How do you decide which parts of your wedding should be photographed?

When you’re thinking about your wedding, chances are you haven’t thought about which bits you’d like to be photographed (not everyone wants the whole day to be photographed) and whether you need to make some planning decisions (I know, more planning!) So in this blog I go through each part of your wedding day, and then you can decide which parts of your wedding you’d like to be photographed.

Let’s get into it.

Photos of Getting Ready before your Wedding Ceremony

Before the wedding ceremony, you may choose to get your getting ready time photographed. Some people really want to have photos of the build up to the ceremony, the time with best friends and closest family, the nerves, the laughs and the emotions as the time approaches to say ‘I do’. For some couples they choose not to have photos pre ceremony, and that’s totally fine. My packages are built around a number of hours coverage so we can start whenever its right for you.

(See the full weddings of Claire & Amy’s home garden wedding, Kate & Cory’s Chelsea Hall wedding, Lin & James’ wedding at RSA house)

Photographing your First Look

Before you make your way to the ceremony there is a little time when your family and friends see you all dressed up, ready to get married. This time is a really special time and can be quite emotional. Your makeup & hair is done, you have put on your wedding dress, your accessories and you are ready to go. So should you have a first look or not?

Depending on how you choose to do those final preparations it might be that your mum, dad or friends haven’t seen you with your dress on. Making that entrance or having that time with those special people is really lovely. Getting photos that capture these moments is also a really wonderful thing. It is a time of true emotion and real reactions.

You can also choose to have a first look between the two of you getting married, a private moment between the two of you before the ceremony and everyone else sees you. This can be particularly romantic and special time, and can also be really help if you are nervous about the ceremony or being the centre of attention. If you’re getting married later in the day or having a winter wedding where the light goes quickly after the ceremony, doing a first look means there is plenty of time (and light) to take some gorgeous portraits of the two of you.

(See the full weddings of Alice and Charlie’s Wadhurst Castle wedding, Claire & Amy’s garden wedding, Kate & Cory’s Chelsea Town Hall wedding, Ellie & Sam’s intimate Bath wedding, Jessica & Nick’s Hampton Court wedding)

Photographing your Wedding Ceremony

The main priority is of course your wedding ceremony. This is (obviously) the key and most important part of the day, where you are making that all-important commitment to each other. Whether it’s just the two of you, an intimate gathering or a large-scale family and friends affair, there are a few things to consider.

This is actually quite a tricky one to discuss in terms of photography, as the specifics of the ceremony is led by the place you are getting married and the person who is conducting the ceremony. From a photography point of view, there are many things that you just have to work with, such as where you can stand in a church or the lighting in a room. There are still some things that can be done from the time you start planning your day that will help you get the most out of your photography.

For ease, I’m going to separate this post into church weddings, civil ceremonies and outdoor ceremonies. This should cover most of the possibilities! You can check out all my tips on getting the best wedding ceremony photos here.

Some couples choose to only have the ceremony and a little time after photographed. If this appeals to you then I have mini packages available for short coverage and small weddings.

The final part of most wedding ceremonies is to exit to bucket loads of confetti (or bubbles). This is definitely something to get photos of, if you are allowed.

(See Kate & Cory’s Chelsea Town Hall wedding, Michelle & Charlene’s Horniman Museum wedding, Cynthia & Panawat’s Pembroke Lodge wedding, Lin & James’ RSA House wedding, Sarah & Ade’s Pembroke Lodge wedding, Maria & Xander’s Marylebone Town Hall wedding in full)

Photographing your Wedding Reception

Your wedding reception is the time when you get to start the celebrations with your guests and I can capture lots of natural, candid photos of everyone having a wonderful time! This is also when we will capture any group photos you want, photos of the two of you and I also get photos of the room set up for the wedding breakfast.

To make sure you have the fun-filled, laid-back, happy, and fabulous wedding reception that you are dreaming of you need to make sure you have enough time for everything that you want to happen t0… well, happen! This is where a bit of planning ahead makes all the difference. The wedding reception is by far the busiest time of the wedding day for photos, so in this blog, I share my nine top tips on how to get the best photos of your wedding reception.

Check out my post on how to get the best wedding reception photos.

(See Natasha & Andrew’s Walled Garden at Cowdray wedding, Sara & Judith’s Loft Studios wedding, Claire & Amy’s home garden wedding, Carla & Marcos’ wedding, Hazel & Mathew’s Bromley wedding in full)

Photographing your Group and Family Photos

If you have a large wedding party of ushers, bridesmaids, close family and friends who you want to be included in the group photos then you’ll need to consider the fact that this will take quite a bit of time and you’ll need to nominate a couple of people to help gather everyone (people who knows who everyone is, ideally!)

I love each and every part of photographing a wedding day, but the logistics of getting the group wedding photos sorted can be tricky! I wanted to break it down so you can plan them ahead of time, then you can enjoy them and get back to your guests. Here are my nine ways on how to make the group wedding photos easy.

Take a look at my top tips for stress free and easy group photos

(See Kate & Cory’s Chelsea Town Hall wedding, Sara & Judith’s Loft Studios wedding, Jen & Darren’s Wotton House wedding in full)

Photographing your Wedding Speeches & Evening Party

It’s great to capture the speeches and the evening party, its when you get lots of photos of laughter, smiles and emotion. Plus a few crazy dance floor moments are always fun to have! Staying around for the evening also gives the opportunity for sunset photos, which is always worth it if we get the right weather.

Writing a speech can be a very scary and daunting task. It’s easy to get blank page syndrome if you aren’t naturally great with words. When you then think about having to stand up in front of a load of people to say those words, it’s inevitable that the nerves are going to kick in. But no need. When it comes down to it your wedding guests are looking forward to the speeches and they want you to do well. In this post I share some of my top tips on how to get the best photos of your wedding speeches.

(See Sarah & Steve’s Preston Court wedding, Amy & Ollie’s Pembroke Lodge wedding, Natasha & Andrew’s Walled Garden at Cowdray wedding, Jess & Iain’s Horniman Museum wedding, Molly & Johnny’s Horniman Museum wedding, Amanda & Steve’s Gaynes Park wedding, Tracey & Nigel’s Horniman Museum wedding)

Extra things you can have photos of on your wedding day

Whether used to add some fun to the evening reception or as a fabulous send-off at the end of the night, you can literally light up your day with wedding sparklers. They can be as fun as they are pretty and your guests will enjoy being part of the experience as they wave sparklers around in celebration. There are, however, some important things to remember if you want to incorporate sparklers into your wedding day and get great wedding sparklers photos. In this post I share my top tips on how to get the best wedding sparklers photos.

Take a look at this post with top tips for wedding sparklers.

(See Natasha & Joe’s Belair House wedding here)

And now it’s time to make a decision! Whichever parts of your wedding you choose to have photographed, do know that my packages are very flexible to suit your needs. If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch.

Thanks for stopping by

Fee x

How do you decide which parts of your wedding should be photographed?