Very Useful Tips for the Wedding Day

Clients usually ask me “Elaine, in your experience is there anything you’ve seen in your experience that we should know for our day?”

Yes indeed! I’ve shot over 200+ weddings, I believe I’ve seen quite a few scenarios in which I think “Hmmmmmmmm, good to know for next time”.

Here’s a couple things to keep in mind:

1. Be on time.

Easier said than done as everyone knows, but truly, the couple has THE final say on their special day. The bride and groom, if they really want to, can set the time and there doesn’t need to be any delays. If the bride wants the ceremony to start at 11:00am sharp “no excuses”, all their guests and vendors will do their utmost to make that happen. We are specifically there to help you, celebrate with you, and want nothing but the best for you. If the couple is late to the ceremony because makeup didn’t start on time, or flowers didn’t arrive yet, it’s hard on the rest of the day for not only the couple, but photography time is compromised (and you’ve spent a good portion on having a great photographer), the guests are waiting for the couple to arrive to the reception, the reception banquet cooks have to shift their times, the emcees’ schedules are shifted, the wedding planner is rushing around to make the day go smoothly, etc. It’s immensely easier for everyone involved to start as stated on the wedding day itinerary. Therefore, it’s a very good idea to set aside a lot of time before the ceremony to start early in getting ready, and tell your vendors that time is of the essence for you. You’ve spent a good deal of time planning out the itinerary and hired many vendors to make your day the way you want it, it’s best to stick to the plan.

2. Brides and bridesmaids, bring a couple pairs of shoes.

A bride spends a lot of time and $$$ for her wedding shoes, and rightly so, but sometimes form over function just hurts! When we go trekking all over the city to do some outrageous photos with the bridal party, if your shoes are hurting the last thing you want to do is walk through fields and concrete and climb trees with your Christian Louboutins that looked great down the aisle but feel like they are 2 sizes too small. It won’t hurt to bring a comfy pair of shoes to walk around in to-and-from the photos. This goes for your bridesmaids too, who usually also forget to bring comfortable shoes or break in their heels. Though they won’t forget the next time they are in a wedding party 🙂 Oh, and break in your heels before the wedding! I remember my high school graduation, I bought these gorgeous stiletto pumps – I had never worn heels before and didn’t even think to practice walking. Instead of enjoying the graduation dance, for most of it I couldn’t wait to just sit down instead of dancing the night away! So it doesn’t have to be complicated, you could bring flip flops as your backup pair. Easy!

3. Bring food and water around with you.

Bring something portable, like water bottles, fruit, granola bars… Brides aren’t hungry or thirsty when told to eat, but they are when it’s too late and suddenly they have no energy for the photos! You will be too nervous before the ceremony and won’t feel like eating at all. But afterwards, you will think of nothing but food, food food… You’ll be tired, but it’s maybe just dehydration. And when will you be able to eat? You’re greeting guests, you’re hopping into the limo to be whisked away for photos, you rush into the reception and get introduced, everyone’s watching you at the head table and you don’t feel like eating too much in front of 200 people, and you feed each other a tiny slice of cake since everyone’s snapping a picture of you but truthfully you really want to devour the entire layer… So remember to bring some snacks, for you and your party!

4. When in doubt, smile.

Smile even if nobody’s watching! You may not notice but I am capturing you the entire day, and a smile makes a picture 4,000,000,000X more interesting and lovely.

5. Enjoy your first dance.

Enjoy dancing with your new spouse, savor these three minutes of heaven, and also, enjoy dancing in silence with your father/mother. Don’t talk. Remember it for what it is.. You’ll have much better pictures, and you’ll have great memories of this moment so much more!

6. Relax!

The day goes by so very very quickly. Don’t stress or worry about things, worrying is like a sitting in a rocking chair: it takes up a lot of energy, but doesn’t get you anywhere. Everything will go fine, if there are hiccups, let someone else handle it. It’s out of your control now. You are there to live in the moment. I live by this mantra: happy people don’t have the best of everything, they make the best of what they have.

What are some useful tips you might have for couples on their wedding day?

Elaine Green Photographer | info@elainegreen.com | 780.707.8073 | Edmonton Wedding Photographer