to write!! Looking forward to doing more tips posts in the future!!!
Kendra Martin Photography is a Greenville, SC Wedding Photographer & Spartanburg Photographer. Kendra specializes in Wedding Photography, Senior Photography, and Lifestyle Photography. Kendra is located in the upstate of South Carolina but is always up to travel!!
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