Hi everyone!! Thank you for stopping by 🙂  Here is  a little picture of me, how you may see me if you are a client!! haha!

 

Now that I am going on my third year of shooting weddings I wanted to share some more informative posts for the future bride! Even if I am not your photographer every bride deserves a perfect wedding day! I believe in community over competition, I will not be upset with anyone who does not book me, it is your wedding day I want you to be the happiest bride possible and just like in relationships, sometimes we just aren’t a good fit, that is perfectly fine, but for my brides, or not my brides and for those who just stumbled upon this post here are some great tips that I find would be most beneficial for your wedding day!

1. This is geographic to the southeast but May and October are the quickest months to book for weddings. If you are planning a May or October wedding book at least a year in advance, at the very least 6 months. If you are not in the southeast ask any photographer what are the busiest months of the year and you will see how far in advance you will need to book!

2. Wherever you say your I do’s make sure that the alter or place you will exchange vows is in the shade if it is anytime before sunset (most weddings will need shade). There is nothing worse than spending so much time and money planning a gorgeous wedding to squint at your hubby to be because the sun is directly in your face!! Your guests would also love you very much if they were in the shade, especially at a summer wedding!

3. This may not be a popular answer here in the south but have a first look!! It gives you and your future husband some time ALONE, I usually give my couple 5-10 minutes and then we can jump into photos after the first look is completed! More time to party after the wedding too! My brides have told me that they felt so much more comfortable walking down the aisle and it wasn’t awkward for them. This is not for everyone but a suggestion I recommend.

4. Make sure you AND your planner go over the timeline with the photographer, if you have one. THIS IS SO IMPORTANT, double check with the photographer yourself that they are good to go with the timeline. Sometimes planners miss things, it happens but just sending the photographer and email or call and making sure it all looks great will help things run much smoother the day of and alleviate a potential disaster that was overlooked!

5. Have a family formals list. This should be #1 because I see so many brides get so frazzled on their wedding day because they cant think of who they want a picture with next, aunt sue has gone to the reception, uncle Johnny is no where to be found and its just chaos! If there is a list of what pictures you would like the family members can all know at what certain time they need to be at a certain place. I or your photographer can go down the list and simply call out names who is next. There is no confusion, no where is so and so just pictures and moving along! An extra tip is don’t have your reception more than 15-20 minutes from your wedding, this will also help with the photos!

6. Unplugged. This may not be a popular thing but I can’t stress how much it plays into your wedding photos being even more amazing. Just as before with the sun in your face, you have spent a good deal of money on this day and event. You have hired a photographer who does this professionally to capture the event, leave it to them! I can’t tell you how many times I have had to stop what I am doing and ask someone to get out of the aisle as the bride is walking down! Or as they step right in front of me as the groom is seeing his bride!! SO frustrating for the photographer and for you!! I have had children step in front of me with cameras at certain times and just so many moments that were missed that there is nothing that can be done once it is over!

7. Ask your officiant if he is able to move out of the photo when you kiss. I have many photos of officiants who just look awkward/creepy staring at you kissing in the background!! There are some officiants who know to move out of the way and some who say it is impossible. It is possible, I promise, I have seen it done many times!!

 

8. Try as much as possible not to schedule your wedding (unless indoors) between 11 am and 2pm. The light is the harshest during this time and will be challenging, not impossible but challenging!

9. Let your photographer choose the locations for your photos. Some couples may have important locations that are sentimental where the lighting is not important more the place, which is wonderful and would be an exception. However, in most cases your photographer is the professional let them choose where the bridal party photos will be. I know everyone thinks they see a pretty tree and say “wow, take my photo in front of this” or “I really want the water in the background”, but the light could be absolutely horrible there and your photographer might comply but most likely the photos will not turn out as well as if you would have let her or him select!! On your wedding day there is not a lot of time for portraits, depending on if you had a first look or not you may only have an hour for family portraits, bridal party portraits, and photos of yourselves! This is NOT a lot of time and every minute counts so let them pick!! 🙂

 

10. Lastly, make sure your photographer knows how long the ceremony will last. This is one of the first questions I ask the officiant, I also ask what will be right before the kiss so that I am not on the side getting the grooms expression shot when he or she announces “you may not kiss the bride” that would be horrible!! I really have nightmares about           missing the kiss!! Some ceremonies the kiss is not announced which is extra stressful, but good to know in advance!

I have so many more tips and plan to do this more often so that those who do not deal with this often can have some insight on what to do on your wedding day!! I appreciate the brides who are extremely busy and have a planner but checking on some things will only benefit you!! Please make sure to establish a relationship with your photographer as it is a very important one!! 🙂 Hope you guys are having a good week and stay COOL!!