12 tips Avoiding Disappointment with your Wedding Photographs by DKPHOTO
12 tips Avoiding Disappointment with your Wedding Photographs
It is really important to me that my brides and grooms are delighted with their photographs of their wedding day. I want to help my wedding couples to avoid disappointment. No professional wedding photographer wants to hear that their brides and grooms are devastated by missing photos with just your big sister or Mum on your wedding day.
I have many tips and tricks for you to ensure you are not disappointed with your wedding photos.
I have put together a short guide for you. I am sure that it will help you a lot!
I am writing this as a Groom. It is now four years after my own wedding. (I am very happy with our wedding day photographs and know all the tips below! And I have the experience of being a professional wedding photographer with thousands of weddings under my belt at this stage. I have a wealth of experience.
1. Communication is Key
First and foremost, it is really important to understand that professional wedding photographers are not mind-readers!
( brides and grooms are devastated by missing photos? )
If you want a photograph with JUST you and your Mum AND you and your Dad, you need to communicate that clearly.
I always send a questionnaire with the family photos list to ensure that I have all the photos you requested taken on your wedding day.
We cannot assume what a Bride and Groom want on their wedding day. Every couple has different family relationships and has different requirements about what they want to see in their wedding photographs.
You need to be honest with your wedding photographer. Communicate what photographs are really important to you and start an open dialogue about what you are hoping for from your wedding photographs.
It’s equally important that your wedding photographer is open and honest with you. Some ideas are fantastic but maybe not realistic on your wedding day as an image on Pinterest that you LOVE might take hours to create in reality and would need a team of people behind the scenes to make happen!
No one would want to be disappointed with wedding photos, not the Bride and Groom and certainly not the wedding photographer – Believe me!
2. You Get What You Pay For!
Very interesting post:
Ask ANY unhappy Bride if she had her way over again, would she pay a bit more to book a better wedding photographer or videographer. Someone with more experience and with better skills in creating WOW photographs? 100% of people will want that.
Do not book your wedding photographer or videographer based on your budget alone. Your wedding photographs will stay with you FOREVER. You can save money in lots of areas during your wedding day planning that will allow for a bigger spend on your photographer or videographer. Once your day is over the photographs and video last a lifetime.
3. Read The Contract!!!
I cannot stress this more highly. It is a clear and concise document that breaks down all the details of your wedding day. What time is the wedding photographer starting on your wedding day? Are you getting your first dance covered? Are you getting all of your wedding photographs or do you have to choose your favourites? Be crystal clear on what you are getting.
4. Proof in the Portfolio – EDITING STYLE!!!
Be sure to see a lot of photos from the wedding photographer you are interested in booking. Ensure you are looking at an entire album of wedding photographs and love their editing/colour style.
Editing and colour-wedding photographers have their photo editing style, and when you book a photographer, you agree that you like his editing style!
The time of the year and weather have a BIG IMPACT on photos – colours.
A wedding photographer won’t be able to edit photos differently, as he probably does not have the skills to edit like someone else! BE AWARE!
5. Trust and Belief in Your Wedding Photographer
If you can’t trust your wedding photographer – book someone else! It’s as simple as that. It’s a bad booking if you spend your wedding day worrying about your photographs and reminding your photographer about what to get.
6. Family Frustration!
As seen on so many Facebook groups, one of the BIGGEST PROBLEMS when it comes to your wedding photography is when it’s time for the family photos. It is so easy to waste time and energy trying to round up members of the family that are missing.
Be sure that you have a list of family photos that you want on your wedding day and that you have help on hand from your Bridesmaids to round everyone up and communicate clearly where the family photos are being taken.
7. Lists of Family Photos!
Photographers will try to follow the photos from the list You will send them before the wedding – ( FAMILY PHOTOS LIST !) . – You can include Your dog at a wedding too! Lists like these are really helpful but sometimes it is not possible to follow that list down to the letter. Brides and Grooms can work with the photographer to make sure that they get through the list smoothly.
We can’t control everything and be everywhere, but we will do our best!
One of our vendors told me that she gave such “a detailed plan of the day” to everyone – The hotel, DJ, photographer, videographer etc. and she spent her wedding day on checking if everything is going right with that list. So, everyone was happy because the day was well organised…Everyone except the Bride!!!
Her memories are as if she was working at someone else’s wedding. Not enjoying her own day! I was so sad to hear that for her.
It is not a big deal to miss a few family photos. It is great to instead have lovely memories from the day.
8. Be clear on your list – ( FAMILY PHOTOS LIST !)
( brides and grooms are devastated by missing photos? )
If you want a photograph with JUST you and your Mum AND you and your Dad, you need to clearly communicate that.
Normally, we would take the photos of the Bride and Groom with both their parents and think that we are done. That photograph will then be missing without the photographer even realising that it is missing. We need to avoid that!
I always send a questionnaire with the family photos list to be sure that I have all your requested photos taken on your wedding day.
More about Family photos:
9. Collaborations
If your wedding photographer has a list of wedding videographers that he/she can recommend to you it’s a great idea to book someone from that list. When photographers and videographers are used to working together there can be a seamless workflow on your wedding day that is worth its weight in gold.
10. Wedding Timings
Be sure that your morning schedule allows for you to relax and that there is no need to rush. A happy and relaxed morning creates a lot of lovely photo opportunities for your wedding photographer.
See below: Wedding timeline explained!
11. Morning Photos
Be sure that your morning location for photos is clean and tidy as everything in the background is going to be in your photographs.
Remember your wedding photographer will be taking lots of photographs of you getting ready so keep this space as clean as possible as the backgrounds will be in your photos!
If you are getting ready at the hotel room – keep all the bags in the bathroom. It will keep them out of Your photos and wedding video.
If you would love to have a full-length photo with the back of your dress shown off in all its detail, be sure to tell your photographer during that morning photo shoot. Any ideas you have are welcome! Don’t be afraid he or she will be super happy to do it for you!
12. Nothing Left Unsaid
If you have any requests about your wedding photos or for example you don’t like the background for your family photos don’t be afraid to talk to your wedding photographer. Ask if you are not sure.
Communication is key :)
This is why I have so many blog posts on my Bride Guide blog. I want everyone to enjoy their wedding day and to be happy with their wedding photos. For more blog posts click here: https://www.dkphoto.ie/blog/
Now for the last few but very important words!
Before my own wedding, I didn’t send my photographer ANY lists of photos. I accepted and trusted my wedding photographer and I’m very happy with my wedding photographs.
I didn’t get some wedding photographs that I probably wanted to. for example, I missed out on a photograph with sparklers in the evening but we forgot!
It’s fine as I ENJOYED the day and that is the main thing.
I didn’t chase anyone to get a photograph. I really enjoyed the day and the wedding unfolded as it was meant to. I didn’t force anything. I was relaxed and happy and that was the most important thing for me.
And You can see my happy face below :)
Just think about this and enjoy your day! :)
THE DON’TS
- Do not spend your wedding day chasing photographs you have seen on Pinterest.
- Do not spend the day trying to set up photographs.
- Do not stress about your lists of photographs.
I hope you enjoy your wedding day preparations and that this will be of help to you.
Happy planning!
Love Daniel x
