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So you’re engaged?! Congrats! Now here comes the fun part, PLANNING. While it is so fun and exciting, it can also be a lot of work. I mean no pressure right? It only happens once in your life (in most cases) so it better be EPIC.

You want the venue to be perfect and the food and don’t forget the DRESS! The dress in most brides cases, is their favorite part, which I fully support. It’s not often you get to rock a white dress and surprise your hunny and all your family and friends as they tell you how beautiful you are. Let’s be honest, you are feeling fabulous on your wedding,  as well you should be!

Now the hunt for the photographer begins. While the venue, dress, florals, hair, and makeup may have been amazing- 5, 10, and 20 years down the road all you will have is your photos to remember that day by and the memories you have.

Finding the RIGHT photographer for your wedding day is crucial! Some brides may have a few in mind before they big day comes, because I know all of you ladies scour pinterest and blogs and ‘ooh and aww’ over certain photographer’s work. In most cases, those photographers were able to get those great emotional photos because they were able to connect with their couple. Nothing is worse than have an unapproachable and standoffish person follow you around with a camera on one of the biggest days of your life.

I feel like there are three scenarios: 1. Their photos are so beautiful, but they lack that sense of connectivity and warmth about them. 2. The photographer is the nicest person you’ve ever met and you would love to have them shoot your wedding, but the photos just aren’t what you like. AND 3. The photographer is your new friend (let’s drink some wine) and their photos are exactly what you are looking for. Remember we ARE guests at your wedding, so you want to make sure we will fit in. If you have a loud, but loving, Italian family like my own, maybe avoid those who don’t interact well with others and shy away from aunt’s telling them what to do (I promise I love you all). The more chemistry your photographer has with you and your guests the better the entire outcome will be.

Everyone wants the third option, but it is not the easiest to find. You need someone you can trust, someone who understands who you are as a couple, and someone who is able to get in on those moments and capture them perfectly to remember the day.

COMMUNICATION: Let’s chat folks! Communication is everything. If you book your photographer 8 months before your wedding and they say, “I’ll see you on August 15th” RED FLAG people. Your photographer should be a part of your planning process up until the wedding. Once you book your photographer, I always request that we meet in person IF it hasn’t happened already. I’m a huge fan of questionnaires that the couple can work out together. These are great for couples to pin point must have photos and maybe even listing family members to watch out for on the big day 🙂 In my case, and most photographers, I shoot majority in natural light, so we have a huge input on when photos are taken. Sit down with your photographer and see what they recommend for scheduling the day out. This will also help both of you have the day planned out so you won’t be rushing around frantically.

The BIGGEST thing I see is that couples never set enough time aside for pictures of just the two of you. After all, this is YOUR wedding and you want to make sure you take the time to enjoy it and capture photos with just the two of you in them, cousin Jeff can wait until the group family photos later.

I’ll leave you with one thing. These photos are an investment in the life that you two are creating for yourself. Make sure you take the time to really sort through what is out there and see what is going to work best for you!

xoxo

-Ali