Wedding Checklists

Bonus Tips

These Photographs cannot be retaken, the day cannot be relived, so enjoy it!

The photographs will only be as good as the smiles on your face, and the environment that is put together by the people involved. Don’t worry it will turn out great but here are a few tips and some advice to make your photographs or film a little better.

1. To begin: Lighting is everything!

   Lighting is everything. It is how photography was created and used since the beginning and will continue to be the most influential part of any film or image. That being said, keep it in mind. If your bridal and groom preparations are both in dark rooms with no windows, be ready for lighting equipment because the lightbulbs on the ceiling will not be sufficient. Furthermore, if your DJ brings colorful lighting for the reception be sure to have them turned off during the first dance. They look great when everyone is on the dance floor, but it tends to dirastically change the color science of your dress, the walls around you, and anything else that is white or light in color.

2. Decor: Have everything out and Ready!

   If you are wanting pictures of the dress, shoes, jewelry, rings, flowers, and everything else involved, (even the grooms suit and accessories) be sure to have them out and put aside. This helps shorten the time it takes to gather items and then photograph them allowing more time for portraits or BTS shots! Most of the time if things run late or in a hurry the first thing that will be skipped is detailed shots because, although they look AMAZING! They are not the most important (overall at least). Connect with me to really understand the importance and significance of capturing decor. Furthermore, please leave at least 10-15 minutes to capture reception decor without people inside the room.

3. Prepare a timeline for your photographer!

   This is a MUST. From personal experience of brides and grooms giving me detailed schedules vs. no schedule at all. The scheduled wedding always looks better. To be frank this is not the photographers fault. If they are not prepared enough and they are playing catch up the whole day, they may miss something. Having a timeline, or schedule is very, very, VERY beneficial. It allows the photographer to develop a plan of action to capture everything needed. Give them around an hour to capture all the little things like rings, invitations, and the dress. Remember to have those already out and ready for the photographer. By giving the photographer all this info, he or she now knows where to be and when to be there. Allowing them to prepare better and more efficiently for the day. If they are guessing and wondering what will happen next then they are not being used to their full potential. If you do not have the time or think there is no need because it is a short wedding, do it anyways, or connect with your photographer and give them a detailed plan of how the day will turn out.

4. Make a shot list of all the family and friend portraits.

   The last thing you want to happen is for Uncle Al to be forgotten in the wedding portraits. The photographer does not know anyone in your family, so the best way to maximize efforts is to create a shot list for the photographer. This way they can not only call out sides of the family but make sure everyone is present in the photograph. You can then rely on the photographer to capture everything otherwise it is up to you to make sure everyone is present in the photo. (Not ideal because so much is going through your mind, you will most likely forget a friend or distant family member).

5. Keep reasonable expectations!

   This is the most important day of your life so far! Don’t over think it. Looking back on the day that will be filled with love and all different types of emotions. Keeping reasonable expectations allows for the photographer to capture everything with ease. If you have only booked one photographer do not expect the kind of result you would get with two. As well with time, if you have not left or booked enough time for the photographer to capture everything you want to capture, do not expect it to be done. This is a big day for you, and as a photographer we want to be there to photograph every single moment. A good baseline is 6 hours which leaves around 2 hours for the photographer to capture details, rings, decorations, and everything you have down on the shot list, if time allows. We will skip decorations and close ups if the ceremony starts early or if time is delayed so always be mindful, time is valuable.

6. The last tip is to have fun and relax!

   After all this planning, and stress for the big day and now that it is finally here you most defiantly have goosebumps, you are nervous, but remember this is your day! There is no need to be worried that it will go exactly as planned because it probably won’t. Anything can happen and you should always be prepared for that! Nevertheless the Bride and Groom should relax and enjoy the amazing celebration they put forth with all of their friends and family. Regardless of how it goes it will be perfect! The only thing you need to think about now is what kind of gifts did they got you!