How to Get The Best From Your Wedding Photography!

I'm really delighted to have a Guest Post on the blog today from one of my favourite Wedding Photographers Laura Babb! I asked Laura to explain a little more about what a Wedding Photographer does and how you can get the best out of your photographer on your wedding day. If you want to get in contact with Laura you can via her website www.laurababb.co.uk where you can see more of her fabulous photography! Over to Laura ....

"I'm really pleased to have been invited along to Knots and Kisses to talk to you about how to get the best from your wedding photography.
I am a wedding photographer but I’m also a bride-to-be so I am also currently navigating the often confusing world of wedding planning.

There’s so much to think about and if you’ve only just started my general advice is to worry about one thing at a time and to always have a glass of red wine at the ready…

As far as photography goes, people place varying degrees of importance on it. Some people think of it as something you should probably have at a wedding because, you know, that’s what you do, and some people plan their whole day around it. I’m guessing you’ll probably be somewhere in
between.
Most people will plan a few formal group shots put some time aside for some bridal portraits and then have a photographer to document the rest of the day as it unfolds.

Whilst it’s the photographer’s job to make sure they capture the important parts of the day, they can do this best if they have a good idea of your schedule. You don’t want them nipping off to the loo just before you’re due to start your first dance!

Ideally it’s best to meet with your photographer as early as possible, and before you formalise your schedule, to talk about how the day will run. It’s also really helpful if you can give them an idea of the number of formal
group shots you want so that they can tell you how long it’s likely to take. Small group shots can take around 2 – 3 minutes and big groups can take around 5 minutes, assuming everyone is ready and standing by.

A lot of photographers will ask for a bridesmaid or usher to be nominated to help organise group shots because it’s a lot quicker to get through them if someone can be rounding up people for the next shot on the list and, lets face it, quicker is better as you won’t want to spend loads of time away from your guests.
The exception to this is the bridal portraits, which I’m often told make a nice break away from everyone and give you a chance to spend some time together.

I photographed Charlotte and Jon's wedding earlier this year and they told me it was one of their favourite parts of the day, as it was time to chill out and enjoy each other's company without worrying about saying hello to guests or what's next on the schedule.

I usually recommend my couples allocate around 30 minutes if possible as a minimum, so that we can properly explore your venue and have plenty of time to take some beautiful pictures of just the two of you against a variety of different back drops.
It’s even better if you can allocate two shorter sessions, as the light is a lot softer later in the day and it’s nice to get some shots as the sun is going down.

Other than that my main advice would be to let your photographer do their thing in the background, while you and your guests enjoy yourselves. Posed portraits are beautiful but there's nothing greater than capturing real emotion, in an unobtrusive way, so pretend we're not there and we'll hang around in the background
capturing your day as it unfolds.

If you have any questions about wedding photography, even if I'm not your photographer
please feel free to get in touch and I'll be happy to help if I can.

Laura x "