Parent + Best Friend Guide
The Confluence of Art and Adventure
We are so honored and stoked to be photographing your son, daughter, or best friend’s wedding! We have been getting to know them over the past weeks and months and we are excited to meet you as well!
We have photographed and planned hundreds of weddings, we know the ins and outs on how to make your and your daughter or son’s day absolutely spectacular and stress-free. To help, we have put together this short guide with tips and tricks for an amazing experience and to help maximize the photography.
See you soon,
Brian + Joelle
Getting Ready
Your job, super easy. Look good, feel good, and support your son, daughter, and best friend.
Moms: if you are getting ready with your daughter or soon to be daughter-in-law, you should have your hair and makeup done early and be dressed before we arrive. Plan on being done at least 1 1/2 hours before the bride puts on her dress. Have fun, smile, laugh, and be engaged. Oh, and if you can while setting up in the morning and thought getting ready, help keep things tidy and encourage others to do so. No need for OCD, you are Mom not a janitor. We want to document the most amazing day for her and not document water bottles, beer cans, plastic bags, and general clutter and trash in the background.
Dads: if you are getting ready with your son or soon to be son-in-law, your job is easy. Just relax and be engaged with the day. Before we show up to photograph the guys putting on ties and jackets, encourage everyone to do a quick clean up of food, water bottles, beer cans, and general clutter and trash.
Best Friend: You know how to be an awesome friend! Support them, help them, and sometimes be a buffer especially to tons of questions. Also, help keep the areas where the crew are in clean and clear of food, water bottles, beer cans, and general clutter and trash.
Easy enough, high-five!
Family Portraits
We have a SUPER efficient system for capturing family portraits like 15 minutes. Yeah, we hear that sigh of relief! All you have to do is listen to be called up, step to the side when we say, and just smile and look at the camera. Basically, we will place the couple in the center and have each family that is called up to stand in a straight line on both sides of them. We will then pare down the groups, capturing a wide range of combinations in a short period of time. After the bride’s family and also after the groom’s family, we always ask if there are any other groupings needed. We cover about 98% of all portraits needs, but this is the time for anyone to speak up.
If there has been divorce, death, and/or remarriage, we have already discussed this with your son or daughter and how they want to do family groupings. We will handle this with care, respect, and ease.
We always do family portraits immediately after the ceremony, at the ceremony site. This gives us the best probability of everyone being ready and present. Just make sure that you and the family members that the couple wants are there and ready. If they have not told you yet, please ask them.
Also please have your sunglasses off and purses and drinks down and away from where we are photographing (not behind the group). If there are babies and/or children there, don’t worry if they are not looking at the camera. We have great ways of getting them to look at the camera so nobody needs to be waving their hands behind us to get their attention. We have kids of our own and have photographed 1000s of children and families over the past decade. All you have to do is just to smile and look at the camera. If these tips are followed and if family is there and engaged, typical family portraits are completed in about 15 minutes. Most of our couples elect for just immediate family (grandparents, parents, and siblings with their spouses and kids). If you want to include extended family (aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.), add about another 15 minutes. And if family portraits are happening indoors in a dark setting, add another 15 minutes for us to set up lighting.
The Arrangements
typical family portrait groupings after the ceremony
couple + immediate family + extended family*
(extended is optional; most couples elect for just immediate family)
couple + immediate family
(parents + grandparents + siblings)
couple + grandparents
then the just married partner out
couple + parents + siblings
then the just married partner out
couple + parents
then the just married partner out
then dad out
then mom out
couple + siblings
then the just married partner out
Other
couple
couple + bridal party
Wedding Party
We are going to make this easy for everyone. We are talking 10-20 minutes. Just have the crew ready to go and be on point. This couple have made a real financial investment in photography for on their wedding so have everyone ready to rock and roll when it’s your turn up. Typically we do 1-2 locations for group shots. We will then do each side and then each person one that side will have a photo with the bride/groom and then a photo of just themself. Then we will do the other side. We will also have a bridal party group shot (including flower girl, ring bearer, etc) after the ceremony, so be back up to the ceremony site during family portraits.
Last tips
Photography + Videography
We are documentary photographers. We are capturing the essence of the day as a story; their wedding story. That’s one of the reasons the couple booked us. So feel free to just relax. There will be very few times where we need you to look at the camera. So just do your thing in the moment, live this experience!
Be present
This is a once in a lifetime experience of your son, daughter, and best friend… and for you. Please just be present during the day. Please turn off your cell phone and put your camera away. We are hired to capture the day so you can just enjoy the moment and take it all in. We want to be photographing you, your family, and friends not people looking at a screen. And don’t worry, you will have access to the images. Just ask the couple for the link 🙂
Emotions
Embrace the moment, feel the way you feel, and let other do the same. Tears and laughter are AWESOME!
Stress-free day
These ought not be even said, but… Details are details. Weddings are beautiful, but imperfect like life. As our toddler sings, “Let it go. Let it go!”
This day is about the couple, so let the stresses of life be put on pause for the day or the weekend.
The couple will already feel a lot of pressure the day… it’s a big day! So much time, so much planning, so much anticipation. Please help shield the couple from others putting more pressure on them and asking them a million questions. We will help guide everyone through the day. You should already have the schedule of the day from us in the text. We are here to make the day INCREDIBLE for this amazing couple and for you as their family!
Master Schedule of Day
12:00 – Photographers Arrive, Details – Hines Hill
1:00 – Last of HMU
1:30 – Groom + Tie
2:00 – Bride Puts on Dress, 1st Look with Dad
2:30 – 1st Look, Private Vows, Couple’s Portraits
3:30 – Wedding Party (4), Immediate Family Portraits (Amy + Jimmy, Karen + Joe)
4:00 – Break for Couple
4:30 – Ceremony
5:00 – Cocktail Hour, Photo Line
6:00 – Intros, First Dance, Cake, Father/Daughter, Mother/Son
6:30 – Dinner
7:30 – Group Photo, Party Time!!!
9:00 – Sunset, Photographers Depart