Top Tips To Get The Best Wedding Photographs
Congratulations!
You’ve made the decision to get married and the excitement is building.
‘But wait’ says a voice in your head.
There are so many things to do and a million different options to consider.
Having confidence on your big day is important for you to be able to relax and enjoy yourself. Below I’ve included some advice that I hope can help you to understand the entire process and ultimately get the best out of your Wedding Photography.
Having confidence in your wedding photographer, starting with the initial consultation, through to post production editing and all that goes on in between will definitely help you to feel prepared and relaxed.
Get to know your photographer
Sound obvious? Your wedding photography is about visually capturing all the wonderful details of your wedding Day. But your story has not started there. Many events, relationships and other factors have led you to make this life long commitment to each other. It’s my aim to get to know you both a little bit better in order to ultimately be able to visually portray your unique narrative. Sometimes it’s the little actions or personality traits that can play a big part in the telling of your story. Feeling comfortable with us as your photographers is essential as we will spend most of the day discretely documenting your actions.
We always set up an initial chat with couples, either face to face or on screen in order to kick start the process. An engagement shoot is also a great way for us to get to know you better and for you to feel comfortable being in front of the lens, not to mention you will recieve awesome engagement photos!
Your Wedding, Your story
Every Wedding is as unique as the couple and their story. I want couples wedding photographs to reflect this. Sometimes that means having photos taken at a certain location that holds personal significance or perhaps ensuring a tear jerking encounter or exchange of gifts with a loved one is documented on the day. We can collaborate with you to get the shots you envisage from your day. Don't be shy about suggesting a beautiful or interesting spot for images that we may not know about, especially if it’s meaningful to you both!!
Bear in mind what opportunities there are when you look for your venue and then embrace it. If you're celebrating in a city centre, make the most of the urban and often gritty scenes, but if you're marrying in the country your images may have a more rural and natural feel to them.
Click here to see Gerard and Yukos Story
Light is the Photographers Paint
The season in which you’re getting married will really impact on your wedding photography because of the available natural light. In December, the sun sets in Belfast at around 3pm so you will likely have a reduced amount of daylight hours after your ceremony to get your portraits and group shots outside. For this reason, we would consider indoor locations.
On the other hand, the mid afternoon direct sunlight that often accompanies summer months can create challenges of their own in terms of shadows. These things are always taken into consideration.
Discussions with couples about timings and locations means we are well prepped in advance and therefore able to direct you on what will be best to ensure perfect images on the day. Initial consultations enable us to discuss other potential ideas you may have in mind, such as sparkler exits, lantern send offs or those dreamy golden hour couples portraits.
Embrace the Elements
So, you’ve planned everything meticulously and everything is good to go, but there is just that one thing that leaves you wondering- What is the weather going to do? Regardless of what the weather does, make the most of it and embrace it! Wind, rain and snow can all provide very dramatic photos.
Keep an eye on the weather forecast in the days before and plan for it rather than worry about it. Bring along some fun wellies and colourful umbrellas to make the most of photo opportunities the weather may throw at you! Whatever happens with the weather, you will be having too much fun to care, and that is what we always want to capture!
Timings
Planning a realistic time frame for your wedding day is key in order to get the best of your wedding photography without the stress! It is amazing how quickly time flies during the actual day, you therefore want to feel safe in the knowledge that all the finer details have been taken into consideration. We liaise with the venue management throughout the day regarding timings to make this all as smooth as possible, allowing you to enjoy your day and mingle with your guests!
Allow enough time to get ready. We always start documenting preparations two hours or so before your ceremony and you should aim to be dressed 15-20 minutes before you need to set off.
Allow plenty of time for travelling on the day, particularly if you're driving through a city or for a longer stretch between locations.
Check how long your ceremony will be and allow time for greeting guests outside afterwards, as well as for epic confetti throwing shots! (if this is something you choose to do).
Once you arrive at your reception we like to have 1-2 hours (depending on whether you stopped for photos before) to capture mingling shots of guests, family and formal photographs and some beautiful portraits of you both. If you request extra group shots, again make sure there is enough time and the significant people have been informed in advance so they know when to be around. A good idea is for us to discuss what family or group shots are important to you both and then get these shots out of the way before anyone gets too merry or side tracked talking to a great aunt they’ve not seen in donkeys! Delegate a reliable groomsman or bridesmaid the task of gathering up those all important people.
Prior to the wedding we always provide couples with a timings form to fill in ahead of the wedding day which should contain all the information about where you're getting ready, your ceremony time, meal time, speeches and details of the evening entertainment.
Preparations
Bride and Groom preparations are one most exciting parts of the day. The jitters, energy and anticipation at these locations often sets the establishing scene for the story that’s about to unfold. There may be certain actions whilst getting ready that we sometimes suggest are best done next to a window to create a more naturally dramatic photograph.
As mentioned, we normally arrive two hours before the ceremony so that we can capture particular photos on our shot list; shoes, dress ,flowers, cufflinks, rings, etc…all those details that are so meaningful to you and you’ll cherish looking back on in the future.
Trust your Photographer
When couples book with us we will have discussed and planned many of the things listed above. Therefore, on the day, you should be able to relax and enjoy yourselves in the knowledge that all the hard work and meticulous planning will pay off. Being photographed, for most of us, isn't the most natural thing, but I often find that having a good rapport with couples and gaining their trust, settles any initial anxieties, allowing us to capture the most magical day of your life. Being relaxed, you will be the happiest and best version of yourself on the day, so settle into the celebrations and let us capture your story. You won’t even know we’re there for the most part of the day!