25 Wedding Photography Tips for Photographers
Photographing a wedding remains exciting - especially if you’ve never done it before. Do you want to exceed your client’s expectations? Prepare well and get inspired with these 25 essential tips.
1. Visiting the wedding venue in advance is fine, but not necessary. ‘Will you visit the wedding venue in advance?’ is a question couples ask a lot. But secretly, it doesn’t make all that much sense. You can look at the venue, but on the wedding day you’ll - if all goes well - have enough time to take everything in. Especially if you arrive on time. In addition, the light on the wedding day may be very different. Explain this to the couple; it only shows that you are a professional.
2. Consider a pre-shoot. If you’re working with a couple who are really dreading the wedding shoot, consider a pre-wedding shoot. That way they get used to you and the camera. They learn to deal with that first awkward feeling, so it won’t bother them much on the day itself. Plus, they’ll already have unique material to use for the invitations!
3. Hire a second photographer yourself. Do you feel this wedding is going to be huge and that you can’t possibly handle it on your own? Then simply hire a second photographer yourself. Do make sure this person already has experience with weddings, otherwise you’ll just get in each other’s way. Make clear arrangements with the second photographer in advance. It’s your assignment, so you are the lead photographer. Your partner can focus on the guests and help you with the wedding photo poses. And split up in the morning: one starts with the bride, the other with the groom.
4. Adapt your clothing. Maybe a bit obvious, but since the couple and their guests have put a lot of time into their outfits, you show respect by dressing neatly yourself as well. You don’t have to show up in a three-piece suit or a haute couture dress, but a shirt or a smart dress will do. Also choose something that isn’t too eye-catching, so you blend in a bit more with the guests. Go for something comfortable: after all, you’ll be standing, walking and bending down all day. And you may even end up lying on the ground for that perfect shot. In any case, choose an outfit you don’t have to worry about, so your full focus stays on the wedding.
5. Pay attention to your shoes. Perhaps the most important outfit tip of all: pay attention to your shoes! Go for a light sneaker or something with a flat sole, but in any case something without a heel. Nothing is more annoying than everyone constantly hearing you walk around during the ceremony…
6. Bring a second camera, battery and lens. Bring a backup camera. You really won’t be the first person to drop their camera, or whose camera suddenly stops working out of nowhere. It’s the couple’s most memorable day, so you can’t afford to risk not being able to capture it. The same goes for your battery! Finally, you can also choose to bring an extra lens, to create plenty of variety in the photos.
7. Check the camera settings. A very, very important one: check your camera settings in advance, but also during the day itself. You may switch between lighting situations or lenses so often that, with everything moving so fast, you sometimes forget to adjust your settings. Before you know it, you’re outside with a series of overexposed photos just as the couple walks out of city hall.
8. Bring your flash. Ideally, you photograph with natural light. But sometimes there simply isn’t enough light to work with, and that’s where a flash comes in. Just be careful not to kill the atmosphere in the photos by flashing them flat. First see how much you can get out of your camera without flash, by raising the ISO and opening up the aperture. Then only use flash to add the light that is still needed. That way you keep a natural atmosphere in the photos - and a soft flash is nicer for the guests too.
9. Know the schedule. Ask the master of ceremonies for the schedule or run-of-show in advance. That way you’ll know exactly when the important moments are and where you need to be when. Preferably arrive at each location a little early, so you still have some time to meter the light.
10. Know the couple. At least as important as the schedule: get to know the couple you’ll be photographing! How did they meet? How long have they been together? If you build a connection with them, you can work together more pleasantly and in a more relaxed way. It also helps you with the wedding photo poses: what suits them and what doesn’t? The more you know about them, the easier it is to help them loosen up on The Big Day.
11. Know the guests. Also ask the master of ceremonies for an overview of the most important guests (preferably with photo and phone number), so you don’t have to keep figuring out who is who on the day itself. Not every guest likes being in the picture, but of course you don’t want to accidentally lose sight of the shy sister.
12. Make the master of ceremonies your bestie. You now know the schedule, the couple and the guests. So make the master of ceremonies your best friend right away! During the wedding day, he or she is your right hand. Make sure you meet in person before the wedding day takes place.
13. Find out when the golden hour is. Depending on the season in which the wedding takes place, it’s important to find out in advance when the golden hour happens. Often this is during dinner or just as the party is underway. Because this is the most beautiful light (warm and soft), it’s really worth taking the couple aside for a few extra beautiful shots. Don’t do this on the spur of the moment, but announce it a little in advance.
14. Arrive well on time. However fun a wedding day is - there is also time pressure. And the bride in particular is often extremely nervous. So make sure you arrive well on time. That way both you and the bride have time to get used to you and your camera. Also take travel distance and possible traffic jams into account.
15. Choose two positions in the church. Is the couple getting married in church? Then choose a maximum of two positions to photograph from. It’s distracting if you walk around too much (even if you’re not wearing heels). As soon as you come in, decide from which two positions you’d like to photograph and try to stick to them.
16. Show some results along the way. You’ll notice that guests can’t wait to see some of your photos. So show some previews along the way, to the couple as well. Ideally, also send some previews as soon as possible after the wedding, because the newlyweds are then still happily in their wedding bubble.
17. Play with the wedding photo poses. Wedding photographers sometimes tend to go to lots of different places during a shoot. But you can also achieve a lot with a variety of wedding photo poses in one location. First, it saves you a lot of time, and second, the bride doesn’t have to walk far in her dress. Change your viewpoint and walk around the couple yourself too. That way you’ll get a variety of photos!
18. Play with the light. Photography is writing with light. So always keep a close eye on the light. Where is it coming from? Do you want to shoot with the light, or do you deliberately choose backlighting? When you play with light, you can also make many different photos of the same moment. A silhouette, for example, results in a completely different photo than shooting with the light.
19. Be prepared for bad weather. It rarely happens that it really pours all day long. But it is useful to be prepared for it! Perhaps the wedding venue itself already offers a beautiful backdrop for indoor photos. If that isn’t possible, you could also move the wedding shoot to a garden center. Think about this in advance and discuss it with the couple. Tip: a few transparent umbrellas will already get you a long way!
20. Think of yourself. Because you get so caught up in the moment, you may well forget to eat, drink or go to the bathroom. Of course, plan this around the important moments; if necessary, set an alarm on your mobile phone for when you want to take a short break. Make sure you have a nutritious, healthy breakfast and perhaps bring some protein bars too, so you have all the fuel you need to stay focused.
21. Take your time. A wedding lasts a long time. To avoid ending the day with ten thousand photos, it’s extra important to pay close attention to your timing. You can take a photo just to have a photo, but if you teach yourself to look and wait for the right moment, you’ll capture those award-winning shots.
22. Anticipate emotions. Perhaps one of the reasons you’re there that day: to capture the emotions of the day! Listen to the officiant and to the father of the bride during his speech, and capture those important moments. Stand by and wait patiently, ready to shoot that one perfect image. And above all, don’t forget the guests, with their tear-stained faces. The couple will never experience these moments again, and they are so beautiful to look back on later!
23. Bring your business card. Don’t forget your business card! A wedding is the perfect moment to network. As a wedding photographer, you are often one of the last suppliers to be booked. So if you build a network during a wedding, there’s a good chance you’ll land new assignments that way.
24. Shadow a wedding photographer for a day. Whether you’re a beginning wedding photographer or have been around for a while: keep developing and challenging yourself by shadowing a colleague for a day. Because there’s no pressure to perform, you can think completely outside the box and try new things. This helps you grow as a photographer!
25. Blow the couple away with the end result. When you’ve finished your assignment, of course you want to blow your couple away with the end result. So make sure you don’t just deliver the photos loose on a USB stick, but offer the chance to relive the day in a luxury album. Beautifully printed in the colors you had in mind (because how painful can an uncalibrated computer monitor be sometimes?). The photo album is your business card and your signature (which you can literally have printed on the album in the form of your logo). In addition, you as a photographer can earn extra on the album, by charging a profit margin on this product.
Discover the power of luxury photo albums.
Of course you want your couple to be able to relive The Day again and again through your photos. And that’s the power of a luxury photo album! At Yellow Rebel you have a wide choice of beautiful albums and storage boxes. Being able to deliver your work so beautifully is the icing on the cake. Curious about the options? Then take a look at our wedding albums or all our luxury photo albums!