Tammy's Photo tips

[TammyWright]

hey girls,

 

i thought i would write some tips to help get better pics on your wedding day. I used to work as an asst. photographer for about 4 years so have helped shoot over 100 weddings and i have been on the other side of the lens as a stressed out bride so i feel like i know what your going through

 

expectations on your big day. remember that no matter how much you plan, things are not going to go exactly the way you want them too...this isn't always a bad thing because sometimes you can be pleasantly surprised and have an experience better than what you hoped for. I originaly had another photog scheduled and he flaked on me a few days before my wedding...luckily Juan Carlos also had a cancellation so it worked out perfectly for me.

 

Do not expect your photog to be a miracle worker! for your photographer to get the pics that you want you need to be flexible and work with him. that means being clear about what pictures you want taken. that also means you are going to have to pick and choose which pictures have more importance to you. You also need to be realistic about conditions that he cannot control. expecting to have all your pictures taken at sunset is not feasible or realistic. a sunset only lasts so long. is it more important for you to have couples pics at sunset or family ics at sunset?

 

i made a list of the shots that i wanted taken and organized them so our photog could easily go down the list. this is especially helpful if you have a big family. i also put names of couple and families together to help our photog get a better handle on who we wanted photographed. i remember being disappointed because although JC got most of the couples at the reception he did not take any pics of steve's fav cousin and his wife and i was upset and embarrassed because i did not want them to feel like they were left out or not important to us. i later found out, they were fighting at our reception and did not want their pic taken so not JC's fault.

 

Give your photog time to take your pics! i had JC come a few hours before the wedding to take pics of steve and his gm and family, and then come to my room and take pics of me and my BMs and family. i absolutely cherish these pics and am so glad i spent the extra $$ to have them. If you are not that traditional, you may be open to taking all your family pics before the ceremony. then you look fresh and your family is there and ready to cooperate...because once the ceremony happens, getting family together to take pics is like herding cats.

 

here are some other quick tips:

• tell your bms to hold the flowers low as the walk down the aisle. out of nervousness or whatever, if not told the bouquet eventually ends up near their mouth and this looks silly. or in my sisters case, i told her to hold them low, she told me she knew what she was doing, she walked down the aisle holding the bouquet like a torch in the olympics and looked like an idiot. we still laugh and make fun of her for it

• make sure to tell family members when to be ready for pics. if you want them for the bedore ceremony pics, be sure to be clear when you want them in your room. steve didnt do this with his folks. he assumed they knew. they didn't.

• i know this sounds cheesy but look at old pics you have where you like the angle of your face...that's your good side...this is important to remember!

• have a someone help coordinate and round up the family. my sister did this. it helps save time and time is of the essence when you are trying to get good lighting.

• put together a timeline of events and give to the photog so he has some warning that you are about to do the first dance, garter, cake, etc.

• most importantly, try to B R E A T H E and R E L A X and have a good time!

here is the list i gave JC. i will be back to post more tips but have to run to dinner.

 

wedding pics:

wedding invitation & bouquet on the beach with water in background

 

Before ceremony:

Sister or mother putting veil on bride

picture of Bride and her family

 

Groom-

Groom w/ family, grandmother, and aunt shirley

 

Cocktail Hour (guest will enjoy cocktail hour, family available for pics):

Bride & Groom

Bride & Groom & Bride Family

Bride & Groom & Grooms Family

Bride & Groom & Bridal Party

Bride & Groom, Families, & Families

Bride & Groom with whoever wants to take pic (large group pic-maybe we can do this really quickly at first to let guest enjoy party?)

 

Family/Group pics:

 

Mike Wright Family (grooms brother-see below for details)

Combs Family (large group-see below for details)

Ster Family (Eben-groomsman and rachel-wife)

Sammy & Nicole D

Mike & Chris J

other combs family (kimberly, pete, kevin)

Becky, Wendy, Noah

Roger

Ian & Sunny (gf)

Cari & nik (bf)

Tiffany, Barbara, and Aleyah

Sanaz & Spiro (bf)

Joanie & Destry (steve's cousin)

 

Family and friends names:

 

Brides family:

Tammy (bride)

Mui (brides mom)

Sang (brides dad)

Kelly (sister and maid of honor)

Barbara (sister and bridesmaid)

 

Grooms Family:

Steve (groom)

Collie (grooms mom)

Allan (grooms Dad)

Michael Wright (brother and best man)

[TammyB]

Great tips Tammy.. Now if someone could give me a tip on how to "not" break out in hives from being nervous I would be all set.. :-)

[Sarah]

Thanks so much Tammy. These are very helpful tips and I'm sure I will make a list very similar to this. How many hours did you have Juan for at your wedding? And by the way, are there very many jobs that you haven't had? You seem to have done everything pertaining to weddings/travel, etc!

[deleted]

Tammy, thanks so much, this is so helpful. Next on my list of things To Do is make a list of everything for my photog. Now I am wondering if I want him for more "before" pictures....

[deleted]

My photog, Bradley Fraser, sent me this Martha Stewart wedding workbook pdf, which among other helpful planning things, includes a checklist for must-have photos. See page 5 of this pdf.

 

 

wedding_workbook.pdf

wedding_workbook.pdf

[KARLA]

Thank you girls for the tips!

We're about to figure this all out and get our "must take pics" list together.

[TammyWright]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AQHARIDER Thanks so much Tammy. These are very helpful tips and I'm sure I will make a list very similar to this. How many hours did you have Juan for at your wedding? And by the way, are there very many jobs that you haven't had? You seem to have done everything pertaining to weddings/travel, etc!

i had him for 5 hours. I had him come 1.5 hours before the ceremony.

i know, i guess life happens the way it was supposed to

i love wedding stuff so this is perfect for me!

[TammyWright]

[amyh]

Thanks for posting that tammy.

 

I posted this question in another thread and I don't think it was answered (or I over looked it because of the INSANE amount of posts), but what do you suggest/believe is a good photo package?

[BRENDASTAR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by host

WOW this is such great information!! Thanks a lot Tammy! I especially was curious how many hours you had him for, so you found that 5 hours was enough. Did you do the cameras on the table too for guests to take photos for fun? Or did you feel he was enough?