Preparing for family photos on your wedding day

Doing family photos on your wedding day after your ceremony doesn’t need to be an overwhelming experience! We have all been to a wedding where this part of the day took too long with many combinations of the same photos. Quite often on the day couples will ditch their original list or skip a few groups just to get it over and done with. It doesn’t need to be this way though, there are things we can do to prepare so it goes smoothly and quickly!

Quick Tips for your family and group photos on your wedding day

• We will need 2 guests to help with family photos - one person who can call out from the list and one person to be a runner/find people, while I'm photographing. You might like to have one helper from each side of your family. 

• I recommend including the individual names of the people in each group photo so no one gets missed (I can't photoshop people into photos if they are missed on the day) 

• You may like to take photos with grandparents or any children first so they can relax afterwards

• I recommend no more than 20 groups. 15 groups is an easy amount to get through, any more than this and it can become overwhelming for couples on the day.

WRITE A LIST OF GROUPS/BE SPECIFIC

It can help to write down the names of everyone in each group so they can be read out on the spot and we can check to make sure no one is missing (it’s never a great feeling as a photographer knowing that someone important was left out of a photo when we had no idea they were missing). If your venue allows for pets, add your doggo to the list! Keep your combinations to no more than 25 groups (this seems like a lot of photos but it can quickly add up when you start to look at your guest list and make decisions for this part of the day).

ASSIGN HELP, WE CAN MAKE THIS QUICK!

Prior to the day assign some help for this part of the day so we can efficiently take family photos. I recommend having one person read from your list of groups, calling out names (while your photographer is taking photos) and a second person who can be a runner to find people. This could be an MC or a family member so they are familiar with everyone on the list. It’s a good idea to ask people who are confident, if your venue has a microphone reading the names out loud can be a quick way to gather people and get their attention.

ONE LARGE GROUP PHOTO

If you would like one big group photo of everyone, do this first before guests spread out across your venue area. The bonus of having Karl with me for weddings (my husband who does videography) is he can sometimes take your large group photo using his drone which makes a great image where everyone can be seen. This bonus service isn’t included in every job we do, it is weather-dependent and only if you have videography booked. Here is an example of a drone photo versus a photo I have taken standing on a large ladder (supplied by a venue).

ORDER STRATEGICALLY

First do your big group photo with all the guests as mentioned in the previous paragraph, followed by any images with grandparents or children. Then work through one side of the family, then the other. Try to move people around as little as possible. 

KEEP IT SIMPLE

For our own wedding we made it really simple and had basic combinations with no double-ups. It was more important to spend time with our family than overdo it with multiple photos with the same people. I highly recommend approx 15 groups if you want to keep this easy and spend less time on these.

Tips for your wedding preparation photos!

Photographing your wedding preparations is about letting the day unfold and capturing some of the best moments with your Bridesmaids and Groomsmen. The morning of your wedding day can be a little chaotic, so I’ve put together some helpful tips that you (or your Bridal party) can organise before your photographer arrives.

SHOWER AND HAVE LUNCH

Do the essential things like shower and have lunch nice and early. If you only have a short window of time with your photographer for Groom’s preparation photos, make sure everyone is showered and has their outfits ironed and ready to go.

If you don’t feel like a big lunch, have some nibbles laid out for you to snack on. I’m obsessed with platters and these look nice if they’re in the background of your photographs (rather than a plastic bag of potato chips, as much as I also love potato chips).

PUT YOUR SUITS AND DRESS ON DISPLAY

Photographers love details. Take your suits and dresses out of any protective laundry bags, cut off any tags and unpick any temporary stitching on the backs of suits. Hang your garments on a curtain rail or a ledge. Try and do all of this before your photographer arrives so it’s not something you need to worry about later on while you’re in the middle of having photos taken.

AVOID SMALL AND DARK HOTEL ROOMS

Often the Groom and his Groomsmen will get ready at a separate location to the Bride and ceremony location. If preparation photos are an important part of your day put some thought into the location for these photos. A cramped hotel room with minimal natural light isn’t going to be the easiest space for your photographer. Instead, look into booking an Airbnb or something similar which has more space and style.

OTHER DETAILS

Gather other items like shoes, the rings, a wedding invite, buttonholes, etc and place them somewhere obvious for your photographer, so they can create more detail images for you.

PLAN THE LOGISTICS

Know what time your photographer is arriving and plan any important photos around this. I recommend a maximum of 2 hours for the girl’s preparation photos. Preparation photos often look better once the Brides makeup (or hair) is complete, you can then get some touch-up photographs and the most important part which is putting on the Brides dress.

The guys don’t tend to need as long for preparation photos, I recommend 1-hour max. Make sure the Groom and his Groomsmen hold off getting fully dressed until the photographer arrives, they can leave suit jackets off and wait to pin the buttonholes. Sometimes we have arrived and the guys are fully dressed and ready to go which leaves us with no authentic and natural moments to photograph, which often means we have to stage photographs that the guys don’t tend to enjoy doing!

Are you looking for candid and un-posed wedding photography?

Not into posed and formal photos for your wedding? I’m with you on this! Candid and natural photos are a personal favourite of mine. My second shooter and I make sure our approach is subtle and like a fly on a wall, so you don’t feel awkward or even know we are there.

A lot of couples are turning away from posed and polished wedding photos. Instead it’s all about interacting with guests, lots of laughing shots and those in-between moments. A great opportunity for these types of images is during your ceremony and straight after when your guests are congratulating you. There are often some tears and lots of hugging going on. Then again at your reception when you and your guests are mingling.

You can still have a bridal party shoot. I will often give directions which makes everyone laugh and relax. I will suggest things like “now everyone walk towards me” or “look at each other and chat/tell a silly joke”. These shots are more about hanging out with your best friends, as opposed to standing in a line and smiling.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this! What kind of photography are you looking for?