If you book with a larger studio then the actual photographer on the day might be picked from a pool of potential people, often called “associate photographers.”

This type of arrangement may be fine for you, if the studio has a particular “house style” that you like.

But some wedding photographers operate as a single person, or a married couple.  These are great if you’d like to guarantee who will be shooting your wedding.

It may be that you’ve fallen in love with a photographer’s style, or you develop a great rapport in the months leading up to your wedding, and don’t fancy meeting someone completely new on big day.

So it’s worth asking exactly who will be shooting the day.

Your photographer may arrange some initial meetings or calls to go over the details of your wedding. They can do their best work for you if they know as much as possible about what’s happening throughout your day.

It can be useful if you have a timeline that covers the key moments of the day. They may also send you a short questionnaire with your contract, that confirms the date and location of the wedding, and covers things like your contact details. They will also check details like addresses for getting ready shots.

We normally have a quick call at the time of booking, but then we chat more as we get closer to the date.

We can also arrange a visit to the venue to go through the locations together.

We’re able to just turn up at a wedding and “do our thing” so the couple don’t need to think about anything. However, having some meetings beforehand can give couples the chance to let us know anything that’s important to them about the wedding, if they want to.

This can include any unusual events or any key people, groups or relationships to be aware of. You can also discuss any particular pictures or styles that you love.

The work that your photographer does begins before the big day and continues afterwards.

They would normally schedule time for meetings with you, in person and over the phone, to discuss your plans. They would plan out their day based on your priorities, and communicate the locations and timelines to a second photographer if you’re booking one.

They may visit the venue with you, to look at the main locations, if that fits in with your schedule.

If you’re having an engagement shoot they’ll research location ideas for you, and come up with shot ideas, ready for the shoot itself. Then they would do the actual shoot, edit the photos and upload the final collection.

They would stay in touch leading up to the big day, to make sure that all the details and timings haven’t changed.

They would normally arrange another catch up close to the wedding to confirm everything.

The day before the wedding they would be preparing all the little details, like charging batteries, printing timelines, packing bags and preparing memory cards. Depending on the location they may travel nearby the night before.

On the day itself they would normally arrive early to the venue or the location for getting ready.

Then it’s normally all-go, non-stop until the evening, making sure they are in the right place at the right time, with all the gear set up, to make the couple and the guests look awesome!

After travelling home, they would normally begin by backing up your images safely from all the different memory cards

Then they would begin the process of editing the pictures, to make sure that everything is consistently finished in terms of cropping, brightness, filters, colours and lots of other little details.

This can take days for hundreds (sometimes over a thousand) images.

They will also remove any images that are out of focus, plus any test shots to check lighting, or any that have people blinking.

Then they will upload the finished images for viewing and begin work on the image selection and designs for any album layout.

Finally, they’ll package up and arrange delivery for anything that needs to be posted out as part of your package, such as prints or albums.

Some photographers cover a fixed number of hours. Depending on the price and package, this may be between 6 and 12 hours.

However, some photographers are just booked for the full day.

This might mean that they stay until the first dance, or until the end of the evening.

So it’s worth checking what’s included in your package and how it fits into your timeline.

It’s unlikely but there is a tiny possibility that a photographer might be ill, or there may be some other emergency why they can’t make it at the last minute.

It can be useful to find out what cover they have in place for if they aren’t available on the actual day.

They may have a second shooter scheduled for the day anyway, or other backup photographers on hand who can step in to cover.

They may also have a clause in their contract to hire another photographer within a certain timeframe.

Some wedding photographers offer engagement, or pre-wedding, shoots. They can be offered as part of a package or as an additional extra.

I’d always recommend doing this if you can. It’s a great opportunity to spend time with your photographer, and to get used to working together.

Although you may bond really well in your initial meetings, it’s good to get the experience of collaborating together on a shoot, before the big day. 

I’ve found that everyone who has booked an engagement photography session with me has really enjoyed it, and found it a really positive experience. It may feel like it’s going to be a big deal, allocating time when you’re already busy arranging a wedding, but it’s a fun way to get a sense of how well you work together.

It’s also a unique chance to do something different as part of the wedding build-up.

You may want to arrange the shoot at the place you got engaged, or maybe at the venue where you’re getting married. If there are grounds or gardens that would be suitable then this can be a good way to see what the final pictures could look like. Plus you can walk your photographer through your plans for the big day at the same time.

My engagement shoots normally last about an hour and a half. We just go for a wander somewhere pleasant. Within that time we’re able to become comfortable in each other’s company and for the couple to be confident that they’ll look good in their pictures.

Your photographer should help you out with suggestions for locations, as well as ideas to get you interacting with each other naturally.  Whoever you are, you’ll look good in your pictures if you’re confident, happy and relaxed. Your photographer should be good at making you feel (and therefore look) your best.

I’m sometimes able to offer a free engagement shoot, if you’re interested in booking, but would like to see some pictures of you and your partner first.

I only have limited slots so if that sounds good then please get in touch as soon as possible. x

It will normally take a few minutes per shot to gather people together and make sure they’re all posed nicely.

Then we quickly take a burst of pictures of the same shot – enough to make sure that there’s at least one with no one blinking!

A photograph of the all your wedding guests is a great way to remember the people that attended.

One of the amazing aspects of a wedding is seeing all the random combinations of people that come from different parts of your life. For example, your distant relatives dancing with your workmates or your in-laws chatting to your school friends. So it’s a great opportunity to capture everyone all together.

Some great locations for this are places where the crowd can be arranged on different levels, such as steps in front of the venue, or places where the photographer can shoot down to get everyone’s faces from above.

The venue coordinator will probably have some good ideas for locations, both indoors and out.

This shot is best arranged for a time when it can be announced to the guests. This can be straight after the ceremony or the wedding breakfast.

Of course, staging a big photo like this may not be for you. Again, if that’s the case just let your photographer know.

A list of up to ten group photos is easy to manage and doesn’t take too long for your guests. We do shoot larger lists, but please allow enough time to assemble people and take the shots.

Please also make sure that you’ve briefed your friends and family who will be helping out.

It will also help if you can shoot the pictures in a specific order. Then the photographer will be clear on where you are in the list.

If you have any family members who are infirm it can help to get their shots out of the way first, so that they aren’t waiting too long. Or, if you can, arrange the shoot somewhere with some seating nearby so that they can have a rest.

Also, if you have any family members in wheelchairs it can help to have some seats if you’d like other people in the shots to be sat down. These can be lawn chairs or something similar.

Of course, you don’t have to have any group photos, and not everyone does.

You can get amazing candid photos of your guests just having fun throughout the day, interacting and relaxing naturally.

Weddings are an amazing time to bring together the people you love from distant parts of the country (and the world!)

Weddings days are sometimes the first time that some family members have been in the same room for years, or even at all!

So group photos are an excellent way to capture everyone together (and when they’re dressed in their finest!)

But because group shots require some planning it’s really useful to prepare a list of shots beforehand.

It’s helpful if the list has the names of the individual people, as well as the name of the group.

So instead of just “Bride’s Cousins” it has “Bride’s Cousins: Zoe, Mike and Sarah”

This prevents any confusion on the day and helps everything breeze along.

Another useful tip is to brief one or more members of the wedding party that they will need to gather together the required guests for each photo.

The photographer will be talking to the guests in the current picture, making sure that everyone is posed nicely and looking great, so they won’t be able to leave that location to find the next set of people.

Members of the wedding party will be more likely to know the people involved in the next shot and they will be better placed to put names to faces (and cajole people to put their drinks down!)

We normally bring several paper copies of the agreed photo list (plus pens to tick off shots) which we can give out to any bridal party helpers. (This can be useful if they’re a bit merry themselves.)

If you can also announce to your guests that the group shots are taking place then it can help to keep everyone in the same place.

You can ask the registrar, the venue coordinator, the minister, or anyone else that would be appropriate, to make the announcement at the time that you need it.

(Some people take the opportunity of a quiet moment after the ceremony to go for a lie down in their hotel room, or to bring their bags in, if it’s a venue where they’re staying over.)

If you can let people know that the photos are happening imminently then it can be a big help.

If you can pick a time when people are likely to be milling around nearby that can also help to make sure that no one has strayed too far.

Immediately after the ceremony or wedding breakfast can be ideal, as everyone is naturally together at those times.

If you are providing drinks in a nearby garden, or people are relaxing in a bar area, then it helps if the photos are in the same area or just round the corner, rather than on the other side of the venue.

If you have a location in mind please let your photographer know.

If you’re meeting your photographer at the venue beforehand you can have a wander about and discuss some ideas. You can decide on some options that are outside, for good weather, as well as some indoors.

They can also give you ideas for locations, or they can pick somewhere if you’re happy to leave it to them.

On a sunny day, the best locations are normally where the sun is behind the guests, or where they are in the shade of a building or trees.

That can help to prevent everyone getting too hot or squinting into the sun, plus the soft light in shady areas is very flattering to your guests.

If you know the time that you would like to take the shots then your photographer can check where the sun will be on the day, and suggest some ideas.

Don’t worry if the weather means that your group photos need to be indoors.

On a cold or rainy day you can still produce beautiful results inside using the natural features of the venue.

With subtle lighting from your photographer, they should still be able to produce some amazing shots.

(It’s obviously still your guests who are the focus and they’ll still look great.)

For larger shots you can use steps and natural slopes to arrange your groups into tiers. You can also have the photographer up high.

(We’ve taken group shots where we’re stood on fire exits, balancing on walls or leaning out of upstairs windows.)

It can be helpful to get the large shots out of the way first. It’s always easier to remove people than to add them.

Sometimes a key family member can go missing before their photo. They can be feeling a bit unwell or tired.

If that’s the case don’t worry. Just tell your photographer and they can take the shot later in the day.

We have taken lots of adhoc photos later on when people have all got together again.