As a wedding photographer, I’ve seen almost everything imaginable that can happen on a wedding day, but the craziest stuff aside, there are some small things that I notice time and time again that, if changed, could drastically improve my couple’s wedding day experience. I want what’s best for my couples, and I realize that, for most of them, this is their first time doing this, and they don’t attend weddings and see behind the scenes every single weekend. Therefore, I wanted to share a few things that I’ve noticed that could dramatically improve the wedding day.
1. We. Need. Time.
Here’s the deal: we do an engagement session with our couples, and we have an hour and a half of uninterrupted stress-free time with them to get lots of fun creative shots. However, on the biggest day, the actual wedding day, we often get about 15 minutes of rushed time for portraits at which point the couple is stressed and worn out. It may seem like giving your photographer an hour of photo time after the ceremony is a lot, but when we break that down, that’s 20-30 minutes of family photos, 15 minutes of the bridal party, and then that leaves about 15 minutes for bride and groom. After going through the ceremony and then all the family photos and bridal party, the couple is typically worn out, and not in a super great mood to do portraits, and the photographer has the coordinator standing behind checking her watch. Do you see what I mean? If portraits are important to you on the wedding day, which they should be as those are probably the photos you’ll be hanging on your walls, you should take this into consideration.
2. Not Doing a First Look Will Stress You Out
This brings me to my second point. To offset everything I said above, a first look is a solution! If you don’t do a first look, you have to do literally all of your photos after the ceremony, which means photos are rushed and stressful. Whereas, doing a first look means you have all the time in the world to get photos before the ceremony at a time when you don’t have 100 guests waiting on you and the coordinator checking her watch because she’s trying to stay on schedule. I know I know…you’re thinking a first look will ruin the “reaction” of when you come down the aisle, but trust me on this- it doesn’t. In fact, I often find people react more in that aisle moment after doing a first look, because they’ve been able to ease some of their nerves, so they’re able to feel all the things.
3. Too Many Guests Will Stress You Out
I wish someone had told me this for my own wedding. I figured what’s the harm in inviting literally everyone. It’s a party! But here’s the deal: the more people you invite, the more people you have to mingle with and take selfies with. I’ve seen too many of my couples be totally exhausted during their reception and hardly get to dance and enjoy themselves because they’re spending their whole reception time trying to make their rounds to talk to everyone and take all the requested selfies with their guests. Remember that this day is about you. Consider inviting only those who you have a deep connection with that you know will be in your lives forever. You want to be able to let loose and truly celebrate on your wedding day. I hope this was helpful. These are things I wish I had been told for my own wedding, and it’s things I see affect many of my couples. It makes me so sad, because I want them to truly be able to relax and enjoy their wedding day.
