Why you should consider planning “getting ready photos” into your wedding day agenda!
Well, first off: what are getting ready photos?
Getting ready photos are the images before the ceremony as you’re getting ready for the day! Whether she’s hanging with the girls, he’s chilling with the guys, or you’re both simply getting ready together, these images can become some of your favorites from the day. Most couples I’ve talked to that don’t think they’ll want these end up regretting not having them!
The Emotions.
The emotions are REAL. These feelings are completely different than any other part of the waiting process in getting married. Because you’re down to hours and minutes, not just days, weeks, or even months. These emotions are captured absolutely beautifully in your wedding day images. What I’ve seen is that almost every couple have those “holy shit—I’m getting married” moments about a dozen times before the ceremony. This means uncontrollable laughter, nerves, excitement, tears, and more for both of you. And after the ceremony, the feelings completely change! They continue to change throughout the day with the different events that are happening. Not only are the emotions high for the two of you, they are for the people who love you too!
There are dozens of special moments that typically happen during the getting ready process:
Mom or another loved one helping to put the dress/suit on
Detail images of special mementos
Giving gifts or notes to your partner
Seeing yourself in your wedding day look for the first time
Others seeing you in your dress/suit (Mom, Dad, besties, wedding party, etc.)
Your parent’s emotions (and even grandparents!)
Your wedding party pre-ceremony celebrations: hugs, notes, gifts, tears, shots, toasts, etc.
Writing or re-reading of vows
Just to name a few…
A lot of these special moments happen so fast, and although you’re confident you’ll remember them… you won’t. The day happens so fast, and the smaller moments that are so important to you are easily overshadowed by other, bigger moments that are equally as important.
More time = more pictures and better planning!
When these precious moments only happen once, you’re going to want as many images of them as possible! More pictures could never be a bad thing, right? But more importantly, your photographer will have more time. They will have more time to photograph details, family and friends, ceremony prep, set-up, etc. For this specific elopement, we had enough time to even location scout (which I always recommend)! Being fully prepared for a wedding day is a huge part of a professional photographer’s job. We need to coordinate with wedding planners, videographers, DJ’s, the venue coordinator, and more. Having us be present during the getting ready process will help give more time for all vendors to coordinate and communicate so that your day is seamless. Obviously, professionals can get this done without the extra time, but trust me—the extra time is always worth it for everyone involved—especially you two!
Pro tip: every photographer and vendor has a different process, so it’s always best to talk to them about how they’ll be communicating with vendors, and what they consider their responsibilities are. How your photographer will plan and budget the time allotted on your wedding day is insanely important. To gauge that, ask them if they are familiar with creating realistic and helpful timelines on the spot, if needed. For the record, this is one of my specialities.
And finally: your wedding day is a story.
As a wedding photographer, I capture the day and the events, but more importantly, I’m capturing the essence of the day. I’m capturing the story. Wedding photography is a combination of the huge, exciting moments but also all the little details that bring the story to life. Getting ready images are a big part of that story, because it sets a tone for the day. You spend most of your day getting prepared and ready so having those moments captured to remember them by is a great start to the wedding day gallery and album you’ll look through for years to come.
No matter what, wedding days are teeming with milestones and emotional moments you’ll never want to forget. Budgets are obviously incredibly important, but if there’s something you should push your budget for, it should be for longer hours on the wedding day so that none of these priceless moments are missed!
