Wedding Tips

Here are some general tips for making your wedding “more photogenic.”  These should hold true for any wedding photographer — be sure to discuss these topics with the photographer you choose so there is no confusion (or at least a little less confusion…) when The Big Day comes.

• TALK TO YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER.  Understand what style they are comfortable with and what style you expect your photographs will be taken.  If you have a list of “must have” photos, let the photographer know ahead of time!  Also consider making lists of family members and group photos you want to have; communicate those things to your photographer ahead of time so everyone is on the same page.

• Decorate the dressing room(s) with the same attention to detail (if not MORE) than the rest of the wedding location.  Some of the most emotional photos you’ll take away from your wedding day will likely be taken in your dressing room(s).  Be sure everyone involved in dressing themselves and helping others dress understands who the photographer is and where they will be.  Any reputable photographer will allow him or her self to be excused at various times if people are uncomfortable with any level of nudity around a camera.  Your photographer should be happy to accommodate anyone’s personal needs or requests for privacy.

• Clean the dressing room!  Consider that anything within view will be potential background for any photo taken in the room.  A distracting pile of trash in the background can ruin a beautiful foreground.  Don’t make the room “too clean,” though…  Consider that “messes” are okay if they are clearly wedding-related messes — flowers, dresses, shoes, purses, jewelry — those all make great backgrounds; empty boxes and wadded up newspapers might not.  Consider covering up anything distracting (ugly furniture, large boxes, etc.) with single-color (ideally white or off-white) cloth or drapery.

• When choosing dressing rooms, pick a room with lots of space to spread out and move around – this eases the photographer’s ability to get into position to “get the shot,” and allows more creativity with lens selection and focal lengths.

• Choose a room with lots of *indirect* natural light.  By that, I mean ideally somewhere with lots of big North-facing windows; it’s also great to have some translucent/white curtains to pull to soften the incoming light even more.  If you only have windows which allow sunlight to come directly into the room, try to get some kind of light-diffusing curtains or scrim material to help soften the light.  You might think those bright beams of light pouring in would look great in your photos… but you’d be in for some very unpleasant surprises when your proofs come in.  Diffused natural light is the very best light for photography; the more you can help mother nature along to get everything naturally, indirectly lit, the better your photos will turn out.

• Other lighting ideas — Christmas lights (ideally steady-on white lights), rope lights or even lots of lit candles (if the location allows).  They make great background accents and and help provide additional diffuse, soft light.

• Consider the lighting for the reception, too!  Dimly-lit rooms with lots of disco balls and laser-lights might make a great dance party, but it’s a horrible combination if you expect to see any photographs of it.  Here again, moderate/indirect light is great.  Consider lighting around the outskirts of the reception area with the same accent lights mentioned above — candles, Christmas lights, rope lights, etc.  Lighting up the background will help prevent the “black hole” effect that is common when use of a flash is required.  What I call the “black hole” effect is when the subject in the foreground is illuminated by the flash, but the background is too far away for the flash to reach, and if it has no light of it’s own, it will appear completely black…  So the subject(s) look like they are in a black hole — not always the most natural or flattering effect.

• Lighting effects like disco balls, strobes, lasers, and other “bursty” lights can really play havoc on photography.  For the really important moments in the reception (bride and groom first dance, other family dances you want photos of, toasts, etc.), ask the DJ to leave the special effects OFF.  When the floor is full of happy friends and family, all whooping-it-up and celebrating with you, the DJ can fire up all the light effects they desire… but leave them off for the really important moments.

• Have fun! Don’t be afraid to ham-it-up for the photographer from time to time.  Silly moments can be great moments to look back on later — remember, it’s a fun, wonderful day!