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Wedding Photography Tips

Part 1

Another page on how to organise your wedding? No, and it is not a a page of wedding photography tips with standard picture lists either.

      This page is different these wedding photography tips will give you ideas to organise the day so that your photographer will have the time and oppertunity to shoot the best and most exciting pictures of your wedding day you ever could imagine.

 1. Communicate with your Photographer

Wedding Photography tipsOf course to get the best pictures you should hire a professional photographer in the first place.
Your photographer should be flexible, approacheable, be able to improvise, and make the best of challenging circumstances.
Discuss with your photographer what kind of pictures you want, what the day will be like, how you will schedule the day will help him/her to be prepared and get the best images of the day.

Make sure you meet and talk with your photographer before the wedding about your plans, and ask your Photographer to visit the different venues if possible.

 2. Photography at the Ceremony

Exchanging the ringsMake sure that the photographer knows if there are (if any) restrictions on photography during the wedding ceremony / church service, and signing the register.
Some churches will object to flash photography, which should not be a problem but it is better to know before the wedding day.

 3. Book your photographer for the whole day

Do not budget on your photography because in the end your pictures are all what is left of your wedding day.
When you hire the photographer for the whole day, he/she will be able to cover every aspect of your wedding day, you will also be able to go to a location to have some pictures taken of the two of you. The photographer will have also the time to capture how much fun you had, the details, candid's of your guests, etc. etc. You will have a stunning series of images which will tell the story of the day in all it's detail, which will look great in a modern magazine style wedding album.

*Remember! Many photographers who do bookings for a couple of hours only, often do book more weddings on the same day, which will be a problem when you are running late, as he/she has to be in time for the next job.

4. Book you Photographer Now!

Booking you wedding photographer is an important decision you have to make. You should never put this of till the last moment as it could mean that your first choice of Photographer has been booked up already.

When you book early it will also be easier to spread the payments.

So make booking your photographer a priority.

 5. Timing

This wedding photography tip is often ignored and it is often to late to make changes when all plans are already finalised. But timing is important!
Make sure that the day is well organised and that enough time is reserved for every stage of your wedding day.

Allow enough time for travel between venues.

Wedding transportYou might want to try to keep travel distances as short as possible by selecting a venue where you can get married and have your wedding breakfast and party. Everyone can arrive at the venue knowing they do not have to travel any more.
The grounds of such venues have often great photo opportunities.

When you use different venues make sure you really allow enough time for travel, you do not want to rush from one venue to the other.

Sat navs and Google are no good at predicting travel time. A good idea is to try it out and time the distance before your wedding on the same day and time as you are planning your wedding day.
Limousine Travel
Print a map for your guests especially for those who are not familiar with the area, remember that they do not know the short cuts.

Another option is to hire transport for your guests, like a famous London Bus or limos.

Remember that when you get married at a register office you should arrive on time because often a next wedding party is booked after you.

Also the next wedding photography tip is about timing.

 6. Plan your wedding early in the Day

In the UK the Bride and the Groom traditionally meet at the church or at the register office, and often they do not want to meet before that time.

If there is no important reason, schedule the actual ceremony early in the day! Why?

If your wedding is late in the Location Photographyafternoon, you will have to wait around most of the day after which everything has to be done in a very short time and will be a rush.

There will be less time to do formal pictures, and unless you organise the wedding breakfast later in the evening there won't be any time to do location pictures.
More about the location shoot on the next page of wedding photography tips.
 
From October / November the light is fading early and in the winter it is almost dark at 4PM, this will influence the opportunities for pictures. Pictures at dark can look great, but make sure that there is enough time to take them. 

If the Ceremony and the Party are at the  same place or the distances are very small then a later wedding won't be such a problem.

On the continent the timing is not that critical because often the bride and the groom meet before the actual ceremony and arrive together at the register office or church. The couple has then the option to go for location pictures before the wedding takes place.
That could work in the UK!?

 7. Be flexible

Of course you have to be on time at the ceremony (although that does not always happen), but relax the rest of the day. Make a time table, but leave enough time to improvise, and do not panic when you run a bit late. Have FUN!

Go to Wedding Photography tips part 2

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