The wedding day can be a pleasantly hectic day. Full of a lot of family and friends who all want the best for the special couple. They themselves want to capture and be captured in moments and be seen in photos to document the time and moments they experienced there. That said, the pressure of producing said images isn’t on the photographer unless they are aware. So, here are the top three items you can provide your wedding day photographer.

1. Fill out the Questionnaire Completely

   Every photographer should provide a questionnaire. It might have vendor questions, where to meet and confirming times as well as were to mail any photos after the wedding. But, generally they are more detailed as well. It should ask of family situations to be aware of. Ex-spouses that don’t get along, family with mobility issues, etc. Which is extremely important for the photographer to know. Also, a questionnaire will ask about “must have” shots. These are the photos with the mother of the groom pinning his boutonniere or mother of the bride buttoning her into the dress. With some family dynamics, the photographer may not know who someone is or their feelings on wanting a specific shot if it is not outlined ahead of time.

2. Provide a Timeline

   Even if it is basic, a timeline is extremely important to the flow of the day. We provide a mock timeline that gives an idea on how long photos will take throughout the day. The timeline allows you to check off the parts of your day to ensure you are getting what you wanted. Remember every idea adds time. So, if a guest wants to

   take a photo that isn’t listed it will take away from another part of the day. You can download a

   free mock-timeline here. We can even help you create the perfect timeline as well.

3. Provide a Groupings List

   This is simply a list of the groups wanted for family formals. Guests will be waiting for these photos to conclude and no matter how close you are to your friends and family, if they are hungry, attitudes can change from a loving to not-so-loving quickly. A Grouping list can prevent that and allow the family formal shots to go by smoother and quicker.

Every wedding has different customs, beliefs, traditions. As a photographer I’ve seen best friends button up wedding dresses, Uncles walk the bride down the isle, etc. all meaningful to that couple and their day. There is no norm when it comes to a wedding. There is no cookie cutter shot-list. If every wedding was the same, none would be special. BY doing the above it helps for friends and family to feel more included and to be in a fair or equal amount of photos.

To those that are attending, be present and grateful you were invited. Be sure to get with the couple before the wedding and let them know you would like to do certain things as that adds to their timeline and that way they can tell the photographers about the shots or feel free to speak up on the wedding day.