Making The Most Of Your Wedding Photographer

You put months (sometimes years if you’re a little bit cray like me) into planning your wedding day, poring over Pinterest and endless wedding blogs . You make sure everything is planned down to the finest detail because not only do you want to get hitched without a hitch, you want it to look freaking spectacular! So when you’ve chosen the perfect colour blooms to offset your mitchy-matchy bridesmaids dresses and your wedding invitation suite that went out 6 months ago was designed to set the tone for your big day, when it’s all said and done the only thing you’ll have left are the photographs. Why would you not put the same level of care into having it all documented?

Wedding photographers are pretty amazing, they can see the best angles and light to capture to flatter tf out of you and they can make a basic scene like getting ready in a tiny bathroom look like a masterpiece. But those beautiful, magazine worthy images don’t just happen by chance, well not all of them anyway. Here’s how to get the absolute best out of your images.

Pre Planning Like a Boss

Your wedding photographer should want to know exactly what you’ve got going down and when, from what time you’re planning on putting your shoes on to when you’re making your grand exit, you want someone who is as excited about capturing it all as you are.

Having your photographer help you create a detailed timeline of your day ensures they help you stay on schedule when you’ve had one too many bubblies and no important pieces of your story get missed.

Better yet, if you’ve got loads happening and lots of vendors to keep track of consider hiring a planner. A planner will work with all of your vendors and keep everyone on schedule.

It’s All In The Detail

For real. A typical wedding gallery is 30% people and 70% details. Sounds crazy, right? But after you look at the flowers, the outfits, the dresses, the ceremony set up, your cake, ALL of the things that you’ve put time and effort into working into your aesthetic, those things will be discarded or packed away so you want those details captured and gracing the pages of your wedding album. So not only do you want to create a cohesive style that flows and tells your story, you need to allow your photographer adequate time to capture it. Again this is where the timeline comes in, let your photographer know about special jewellery, if your dress is sparkly and you’re obsessed with it, if you’re really excited about the grazing table. We want to know everything so we can capture it in all of its glory so you can look back on it forever and ever.

Choose somewhere BEAUTIFUL to get ready

Your getting ready images make up a pretty big portion of your album, I typically spend around 4 hours with my couples while they’re getting ready so you definitely should choose somewhere that’s going to really pop in your album. It doesn’t have to be a 5 star resort or a luxury yacht or anything but consider how you’d like your getting ready photos to look and ask your photographer for ideas. I adore anywhere with lots of natural light with a clean aesthetic or character to draw inspiration from. If you’re getting married at a farm venue chances are there’s an awesome cottage or homestead that will photograph amazingly or if you’re getting married in the city check out the air bnb’s in the area.

Consider what’s outside too, often your photographer will take some bridal portraits outdoors so if there’s a beautiful old veranda or lush greenery your photographer will love you for it.

Don’t forget the proximity between your locations either, most photographers time is continuous so you don’t want that precious coverage time to be eaten up on the road.

Consider the light

Beautiful light is my best friend. It can make an ordinary scene look amazing and vice versa. The most spectacular time to shoot your couples portraits in my opinion is golden hour in the hour before sunset so consider the time of year you’re getting married. If your wedding is in the middle of Summer the sun might not set til 9pm, you might be better off pushing your timeline forward and having your ceremony later in the afternoon than the typical 3pm and moving straight into the reception so you can sneak out later to do your portraits. If that doesn’t work for you try to ensure there’s some full shade or an awesome indoor location for some portraits. I personally like shooting in harsh light but it can be tricky to avoid unflattering shadows and raccoon eyes in the full sun.

do ENGAGEMENT photos

I’ve already written about this because I think it’s the ultimate way to get to know your photographer and get a feel for what your portraits will be like on your big day, you can check that out here but in short I love doing engagement photos with my couples because I can further get to know you and your chemistry behind the camera. It gives me an idea of how much affection your comfortable with showing or if you’d prefer your portraits to be more fun rather than loved up.

At the end of the day your wedding photographer will be your personal paparazzi on one of the craziest most intimate days of your lives so you want that person to vibe with you and bring your vision to life.

have a first look

I love love LOVE a first look! Especially for a Winter wedding when the days are shorter. It’s such a perfect way to ease the nerves and get a big portion of the portraits out of the way so you can hit the d floor sooner.

If you’ve never seen a first look I position my couples so that one partner creeps up on the other and I capture their reactions to them seeing each other for the first time, it’s usually really emotional and heartfelt and then we jump into a few portraits. If it’s a beautiful sunny day I still definitely recommend getting some portraits at sunset but a first look means you’ll be back at your party sooner.

DEFINITELY have an unplugged ceremony

My biggest pet hate is fighting a hoard of uncles and grandparents to get a shot of the first kiss or cutting of the cake. Nobody wants to look at their wedding photos only to see their nearest and dearest too busy trying to get the perfect grainy, out of focus, low resolution shot of you walking down the aisle when they should be engaged and in the moment with you. Not only that, a good wedding photographer will be one of your highest costs so you’ll really curse that guest if they get in the way with their giant iPad.

Having your celebrant or MC make an announcement or putting up a sign is a good way to deter your guests from pulling their phones out but in my experience it doesn’t always stop your great uncle Bob who is an amateur wildlife photographer from jumping in the aisle for a ‘quick snap’ of something your photographer can’t afford to miss. If you make an announcement or have signage it at least gives your photographer the authority to ask them to move aside.

hire a great band or dj for your reception

Wedding receptions are generally where the bulk of your wedding budget goes so naturally you want your guests to have an amazing and unforgettable night. A band or DJ that’s super fun an engaging will have your guests on their feet and having a great time and guests that are having great times means more for your photographer to take photos of. I find when everyone is on their feet and tearing it up I deliver 50 to 100 more images so great entertainment gives you a better return on your investment.

trust us

I ask my couples to do some weird stuff and go to some weird places for the perfect shot. If you’re funny about dirt or wind, heat or rain try to relax a bit and trust that these things are only temporary for photos that are forever. Keep an open mind that your photographer is asking you to go in for a kiss with your teeth because it creates a really magical portrait or you’re sitting in a pose that doesn’t seem humanly possible because it flatters you and it looks totally normal in the photo. We want you to absolutely adore looking at your photos as much as we love creating them for you.