Top 10 tips for great wedding day portraits!

Kimber's Garter removal at the wedding

GREAT WEDDING DAY PORTRAITS -SAN ANTONIO WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

1. Choose a wedding photographer that you like!

Your photographer will be with you all day, so you’ll want someone you click with. You want to be able to communicate with them so you have expectations that your photographer can meet. You should get a great vibe from their portfolio and a good rapport with them. Budget will still play a role in your decision, but vibe will take over when it comes down to it.

2. Engagement and bridal portraits will make you much more comfortable.

engagement Allison on the bed of the trainThere are several reasons to do an engagement session. First, it helps us to get to know you and your fiancé. Second, you get to see the poses that you love, and lastly, you become more comfortable in front of the camera. These photos save the memories of your life before marriage. We love doing engagement sessions with our clients! Working with a trusted professional photographer is the first step when planning your engagement photographs

3. You may have to adjust your wedding day portrait session.

Allie and Ryan after rain on the wedding day
Allie and Ryan after rain on the wedding day.

Flexibility is key, the right lighting is essential! Maybe the makeup artist is running behind or an afternoon thunderstorm is threatening to ruin your romantic sunlit portraits. It bums us out too but trust us and try to roll with what happens. If things change it could work out way better than your initial idea anyway. Being creative on the fly is my jam!

4. Being a model is exhausting!

If you’re not already tired of smiling from all the obligatory family group shots then you must have super powers! We try to be sure and get some “formal portraits” in before there ceremony but there are always some to take after.  While we are rounding up your family, relax the muscles in your face and take a few deep breaths. During your couple session we will make sure that some of the poses are softer and less cheeky

5. You might not get all the photos you’d originally wanted…

We do a pre-event consultation with all of your brides to create expectations that we can meet! That being said, there may be a few photos that just never come fruition on your wedding day. We have found the best way to avoid missing important shots is to create a shot list of  family, friends, specific groups and couple shots so you don’t have to worry.  The day moves quickly and things happen we want to have time to organically capture every minute we can.

6. …but that won’t matter because you will end up with so many other amazing ones!

Wedding Photography list or not, some of the best pictures are candid moments. You can’t plan for them but we guarantee they will happen. And you’ll love them, possibly even more than any planned picture on your list.

7. You’ll wonder if we moonlight as a ninjas.

You probably won’t even realize those candid shots—which are now the center point of your of your wedding album—were being taken, right? We will be present but not intrusive. Most of the time you’ll be having so much fun, you won’t even realize someone is capturing all the best moments at your wedding!

8. It takes time for portraits to come back after the wedding.

The morning after your wedding, you will be so excited for photos, but candid snaps from your family’s and friends’  instagrams post will have to suffice until you get back the professional portraits back. Try to be patient, we will post a sneak peek! It can take a few weeks before getting the bulk of your portraits back—but when you do, it’ll be worth the wait.

9. You’ll never be so obsessed with portraits of yourself.

When your wedding photos finally do arrive, you’ll never want to stop looking at them and reliving every amazing moment from your day. You will want to have a physical album to enjoy each precious shot. All of our regular packages come with a wedding album and the USB of images! There will be so many great options, and it will seem impossible to choose between all 1,723 of them—but you don’t have to! We will design and make changes to your album before it is printed!

10. Copyright, yours and mine.

Don’t freak out— we will share photos with you, but usually maintain the copyright to the images. You will receive a limited copyright release letting you print them as many times any where that you want. You just cannot edit or sell them. Check the photography contract and talk to us about how you want to use them and ideally how you’d like us to use them (website, blog, magazine spreads and so on).