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How to plan your wedding to get the best photos
Updated: Jun 29
No wedding should revolve around photography. We want you to have fantastic images to reminisce over, and which make you feel the most beautiful you’ve ever felt - but not to interrupt your day in favour of a photo shoot. The job of a good photographer is to ensure your amazing celebrations translate into incredible wedding photographs!
That said, there are steps you can take when planning your wedding to ensure the day allows for the best photograph opportunities to be seized.
From lighting to timings, we walk through the best ways to plan your wedding to ensure your wedding galleries come out as beautiful, timeless keepsakes.
Planning to ensure your wedding galleries look as good as they felt
You’ve been dreaming of this day for months, if not years. The memories of your dad tearing up when he first sees you in your dress, keeping your tears under control as you start down the aisle and see a congregation of beaming faces turn to you, seeing your venue bedecked with flowers for the first time, and jumping on the dancefloor with your nearest and dearest under the moon - they are all moments which will stay with you forever.
But we all know a wedding we’ve loved being at, where the galleries come back and the heart and soul is somehow missing. There wasn’t time to capture those spontaneous moments, or perhaps they weren't considered important.
My prerogative as your photographer is to ensure you can really feel those moments in the future! That’s why we’ve put together this blog - to lay-out all of the ways you can help your photographer to capture the real atmosphere of your day, in all its beauty.
Your photographer might prompt certain shots at certain times. That’s not because they’re prioritising their role in your day over your enjoyment, but because they know the optimal times for certain shots. Portraits for example are best done in full natural light, and couples shots can either utilise full natural light or the glow of golden hour.
Consider the best natural light
It’s true - the most flattering light on skin is natural light! Although we can always create beautiful galleries, even under completely artificial illumination, the easiest way to capture timelessly beautiful photos of you and your guests is in natural light.
I won’t go as far as to suggest you choose your venue based on it having grand windows! But floor-to-ceiling windows really are a blessing for timeless photography. Most venues will be able to provide a really well illuminated space - it doesn’t matter if that isn’t the case throughout, because your photographer will be adaptable, but at least one space bathed in natural light is my main ‘tick’ for a great venue.
A really well-lit, North-facing room is the perfect space for getting ready. South-facing can provide a glaring backdrop, whereas North-facing spaces allow all of that illumination without any fight to get the levels right. North-facing light in general provides a truly soft, shadow-free light and is every photographer’s dream!
An hour or two before sunset (the fabled ‘Golden Hour’ we’ll explore below!) traditionally provides the most beautiful lighting of the whole day, with a flattering glow which allows for amazing couple’s portraits - but can also be a beautiful time to hold the ceremony itself, if your celebrations are focussed in the evening hours.
Consider ‘light transitions’
That might sound complicated, but what I mean by this is that some spaces will have to transition from daylight to artificial light. Where your ceremony will enjoy consistent lighting, because it’s likely over within an hour, the reception space for example might transition from drinks hour to Wedding Breakfast to evening dance space, and therefore from lunchtime overhead sunshine to complete darkness at nightfall.
If this is the case, ensure you’ve got flattering lighting ready for when the sunlight levels fade - think plentiful candlelight, where possible, though fairy lights and stylish artificial candles can do a brilliant job too. This is obviously especially crucial for outdoor receptions!
Think of every moment’s ‘backdrop’
Your venue is there for you and your guests to enjoy, as priority number one. But beyond that, it lives on through your photography. Where an overall ‘feel’ might be of elegance and beauty, the backdrop for crucial moments can completely rewrite that feel.
The best backdrops for photography balance the overarching style, or theme, of your celebrations - whether that’s neutrals, historic detailing, clean lines, or mixed textures. Lush verdance, whether from grass or gardens, can provide a beautiful backdrop - my favourite outdoor shots are in more manicured gardens with structure and lines, which somewhere like Grantley Hall has in heaps.
Neutral backgrounds are a great backdrop that won’t distract the eye, and make sure nothing ‘dating’ creeps into shot if you don’t want it to - be that loads of phones held up in your ceremony, or a messy bag of makeup spilling across the dressing table behind you, these are fiddly details which draw the eye and make your timeless galleries clearly date-stamped.
I always recommend that my brides put their dress on and have their bridal portraits in a different room, or different space, from where they had their hair and make-up done. That’s because hair and makeup comes with so much ‘stuff’, and it’s hard to have to hastily tidy that all up for a seamless transition into photos, especially when timelines are tight. As your photographer I will want to shoot you in the most flattering natural light - usually a window - but obviously make up, and hair, need good lighting too, so this is all worth thinking about when you’re planning your morning.
Work extra time into the timeline
When considering how to plan your wedding, any wedding photographer will be over the moon if you’ve considered photography in your timeline!
Bridal prep is the makeup artist’s domain - but as well as the specialist’s timeline, it’s worth considering the repercussions for photography. For me, I always arrive two and a half hours before your ceremony. This is because I’m not only here for your bridal prep shots and portraiture, but to do some scene setting shots, to get shots of the groom if there’s no second shooter, to get lovely images of your details - from dress to perfume to jewellery - and to capture those ‘first look’ interactions with bridesmaids, mum, and dad.
Ideally, you need to be ready to get into your dress an hour and a quarter before your ceremony. I’m quite vocal about this with my brides, because it maintains that lovely tone of excitement and serenity, and stops things getting frenetic. We want enough time to take beautiful bridal portraits, any bridesmaid reveals of you in your dress, mum and dad’s first look, and shots with mum and dad, or those you’re closest to and are here helping you this morning. This all takes time. Hair and makeup need to be done by then - or at least 99% done. It’s worth remembering that you probably don’t want shots of your first bits of makeup going on - it’s the final touch of powder or application of lipstick we might capture.
For the hour I’m present whilst you’re in hair and makeup, I can go and photograph the details of your dress, accessories and do any flat lays. I ask my brides to put all of these details - your shoes, a new bottle of perfume, the wedding invitation, the jewellery you’re wearing - into a bag in advance, and then I can slip in and grab this, and won’t have to bother you whilst you’re getting ready. Then I’ll return these details, get some beautiful candids, you can get into those final details, we’ll get shots of your final bits of makeup, and move onto bridal portraits!
If your partner is a groom, an extra half hour enables me to visit you for some getting ready shots too (if you’re getting ready in the same venue), but if you’re both having hair and makeup done, factoring an extra hour in to cover you both is a great idea.
Don’t forget to factor in travel time! If you are not getting ready at your ceremony location, you’ll need to factor that in - plus a conservative timeline for any traffic or hold-ups. It’s also great if you give your photographer a head-start on getting to the ceremony location - they’ll need to pack up all their gear from shooting you getting ready, and it’s always great to not feel pressure to travel, and park, and recce the specifics of that day at your ceremony venue before setting up their gear again.
Discussing any logistical concerns with your celebrant and the Planner, shooting some test shots, getting some ceremony details, and mingling with your guests (in order to settle into the background) is the ideal situation, so get the photographer on the road a minimum of half an hour ahead of the bride.
Minimise the group shots
Do you want group shots? I think you probably do. If I’m honest, group photos are usually really worthwhile investments in family heritage - there are shots of you and your grandparents, or the whole wedding party all together, that will feel truly precious in years to come. However - hours of group shots? ABSOLUTELY NOT!
Again, this is about you enjoying your day - and allowing your guests to do the same. Plan your wedding to ensure you have the group shots that mean the world to you - I suggest a maximum of 8 groups - but make sure these are the groups you will be desperate to have formal portraits of.
I ask my couples to designate a responsible groomsman or member of the bridal party to round up all the relevant people, so if everybody we need is present, and listening, it will take me about 20 minutes to get 8 group shots done.
This will still likely take half an hour, as group shots take longer than people think. Gathering up the right people, and then capturing them, really eats into the enjoyment of your drinks reception - which is the perfect time for people to meet, and old friends to catch up. They don’t want to spend an hour rolling through a variety of group shots.
The primary concern should be balancing the value of those group shots with the time limitations of your day, allowing all your loved ones to meet and celebrate together - not just to be captured, standing in a line.
Remember your venue’s strengths (and avoid its weaknesses!)
A great wedding venue is nothing if you are blind to its strengths and weaknesses. The ideal location blends logistical practicality with the potential for atmosphere.
Plan your wedding to choose the best venue for both of these aspects - that might mean logistically that you don’t choose the reception venue an hour and a half’s drive away from the ceremony, even though you love it.
A wedding is only as strong as its plan. I always recommend having a wedding planner, but there are certain venues - Middleton Lodge with Rhiannon, and Birdsall with Kara and Harriet spring to mind - where their dedicated in-house team are just exceptional. They’re on-point with absolutely everything, and are just a stellar addition to your planning team!
In terms of atmosphere - you might love that cosy and historic 16th century inn for your ceremony and reception, but your June wedding will then have a dark feel, and you may struggle to celebrate with all of your guests all together if you’re split over many rooms. Make sure that the most important aspects of logistics and atmosphere combine, considering not only your take on it but your guests’ too!
A great venue offers flawless logistics. Some of this can be completely saved by a wonderful Wedding Planner - but some logistics are venue-specific, for example, accessibility for any mobility-impaired guests, ample parking, nearby accommodation, and weather-proofed options for if your outdoor ceremony needs to relocate.
In terms of photography logistics, consider any ‘visions’ you have in your head - and communicate them! If you imagine all your loved ones being upstanding and swinging their napkins when you and your groom enter your reception, for example, you need to mention this to your MC, so they can give a little prompt to your guests.
There is also some minutiae to consider, such as whether they offer (or whether you can install) good sound systems and lighting, and whether they have the power capacity and power outlets to cater to your combination of entertainment, from bands to DJs and even caterers.
Make sure someone with expertise is at the helm. Knowledgeable in-house staff are worth their weight in gold, but having a Planner is a fail-safe option at lowering the stress of any ‘unforeseen’ occurrences.
Atmosphere-wise, don’t clash your venue with your overall priorities, preferences, and theme. The aforementioned dark 16th century inn might give the perfect ambiance for your December afternoon wedding, with your Scottish groom in his Clan tartan, where your June celebration, replete with your beautiful silk slip and white sweetpea bouquet might feel completely out-of-place in the same venue.
Remember ‘Golden Hour’
‘Golden Hour’ is some couples’ favourite moment, as it pulls them away from the party for a few moments to be with each other, to capture their love in the most beautiful way possible.
I’ll always try to do some couples portraits earlier in the day, in case your sunny day turns overcast, but if Golden Hour light is available we’ll try to make the most of it, with warm, flattering images of the two of you.
It’s also a great moment to step outside into the cool air, and really ground yourself in the realisation that - after months of planning - this is it! Your wedding celebrations! Take a deep breath, clutch your partner’s hand, and enjoy it!
If you were looking for some tips on how to plan your wedding to get the best photos, I hope the above has been of some help. If you think your vision for your celebrations aligns with my photography, I’d love to hear from you.
Get in touch via my enquiry form and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can!
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