Sample List: Family Formals

Michael and I absolutely love meeting our couple’s families on the wedding day! Family formals are nor- mally our first interaction with them and so we love to have a game plan for this part of the day! A few weeks before the wedding, you’ll receive a questionnaire from us that will ask you to list out the family formals you want us to capture. Here is a sample family formal list to help you start preparing what shots you need. We do have to limit the family formal time in order to ensure that we have plenty of daylight for your romantic portraits. However, any large family group shots that we don’t accomplish during family formals, we can be sure to capture at the reception!

B&G with Bride’s Immediate Family

(Parents, Siblings, Grandparents, Nieces, Nephews)

B&G with Bride’s Parents

B&G with Bride’s Siblings

Bride with her Parents

Bride with Mom, Bride with Dad

B&G with Bride’s Grandparents

B&G with both sets of Parents

B&G with Groom’s Immediate Family

(Parents, Siblings, Grandparents, Nieces, Nephews)

B&G with Groom’s Parents

B&G with Groom’s Siblings

Groom with his Parents

Groom with Mom, Groom with Dad

B&G with Groom’s Grandparents

B&G with all family members if time allows

Unplugged Ceremony

Imagine this with me.... you’re in my shoes.... the most important moment of the day is about to happen. You’ve checked your camera settings, you’ve taken test shots and you’re ready to capture the bride coming down the aisle to her groom. You want to capture reactions, variety of angles and every moment of joy and emotion in those few seconds. However, just as everyone stands and the music plays, not one, but three different family members and friends get so excited that they take just one step out into the aisle with their iPhones in hand trying to capture the moment. I’m scrambling. My couple is trusting me not to miss this!!! But now I’m dodging guests who are trying desperately to have a good Insta-story to share and they have no idea that the back of their heads, their arms and their phones are blocking me from capturing the bride and her dad walking down the aisle. It’s honestly one of the most terrifying things that can happen to a photographer during a ceremony .... and the hard part is, it can always be avoided. This issue is a growing one. Every wedding season we experience more and more of these issues. However, there is a solution! We highly recommend having an “Unplugged Ceremony”. This is just another way of saying that you want only your photographers to be capturing photos and you would like everyone else to enjoy the ceremony instead of trying to capture it themselves.

Options for notifying guests the your ceremony is UNPLUGGED

1. Signage : Have a simple sign that guests see as they are entering the ceremony

2. Spoken : Have your officiant politely mention that you prefer no cell phones

3. Program : Include your Unplugged Ceremony request in your program design

Choosing a Controlled Exit

If your photography coverage ends before the very end of your  reception  and you are hoping to have an “Exit” shot captured, you have the option of planning to do a “Controlled Exit” with your bridal party! This is more common than you may think. Instead of saving your exit until the very end, you can plan a controlled exit with just the members of your bridal party and a few family members! This allows us to have more control over these shots and the party NEVER has to stop! In most cases, no one even notices that the bride and groom are missing for a few minutes!

3 REASONS A CONTROLLED EXIT IS BEST :

1.  Multiple chances at an epic shot : When you do an exit shot at the very end of the  wedding day, I only have one chance to capture the two of you as you run through sparklers, bubbles, confetti or whatever type of exit you have planned. When you do a “controlled exit”, I have multiple chances to capture several awesome exit portraits for you!

2.  You haven’t partied all night yet : This means that your makeup and hair are still in-tact for your exit shot! That’s a win right there!

3.  Coordinated Colors : When you are surrounded by your bridal party instead of wedding guests that could be wearing distracting colors, you can expect to have beautiful exit shots surrounded by your wedding  colors!   

The First Look explained

I have to confess my deep love for “First Looks”. There is a reason for this. They’re AWESOME! However, not everyone is aware of how awesome they are, because they get caught up in how “non-traditional” it is and they immediately write it off. I can talk about those brides because I was one them! I wanted a REACTION....I wanted Michael to be so surprised and overcome with joy when I walked down the aisle that he bawled at the first sight of me! Isn’t that EVERY girl’s dream? Who doesn’t want that reaction? Unfortunately I wasn’t aware that you could have a first look before walking down the isle. I thought the only option was for him to see me for the first time when those church doors opened. Walking down the aisle on my wedding day was a wonderful moment but I wish that I would have done a first look instead, let me tell you why.

After experiencing my own wedding and shooting others.... I’ve come to this conclusion. Some brides love “traditions”.... but what a bride REALLY wants when it comes to her groom seeing her for the first time, is a REACTION. Those who are not interested in a First Look usually think that by seeing each other beforehand, they will lose part of that reaction. They also assume that it will not be as emotional or as intimate as it would be if they were coming down the aisle. What I have found (this is starting to sound like a research paper!) is so ironic! Everyone knows that wedding days are a bit stressful for the bride and groom.

The whole day is focused on them, they need to look their best, they need to be on time, the groom has no idea what side the boutonniere is supposed to go on and little by little... the tension grows.

It’s before the ceremony and the gravity of what is about to happen starts to sink in and the calm, collected groom who was playing golf just a few short hours ago is now starting to feel a little anxious. So what happens next? The groom waits in a little room somewhere for his que from the coordinator. It seems like it’s taking FOREVER. Finally, the coordinator leans her head in and hurries the groom to get ready. With clammy hands, the groom enters the ceremony and what does he find? .... he finds anywhere from 80-300 people and they’re all looking where? Right at his face... because everyone has expectations and anticipation about his first reaction. This is the farthest thing from a private, intimate moment. Sure, it’s SO powerful and SO wonderful. ... I already said that walking down the aisle was one of the wonderful moments of my my wedding day!! It’s magical!! ..... But it would have been nice when I walked down the aisle... Michael wasn’t a nervous wreck...and we would have had some special moments one on one to talk and cry together, an opportunity for him to tell me how beautiful I looked without everyone looking at us, a time to be with my best friend and the pressure OFF.

With a first look the nerves are gone and when the nerves are gone... true emotions are free to be expressed. So if I were to condense what I just wrote... basically, Grooms normally become incredibly nervous on wedding days.... even if they seem cool and collected.

For most grooms, the nerves kick in before they see their bride because when they see her, everything becomes VERY real! So when the nerves start creeping up, instead of keeping the groom in a secluded space until his time to enter the ceremony, what if you took him to a private place... no people, no on-lookers, no distractions.... and you let his beautiful bride, the love of his life, quietly call his name and have him turn around to see her for the first time. He would turn around and finally get his first look at his stunning bride and not only would he get to see her... he could embrace her... cry with her.... kiss her... and ENJOY that moment with her for as LONG as they wanted. As she shows him her dress, twirls a few times and then asks him what he thinks... his nerves start to diminish. After all, she’s the one who can make him most comfortable anyway.

Because they aren’t on a time crunch... they casually move into their romantic portraits. No one is around, the coordinator isn’t announcing “15 minutes left”, and there is no pressure. It’s just the two of them and their photographer..... capturing the excitement and the joy of their wedding day. This is their time to be TOGETHER...and to be ALONE. When does that happen on a wedding day? Without a First Look.... it doesn’t. After their romantic portraits are done, they meet up with their best friends. Their bridal party joins them and because they still have plenty of time to spare... the bride touches up a little makeup while the boys act like boys. After a few minutes the bridal party portraits begin and they’re FUN. They’re FUN, because there is time to make them FUN.

There aren’t any guests waiting impatiently at the cocktail hour and there isn’t a DJ coming to find the photographer to get a time check. It’s wonderful!

After portraits are done the girls and guys separate and prepare for the ceremony. The guests begin to arrive and the ushers are in place. Pretty soon it’s time for the processional music to begin and one by one, the bridesmaids make their way down to the front of the ceremony. As the groom clasps his hands... they aren’t clasped out of nervousness but excitement. The music builds, the mother of the bride stands and all of the guests follow her lead. The groom looks up, and here comes the BRIDE!!! His best friend, his companion, his sweetheart.....she’s stunning.... ABSOLUTELY stunning. The closer she gets, the bigger he smiles.

Now let me put a disclaimer on here before we continue...my clients are not required to do a First Look by any means! I used to feel bad for sharing this option with couples who were against it, because I didn’t want to push anything on them. However, I’ve seen the benefits of a first look over and over again, and so I only share this because I want the BEST for my couples!! It’s totally ok if couples choose not to share a first look! It’s just my preference to do one for many reasons.... Keep reading to find out more of the benefits of sharing your first look privately! For brides not interested in a First Look, let’s start chatting soon about how we’ll create a special timeline to fit everything in!

FIRST LOOK | Why it’s Worth It

40% MORE PORTRAITS

You’re investing a lot into your wedding photography. With a first look, you’ll receive 40% MORE portraits of the two of you... and those are the images you will decorate your first home with! With a first look, you make the most out of this large investment and get the most for your money.

ENJOY THE SURPRISE FREELY

You actually get to have intimate time on your wedding day with your man. Most brides don’t realize that when you come down the aisle and totally SHOCK him with your gorgeousness... he can’t even tell you how amazing you look. He can’t touch you, embrace you or even SPEAK to you. You have to wait until 30-60 minutes later when the ceremony is over for him to react and tell you how amazing you look. And after 30-60 minutes of the ceremony, the reaction isn’t the same as the initial first glance.

EXTEND YOUR WEDDING DAY BY 2-3 HOURS

First Looks allow you to extend your wedding day. Normally the wedding day would start when you come down the aisle, then the ceremony would end, you would rush through portraits so that you’re not late for the introductions and then it’s reception time. With a first look, your wedding day is extended by almost 3 hours! Instead of being rushed for your bridal party portraits... you actually get to enjoy them and have fun hanging out with your BEST friends on your wedding day. The WHOLE first half of my client’s wedding albums are filled with images just from this time together before the ceremony.

YOUR ONLY ALONE TIME

First Looks allow you to be TOGETHER and alone on your wedding day. When couples do a first look it might be the only time to be alone the whole day! Time to laugh and cry and chat with just each other... and then that puts you in the PERFECT mood for romantic portraits. Normally portraits are a little rushed after the family formals, and it can be hard to really get back into that “lovey dovey” mode.... especially with family around! When you have just shared your first look, you’re READY to love on each other, and I always capture some super sweet images during those moments!

DIMINISHES NERVES
You get rid of your nerves! Some brides who have decided to do a first look, said the grooms were not fans of it at first. However, because they have never experienced their wedding day before, they didn’t know how nerve racking it can be. Those grooms who initially weren’t a fan of the first look... admitted afterwards that it helped them to be SO much more relaxed and ready for the ceremony!

Preparing for your Engagement Session

Romantic Feel

If you’re hoping for a more romantic style of shoot that includes “light” and “airy” colors, you can actually make outfit choices that will lend your images to turn out brighter, softer and extra photogenic! Here are some ingredients that go into creating a romantic styled shoot. It’s important to note that you do not need to choose all of these ingredients in order to have a light and airy style to your images but the more ingredients you include, the more romantic it will be:

- Neutral Colors: Blushes, tans, light pinks, faint blues and light minty teals, creams, grays and whites will always result in more of a light and airy look in your images. These colors photograph softer and more romantically!

- Long, Flowy Skirts/Dresses: Dresses and skirts with feminine ruffles, multiple layers of fabric and the ability to blow and move in the wind will always photograph beautifully! You would be amazed at how impactful moving fabric softens an image.

- Khakis vs. Jeans: If you really want your images to be as bright as possible, consider having your groom wear lighter pants instead of dark dress pants or dark jeans.

Bold & Bright Feel

Just like the “Romantic” recipe, you don’t have to apply all of these “ingredients to get a perfectly BRIGHT & BOLD look to your engagement session. These ingredients include:

- Only one wears a pattern: If one of you has a bold pattern, it’s very important that the other doesn’t. The more bold the pattern, the more important this rule is!

- Bold Backgrounds: A lot of time, if my couples are going for a bold and bright look, I will notice solid colored backgrounds to use for part of their engagement session! It’s a double win if the background coordinates with their outfits!

- Only one bold color: If you really want a bold and bright look but you want to do it well and tastefully, I would suggest that only one of you have a bright and bold colored outfit and the other stay in a solid neutral to avoid over-doing it!

- Large Patterns are Preferred: If you really want to wear a pattern, my only request is that your pattern is on the larger side. Patterns that are smaller than a quarter can be difficult to photograph. This isn’t true of all patterns but it’s a good general rule to go by!