Planning a wedding is certainly no easy feat – there’s a lot of work involved, especially when it comes to organizing your photos. If you’re currently planning your wedding and looking into booking a photographer, it’s a good idea to know some of the most common wedding photography mishaps.
This will allow you to prepare for your big day and ensure all your photos come out perfectly!
1. Booking Your Photographer Too Late
Once your wedding date and venue have been finalized, the next step should be booking your photographer. It’s crucial that you don’t leave this to the last minute, otherwise, your special day may go ahead without a photographer in place.
Most professional wedding photographers have events scheduled 6 to 18 months in advance, so the earlier you reserve a photographer, the better.
2. Failing to Finalize a Wedding Timeline
Although organizing a venue, wedding date, photographer, catering, seating plan, etc. are some of the most important things you’ll need to do during the planning stage, it’s also a great idea to create a wedding timeline.
That way, you, your guests, and your photographer will know exactly what to expect on the big day, ensuring there’s plenty of time for photos.
3. Not Letting Your Photographer Know of Your Ideas or “Must-Have” Shots
If there are certain poses, friends/family members, backgrounds, or props you want in your wedding photos, be sure to let your photographer know ahead of your wedding day. For instance, if you want a shot outside the venue with all your guests, inform your photographer in advance so you don’t waste time trying to explain your ideas at the last minute.
4. Forgetting to Ask Someone to Help Manage Your Guests
Weddings are often hectic, especially for the couple involved, so it’s important that you ask someone you trust to help you manage your guests for family portraits and ensure everyone is in the right place at the right time.
Ideally, this person will let guests know when they are needed for photos, then release them back into the party so they can enjoy the remainder of the day.
5. Overthinking Your Photographs
Although it’s a good idea to provide your photographer with a list of your preferred poses, you don’t want to spend so much time on photos that you forget to enjoy the rest of your big day.
Keep your list of preferred poses or ideas to a reasonable length and aim to keep your posed shots to a 30-minute timeframe.
6. Failing to Book Your Photographer for an Engagement or Bridal Session
Every photographer has their own style and flair, so it’s important to get to know your photographer before the big day so you can ensure they’re the right fit for you. Book your photographer for an engagement party, bridal shower, or another event before your wedding so you can see whether their photography style is to your liking.
7. Underestimating Time Needed for Photographs
If you want your photographer to capture certain moments and important details like your wedding transportation, shoes, rings, etc. make sure you book enough hours of coverage. It’s best to allow for a minimum of 1 to 2 hours of coverage before the ceremony begins.
8. Hiring Someone With Little or No Photography Experience
Everyone has a friend or family member who thinks they’re pretty nifty with a camera, but don’t be tempted to use someone who has little or zero photography experience, even if they offer to do it for a fraction of the price.
Leave your professional photography to a true professional, otherwise, your wedding photos might end up with the most memorable moments captured out of focus, and not the way you want to remember your big day. You definitely want to collect all the candid moments from your guests but you want a pro capturing the entrance, the vows, the cake cutting, and the first dance.
9. Looking At the Camera Constantly
A lot of the best photographs are taken when the person or people in the shot act naturally. Avoid glancing at the camera all the time so you can focus on enjoying your day.
10. Forgetting to Ask Friends or Family Members to Capture and Gather Candid Shots
Your photographer can’t be everywhere at once, so there’s bound to be missed photo opportunities unless you ask friends/family members to share the moments they capture. For instance, your guests’ reaction to the bride/groom walking down the aisle alongside the reaction of the bride/groom themselves – your photographer can’t capture both at the same time!
Additionally, if you want photos of all your wedding events, such as engagement parties, rehearsal dinners, bachelor/bachelorette parties, etc, you’ll need a way to easily gather these from all your guests.
WaldoWed by Waldo Photos is a great way to easily share a gallery with all your guests to add their photos. The free app is available on Apple, Android, and the web so you can share a link with the photographer you hire, and Waldo’s face-finding tech will deliver everyone all the photos they’re found in.
For guests, Waldo generates a QR code on predesigned, printable signs and table tents that you can place at your registration and dining tables. You can also run a live slideshow at your rehearsal dinner and/or your reception (it features the QR code too!), allowing guests to text in their photos to the live slideshow (and you have the option to review first if you so choose).
The last thing you want after you return from your honeymoon is multiple missed calls, voicemails, emails and texts (especially from Aunt Edna wanting the family photo!). WaldoWed eliminates this hassle as everyone has access as soon as they are uploaded and they can order their prints directly from the Waldo app.
