GETTING WEDDING PHOTOS YOU LOVE

PART TWO – THE CEREMONY

Every bride imagines her photographer capturing pinterest perfect images throughout her special day but sometimes reality can be a little different than whats inside your head.  Its so super important that you are getting photos you love and here are a few things to keep in mind before you even book the venue or start your planning process. Obviously step one is to hire a photographer (or any wedding vendor for that matter) who will be upfront and honest with you. Someone who is ok telling you that your not planning enough time or that something you are wanting may not work. This is a little something I like to call “Managing Expectations” and its amazingly beneficial to my couples.

Let’s be real… a photographer who doesn’t advise you in the right direction will only give you false hope and a bunch of photos that are not what you expected. So, right here and now I am speaking up, so please listen!! I promise that everything I am saying here will help improve your images, getting wedding photos you love and adore. Last time we went over the getting ready process. Click Here if you have not already read it yet as it is very helpful! If you have read it and are ready to move on to the next section please read on! We will be discussing what to look for at the Ceremony Location.

The Ceremony

Many couples go out into the wedding world and just pick a place for their wedding based on the budget, the way it “feels” or something along those lines but usually fail to think of many important things before signing the papers. This is a tricky problem. Many wedding venues are unaware of issues that may arise due to bad lighting, lack of planning or forethought on the venues part and most engaged couples (who have probably never planned a wedding before) don’t know what to look for so that they can prevent a bad situation. By the time the couple gets to booking their photographer, the venue is locked in stone and there is no changing that. In order to prevent problems at the ceremony, we have come up with some pointers to help you know what to look for. Don’t worry! If you already have your venue booked then there are some simple fixes for most of these problems.

First things first. When you visit your venue try to go at the same time of year and around the same time as your wedding’s start time so that you can see exactly what you will be dealing with. Remember, based on the season and the time of day the lighting will be different. It may look nice and shady and then one hour later it will be full sun. You need to go as close as possible to the correct time so that you have an accurate visual. What are you looking for? Stand in the same spots as you will on the wedding day and see how your shadows land. You want to avoid having the grooms shadow land on the bride and vice versa. Also, look for any trees, lights or other objects that may be casting shadows onto the bride and groom. Trees are ok if you are in full shade with no speckled sun spots.

In the example above, they could have solved this problem by overlapping the fabric sections so that there were no gaps.

Another thing that people don’t often think about is being in full sun. This may not be a problem for photos but its a problem for your guests! Don’t let your Grandma sit in the hot sun!!! You want everyone to be comfortable so try to make the necessary arrangements so they are Hydrated and happy! Try getting parasols and having bottled water or a drink station at the ceremony site. Your guests will thank you!

Something that I see more often then I care to admit is the center isle not being large enough.  If you are going to have 3 people walk down the isle together then add up the width of 3 people PLUS the width of your dress (big gowns take up a lot of space) and if you have flowers down the isle add width for that as well. Once you have done all that add a few feet in just for padding and make your isle that wide.

We always see people who don’t figure this out and have to scrunch together down the isle or end up nocking down the flowers that go down the isle. It seems like an obvious thing and it should be something that wedding planners calculate but you would be surprised!

Big tall florals (or other tall items) going down the center of the isle can be beautiful but can also keep guests from seeing what is happening. Anyone who sits near the isle will only be able to see either the bridesmaids or the groomsmen but will be unable to see the couple in the middle. Not only that, but because they are so tall, they can get in the way of getting photos with different angles. We are limited to taking photos right down the center or we have to go far left or far right next to the 1st isle. Anywhere else you can’t see the bride and groom. This also causes other problems for the photo and video team. Guests tend to lean into the isle or sometimes even get out of their seat so they can get a photo and end up blocking our shot. Try to opt for lower pieces that people can see over.

Think about where you stand. You want to have a nice view or a nice background of some kind. Take notice… can you see cars or other unwanted objects? Did you look at all angles – to the left and right? Also you want to make sure you stand centered to the isle. There is nothing worse than a nice straight isle and you and your husband/wife to be are not directly at the end. This often happens because the officient is standing off centered and the couple stands in front of him/her. Try to place a small piece of tape where the officient stands & where the groom stands. Then when the bride comes down the isle, its only natural that where she stands will also be centered.

A few small tidbits? Make sure there is ample parking or hire a shuttle company; Check the locations rules and regulations; make sure there is a nice green area or beautiful architecture on site or nearby to take photos afterwards; and Finally, timing is everything. Try not to get married at dusk. The sunlight changes so fast and as it gets darker is makes it harder to get a clear shot without flashes. We prefer not to use flash for a ceremony as it becomes distracting to guests and the photos have a more un-natural quality. Plan to have your ceremony at least 1 hour before sunset or longer if you need to do photos before the reception.

Check back next time when we talk about Formal photos and how much time to calculate for them.

Cheers!

-Stephanie