How to get really great wedding pictures | Advice from Vancouver Wedding Photographers

10 Ways To Make Your Wedding Pictures INCREDIBLE.

1. Set aside lots of time for your photographs (even if you think you have enough time, set aside an extra hour.)

I’ve photographed A LOT of weddings. I have thousands of pictures of glowing brides and happy grooms in my archive and I can safely say that whether it’s a Vancouver wedding or a destination wedding I have never been to a wedding that ran 100% on time before. The limo driver is late, mom can’t find her corsage, the makeup artist arrived late, and the florist delivers the wrong flowers. Bottom line is shiz happens. Give yourself enough time that you are not rushed. If you rush your photographer they won’t have time to create really stunning compositions, and you are going to get the bare minimum.

Just to give you an idea:
Bridal getting ready portraits usually take me around 45 minutes to an hour to shoot. (This includes: hair; makeup; bridesmaids helping each other get ready; bride getting into her dress; portraits with parents, bridesmaids & maid of honour; bridal portraits; details of the flowers, jewelry, veil, dress, invitations, shoes…etc) Even just those 14 different shots alone (and trust me there are about 200 different shots you CAN get in the morning), divided by 45 minutes only gives me 2-3 minutes to come up with something creative and get a couple of different shots.
I recommend:
45mins-1 hour for the bride’s getting ready portraits
30-45minutes for the groom’s getting ready portraits
Ceremony coverage varies from wedding to wedding
2 hours for family, group, solo & couple portraits
Reception coverage varies from wedding to wedding

More time is better – especially when it comes to portraits. Which leads me to point #2:

2. Consider a first look.

For those on a restricted timeline who still want stunning pictures, you may want to consider a first look. A first look is a private and intimate meeting in which the bride & groom can meet and see each other before the wedding. No wedding party, no family. Just the two of you enjoying a moment of peace together before the chaos of the day ensues. You may get some stunningly romantic images while you share some serenity. After your first look invite the wedding party to join in for some pre-ceremony casual portraits (or formals, if that’s your thing), this way you don’t have to worry about running late for dinner!

3. Think about a second photographer.

Two creative minds are always better than one. Ask your photographer if there is an option to add additional coverage. This means while one photographer is catching that beautiful moment where the bride first enters the other can catch the groom tearing up as he sees his wife-to-be for the first time. It’s a little extra but having two unique perspectives on the day can add a lot of dimension to your images and can help to create an all encompassing album after the event.

4. Change the timing up.

From a photographic standpoint the worst time of day to shoot portraits outdoors is probably between 11:00am and 4:00pm in the summertime. Unfortunately that seems to be when the majority of couples plan to shoot their wedding portraits, since it conveniently leads into dinner. Mid-day portraits almost always lead to what looks like bags under the eyes but is actually shadows from your eyebrow ridge cast by the sunlight coming from directly overhead. Hardly flattering to say the least. What few brides & grooms know however is that there is a magical moment at the end of each day that is just ideal for wedding portraits. This is known in the photography world as “The Golden Hour” and it happens about 1 hour before sunset, every sunny day. (I swear Im not making this up, read about it on Wikipedia HERE.) The lighting at this time of day is about a hundred million times more flattering. It’s warm and soft and has a romantic feel to it (not to mention you can get a great sunset in the background if you shoot long enough. The golden hour varies depending on the time of year, in the summer months you can catch it just after dinner & speeches, in the winter you can probably catch it right before dinner.

5. Use a location that has sentimental value.

If you frequent the same restaurant every week it certainly doesn’t hurt to ask the owners if it would be okay to shoot there. Incorporating parts of your daily life into your wedding photographs ensures that they are completely unique to you. If you play tennis get some fun shots of the wedding party battling it out on the court. If you are wine connoisseurs consider shooting in a vineyard or a winery. If you walk your dog in the same park every day consider inviting him along (heck you can even get him a bowtie) for a walk in the same park. Your wedding pictures should be unique to you and should say something about your current lives together and the lives you plan to live together.

6. Don’t be afraid to get a little cheesy.

Yes jumping shots can be a little cliché but they play a very important part in portraits in that they are great ice breakers. Sometimes bridesmaids & groomsmen are meeting for the very first time and it can be a lot to ask of them to hold hands, put their arms around each other or stand close together like they’ve been friends for a hundred years – you have to remember they are your friends, not necessarily friends with each other! A good cheesy photograph can get everyone laughing and help everyone to feel a little more relaxed.

7. Consider setting aside a little package of details.

If I can get my wedding clients to put together a package of details to capture ahead of time I definitely do. This may include, wedding invitations, programs, décor, favors, or menus. I’ll shoot my close up shots of these details ahead of time or after the wedding when I have some extra time to get really creative. This also gives me with some extra time to focus on the really important stuff on the day of, like the bride & groom and the people in their lives.

8. Pick a theme & colour scheme and really stick to it.

From a photographic stand point everything looks a million times better when it matches. Yes, blue napkins might have been on sale but if your colour scheme is pink and cream those blue napkins are going to become major eye sores. If you have a theme add hints of it throughout the day. For example if it’s beach themed consider adding a small seashell to your hair piece or carving your names into driftwood for the head table. A few left over seashells in your bouquet will keep everything looking deliberate and coordinated – those tiny details really make an album shine!

9. Laugh, laugh and laugh some more.

Tell a joke, or plan a light hearted prank that will get your wedding party laughing. The more you laugh when you smile the more honest your pictures will look. (Trust me when I say standing there and smiling for 2 hours gets really redundant.) The all else fails remember that one of the beauties of photography is even fake laughing still looks like real laughing in a photograph. (and some cheesy fake laughing almost always leads to real laughing!)

10. Live in the moment.

I don’t do that 7th grade peck on the lips, weakling stuff. For Pete’s sake kiss the girl like you just friggin’ got married! You’re allowed to smile, allowed to be happy, allowed to kiss with reckless abandon. It’s allowed to be sexy, it’s allowed to be sweet, and it’s allowed to be romantic. People hold back way too much these days in my opinion. Live in the moment, life is just too short. Your wedding pictures are going to last you until the day you guys die. I know when I look back at my wedding pictures in my old age I’m going to smile remembering how deeply, madly, hopelessly in love I was the day I married Brad.