Comments on: 5 Things Brides Wish Their Wedding Photographers Knew

By: Anthony Riordan

Anthony Riordan — Wed, 15 May 2013 10:15:00 +0000

Just spotted this reply now. My goal is to make the shoot fun not funny. And I’m actually pretty funny. So :P

By: AnnePotts

AnnePotts — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:52:00 +0000

I completely agree that the photographer should make sure that everyone is paying attention when the pictures are being taken and that he should make sure that extra attention is paid to everyone's outfits including that other the bride, groom and the mother of the bride.

By: Patryk Molczan

Patryk Molczan — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:15:00 +0000

I’m so glad I dont own a blog. Some of these comments are just crazy. Thanks for the GREAT POST Lauren.

By: Matt Palmer

Matt Palmer — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 12:33:00 +0000

Meh.

By: Matt Palmer

Matt Palmer — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 12:33:00 +0000

Meh, I shoot weddings and none of this is an issue. By phrasing your article this way it makes it sound as if good wedding photographers don’t know these things.

By: Jennifer Mckingley

Jennifer Mckingley — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 08:08:00 +0000

Very good article. I appreciate your post.

TimGunther.com

By: Mark Luinenburg

Mark Luinenburg — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 06:06:00 +0000

I guess I would basically agree with most of the points in the article from the bride’s point of view. The 5th point seems a little strange. “I expect you to know exactly what I am talking about and I expect you to be able to recreate it beautifully”
Well, that really depends on how well the bride/groom communicate. Photographers are not mind readers. It might also be helpful to remind the bride/couple that that every occasion, wedding, event is unique and that photographers use cameras, meaning that if an event is rife with tension, the event cannot through magic or Photoshop be made to look otherwise – the day, the photos will reflect the couples’ ultimate philosophy and how they deal with all that’s happening.

I haven’t read every post here, so maybe some of this has already been covered. It seems there should also be, maybe a separate article, something that covers what wedding photographers wish their brides knew. I can pretty much guarantee you the list would be more than 5 things with all the experiences of wedding photographers. I used to do weddings, I don’t anymore. Perhaps the list below (all from personal experience) will be insightful as to why.
1. Please don’t complain about reflections on the groom’s shoes when he’s wearing patent leather shoes. They’re basically mirrors in shoe form. This bride, as I found out later, had the sleeves on her wedding dress altered because they didn’t fit perfectly………….after the wedding. I can’t even begin to put into words how totally bizarre this is. When I left the wedding I wished the couple good luck. I meant it. My very last wedding.

2. Please don’t complain (and later refuse to pay) because the groom blinked on 80% of the shots. This is not something we as photographers can control. Please consult your doctor/psychologist.

3. Please, bride, don’t have an atomic, crazy, foul-mouthed meltdown when an uncle can’t be located for a spur-of-the-moment group shot.

4. Please don’t call every other day to insist and harass the photographer that the couple owns all the original film (digital files) when the conditions were clearly laid out numerous times prior to the wedding.

5. Please, I know you’ve planned this day for probably at least a year and a half, and you expect every single, minute detail to go exactly as planned, but that’s not life. It simply will not happen. Period. Please don’t have a meltdown. The whole event is supposed to be about the amazing joining of the couple, committing their lives to one another, not the show.

6. Please, don’t say you will pay after “an appropriate period of time” because the couple believes the bride’s mother was disrespected for not allowing her to receive free prints, and then not paying at all for the entire wedding.

7. Please, please pay for services rendered.

8. Please, while you may think that this is the most important day of your life, it’s the least important day of your married life. The most important day of your married life is EVERY SINGLE DAY after the wedding, what happens after that.

By: Stefan Schaal

Stefan Schaal — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 22:04:00 +0000

You really seem to be desperately wanting to prove the opposite. Only because you seem to be glorious exception that doesn’t mean you have to prove everyone so.

By: Scott Kretschmann

Scott Kretschmann — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 21:58:00 +0000

I would rather capture a beautiful, romantic moment between a couple, something that is genuinely them, even in the “posed” shots. Yes, I will give them prompts to interact with each other during that part f the day, but it I have to tell them where to put each finger, suddenly, the image is my vision, and is no longer genuinely “them.”

By: Kyle Sanders

Kyle Sanders — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 17:19:00 +0000

That’s where you define your competitive advantage as a pro - technically correct, requirement satisfying, AND artistically substantial photos. Bad wedding photogs should just make the good ones look even better.