5 Things Every Photographer Wishes They Could Tell Every Bride

1. If you are Type A and plan to wear your hair down, It is A VERY BAD IDEA.  

The trend for the last few years has been to have the long flowing curls or long dramatic straight hair.  This is problematic because the best your hair will look is right after your salon appointment.  Much like a new car depreciating as you drive it off the lot, your hair will continue the downward slump as your day goes on.  Factoring in heat, humidity, and wind, by the time your photos start, it is starting to come undone.  Even worse, is that by the time the reception starts you will be a hot mess.  Do yourself a favor and wear it up, then the way you look in all your photos, from the first one to the last will be flawless, instead of flat, droopy, and sad.  Still set on having it down?  Then have your stylist come to the reception for a touch up.

2. Your dress will get dirty, sometimes really dirty if you are doing it right.

Bringing a sheet for your photographer to photograph you on is a waste of time and a joke.  The good news is that most of the dirty will be on the under carriage of the skirt.  You will be surprised at the end of the day how black your perfect white dress is.  Don't worry, don't bring the sheet, and don't bring the tide pens.  The pens actually make the spots worse by smearing them all over the place.  If you have a small spot, the best thing you can do is leave it alone.  No one is going to notice anyway.  Just have fun, enjoy your wedding day and don't obsess over spots or imperfections.  I promise you no one will notice except for you.

3.  If your locations suck, find one that won't, where you can schedule the majority of the photos.

Pinning images of the Ritz Carlton, or Platinum weddings if your wedding reception is at the Moose Lodge is going to do nothing but frustrate you and your photographer.   Trying to make a crappy space with no personality or worse yet, a very dated personality is only going to end in disappointment.  Use the church for family portraits only.

4.  Don't ask (or worse demand) EVERY image taken from your photographer.

I can promise you that there is a very good reason why an image will be edited out of the set.  Editing is not something that is done willy nilly,your photographer will spend hours making sure everything worth seeing is available to you.  There are no HIDDEN SECRET GEMS in the rejects waiting to be discovered.  

5.  Hire the person you trust and trust the person you hire.  

Constantly trying to micromanage or worse yet, working off a shot list (cringe) or sending your photographer photos from other sites or photographers you want to copy is one of the worst things you can do as a bride.  It almost guarantees that you will NOT get the best photography your photographer can produce.  If you carefully select and find the right person they WILL BLOW YOU AWAY with their creativity.  Photographers are creative people and as such struggle with a really strict, regimented plan.  Don't be a control freak, instead select the person whose work you love, and during the consultation they will ask you things that help them tailor their coverage to fit your personal style if they are doing it right.  Then on your wedding day, be open to trying their ideas, trust in their process, and let the emotions flow so they can be recorded forever, and I guaranteed you will love their results.

This unsolicited advice is based on the over 400 weddings Woody and I have shot over a career that spans 15 years.  Hopefully it will help you and your brides have a great experience together.  Please share and enjoy.