We want to capture the best photos on the happiest day of your life. Here are some things that you can keep in mind to make sure your wedding photography is done in the best possible way and we are able to capture the precious moments.
Pre-wedding
- When choosing locations for your pre-wedding photos, 1-2 great locations are better than multiple locations. If there are too many locations far apart from each other, you might spend more time travelling than actually taking photos. Keep in mind that photographers take about 15 minutes or more just to set up and pack their equipment and get ready for a shot.
- For outdoor photoshoots the best time to photograph (outside) is 1 hour before sunset and the worst time is between 12pm to 2pm. The lighting is too harsh and you would be sweating in your wedding attires.
- Have the bridal party around for about 30-45 minutes and allow them to leave once they are done with their bit of photography. This allows them to enjoy the day and also gives you some sort of privacy in case you find it hard to get romantic with your friends standing around making humorous remarks.
Wedding Day
- Photographing the wedding venue should take about an hour or so, so budget in the time for that.
- Have ready and unpack the rings, shoes, and other items you want photographed before the photographers arrive.
- Hire the best makeup artist you can afford, they will bring out your natural beauty and you will look amazing in the pictures.
- Book a trial make up and hair session with your make-up artist before the wedding day, so as to avoid instances where you do not like the hair and make up and lots of time is wasted re-doing, leaving little time for photographs.
- When we are taking pictures of you getting ready, all the important people should be there, but not too many so that we are not able to get a decent picture of you.
- Pick a large room, if possible, for your bridal preparation. This will allow us to shoot from various angles and we will also be able to use long lenses that have a flattering effect.
- Natural lighting is always the best, so consider getting your make-up done by a window where sufficient light can pour in. You might actually want to ask your photographer where they would like you to get your make-up done, before instructing your make-up artist.
- Consider a hairstyle pulling your hair back from the sides. If your hair is down, your hair will cover your face in the candid shots of you where you are looking away from the camera.
- The men of the wedding party (especially the groom) should not keep anything in their pockets, including keys and phones. It looks rather bad in photographs.
- If you are getting married in a religious institution, such as a church or temple, ask the priest/officiant about any rules or restrictions towards photography.
- If there is ring exchange as part of your wedding ceremony, slow down the ring exchange to allow us to get several shots of you doing it.
- Stay close and pay attention to your partner during the signing of Certificate of Marriage so that we are able to document the very important moment. If not, leave some time after the ceremony to “fake sign” it to allow us to get more great pictures.
- After the ceremony, plan for 15-20 minutes of family time where we can get shots of family members congratulating you, hugging, kissing, etc.
- If you are having a first dance during your reception, if the bride is shorter than the groom, we would not be able to get shots of her face if she hugs him the entire time.
These are just some tips to allow the photographers to make your wedding photos the best they can be. The most important thing is for you to enjoy the day and allow the photographer to document you in your most candid and happy precious moments.