As I sit here staring at my calendar, hardly being able to believe that my wedding season officially starts in two weeks… I realized its friday and its time for another fun.stuff.friday post. pfew. time flies.

I got to spend last Saturday second shooting for Lundy Photography and backing up Erin… which was fun… its always nice to take the second seat every now and then…
(…Which is where that gorgeous photo above came from… Congrats to Amy and Jimmy!
I’m sure come August I’ll post a big fat second shooting post and you can see more of what I captured.)

I thought with my wedding season around the corner…this week’s edition would be a great big ole’ shout out to my brides… and to any brides to be… on what makes life easier when it comes to wedding photography.
I know not all of this will apply to each wedding… or that this might not even make any sense outside of how I shoot my own weddings… but I thought it would be a nice thing to cover with wedding season approaching quickly. What better advice to dole out than some tips that will ultimately make your images BETTER? (And who doesn’t want that!)

1. Actually think about where you’ll be getting ready.
Getting ready images are some of my favorite images… no lie. I love them. Pick a place with a lot of windows and natural light if you can (your makeup artist or you, if you’re doing it yourself, will thank me for it, too.) I don’t care about stuff being everywhere… its part of the day… Not everyone needs a 5-star hotel… but sometimes there are options other than the supply closet. I promise.

2. Details!
If you want us to get photos of your dress or shoes… Make sure you leave time in the schedule for us to take them. It’s kind of hard to take them when you already have them on when we show up!
Also… if you want a photo of your invitations… make sure to send us one before the wedding or give one to us that day!
(Seems simple enough… but trust me… its happened!)

3. First Look vs. Traditional
First Looks are AWESOME. Why you ask? 1. It frees up more time after the ceremony because we can knock out a lot of portraits before the wedding. 2. What better time to take portraits than as soon as your makeup and hair is done. No worrying about still looking super nice an hour later after the ceremony. 3. For whatever reason… maybe because we can get more of the photos done before the wedding… everytime I have shot a first look, the day winds up more relaxed. 4. I promise… if your groom is going to choke up when you walk down the aisle… 99.9% of the time, he will do it even though he has already seen you. I’ve seen it happen over and over again.

4. Really want that “down the aisle moment”?
If you really want the first time he sees you to be as you walk down the aisle… no worries. I will never ever push you into a first look. (Think about a first look with your dad…) Either way… first look or not… I HIGHLY recommend taking all bridesmaids and groomsmen photos beforehand…

5. Hair and Makeup always takes longer than you think.
No explanation… its just a fact.

6. Family Formals… where to even start.
Try to pick somewhere other than the alter. It automatically makes people feel stiff… and we have to wait on everyone to leave before we can start. Think about picking an outdoor location… or letting us pick one… so that we can walk straight there out of the ceremony and get started.
I’ve asked this year for my clients to really sit and think about the family formals they want and limit them… If you want photos of you with just your family… think about shooting those before the wedding… or just including your spouse in all of the photos.
(You are part of each other’s families now!)
Extra photos of you with just Aunt Jane are just as easily snapped at the reception…

7. If you think you have it scheduled down to the minute… you don’t.
Leave extra time everywhere.
People want to hug you. And stop you. And talk to you.
There will be bathroom breaks. And one person that is always missing. And traffic.
Things go wrong.
Account for it beforehand… and you won’t be stressed the day of.

8. If you’re trying to decide when I should arrive and leave…
Cut time off of the end of the reception.
I promise that the dancing shots will all be the same after a while.
Having some getting ready shots and not thirty shots of the groomsmen doing the sprinkler will make you happier down the line.

9. Want a special exit?
Consider doing it after the ceremony instead of at the very end of the night.
(You can get in the car and circle back around for photos!)
People tend to filter out before the big send off if its at the end of the night… and I’d be lying if I didn’t say that pitch black is harder for us to shoot in as well.

10. Fill me in!
If there are certain details you want us to capture that aren’t so obvious… make sure you fill me in!

I would also like to give a big shout out to Leila of Seriously Sexy Boudoir who won tickets to drive-by truckers this week thanks to a little contest on the facebooks… and asked me to be her date. Thanks, lady! It was fun!
And because I got to see them live this week… I will leave you with a little DBT for you to enjoy as well!