Pasadena Wedding Photographer {Wedding Day Tips}

I have done a lot of weddings over the years, and being in an observant profession, I have taken note of the few things that you need to do, or don’t do to make your wedding a success. There are so many tips to give, but here are 6 tips for now.

The secret formula is:

the people you love + handmade touches + good music = a perfect wedding

It doesn’t matter whether you have a 5 course gourmet meal or a comfort food from Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, as long as the people you love are there, you’ve taken the time to create at least one handmade, meaningful touch, and the music, whether a professional DJ or a well made iPod playlist, is rocking, you are sure to have a memorable day.

Some more tips for you:

1. Hair and make-up always takes about an hour longer than scheduled, so plan for this.  And brides, you need to go first.  This allows your photographer more time to take images of you.  You can always get touched up after the bridesmaids are done.  I promise.
2. REALLY explain the timeline to your groom. {If you are a groom reading this, I applaud you!}  Most grooms will be with their buddy’s and will get distracted and off time.  And a late groom can be just as detrimental to a wedding day timeline, as a late bride.
3. Have a receiving line.  Yes, kind of a photographer nightmare, but I have a reason for saying yes to this.  You either have a receiving line and spend about 30 minutes saying hi and hugging everyone, or you spend 4 hours going round at the reception to each table to say hello, missing your own chance to eat and enjoy your new husband/wife’s company. The decision is yours!
4. Practice your first dance, maybe even a dance class.  It’ll be worth. I think most people forget that a song last about 3-4 minutes.  That’s a long time if you are just staring at each other taking a half step every 3rd beat.  You wouldn’t believe the reaction that even one twirl will get you, so go ahead a throw a few in! Live life on the edge!
5. Give your photographer a heads up about any family dynamics that may occur.  For example, a slightly evil step-mum, or a sister’s boyfriend that isn’t going to last the test of time, and need to be taken out of some family pictures, “just in case”.  If we know in advance it makes family portrait time so much easier.
6. I know you have a lot of friends, but if you want your wedding day, and especially portrait time, to be easy, don’t choose your closest 15 friends.  Just choose 2-5.  Don’t feel obligated to ask someone.  It’s your day not theirs, and they’ll understand.  Large groups, whether sober or slightly intoxicated, are kind of like herding kittens.  Not fun.  It takes a long time to get 30 people to listen and stand in a straight line, let alone the cool staggered and fun poses you want, and can slow down the day and increase stress exponentially.

Finally, just relax and don’t sweat the small stuff on the big day.  As long as you are both together, that’s all that matters.