Everyone wants perfection in all of the littlest details of their wedding day. And this is definitely not too much to ask for. One of the most important aspects of a wedding day is wedding photography. Since it plays a crucial role on your big day, there is a significant amount of pressure on the wedding photographer. Your wedding photographs depend on a lot of things. The venue you have chosen, the theme you have decided on for the wedding, the props you can access for the photoshoot, the lighting, and the list goes on. But none of this can be used to its full potential if the wedding photoshoot is not properly planned. You would want every single moment of your wedding to be captured on camera because the pictures last forever. It is a walk down memory lane as you have joined your hands with your partner. A well-crafted creative plan for a particular wedding will take a lot of stress off the table and give you the best outcome. This can be done by discussing with the couple getting married what they want in their wedding album and doing a proper analysis of the things you can use for the pictures. To help you craft that list of essential wedding photography shots, we have curated this article for you. Here you can go through some of the best additions to your wedding photography shot list. Let’s get started without further ado.
The first thing that will make it into every wedding photography shot list is none other than the behind-the-scenes pictures, or in simple terms, the bride and groom getting ready for the big moment. There is a lot of creative freedom in shooting behind-the-scenes pictures because every moment will be captured raw and candid. For the bride, the behind-the-scenes could be her hanging out with the bridesmaids while she is doing her makeup and hair in a casual dress or the bride’s mom getting her dolled up for the big day. There could be a sibling bond photoshoot behind the scenes as they are chit-chatting. For the groom, it could be him getting suited up by his best men and a couple of portraits with his family members that are not completely planned yet so candid.
Another thing you can include in the behind-the-scenes shoot is the wedding accessories pictures. Come up with ideas that can make a wedding ring or a wedding dress look more aesthetic than it already is. You can also include wedding bouquets and corsages to make the pictures look more colourful and professional.
As it is a trend to do a pre-wedding photography shoot before the big day, this is definitely one of the top additions to the list of wedding photography shots. There are many creative ways to approach this idea of a photoshoot. You can either pick a theme or do an exclusive and unique photoshoot based on that. But what is even more fun is that you can tell a story through it. The story of your love. How you guys met and how you fell in love. This will be a major throwback memory when you take your wedding album after a couple of years and be able to reminisce about the moment you fell for your partner.
A wedding would not be complete without the presence of your loved ones. When all of them gather together for your big day, what leaves you in tears is the wedding toast they make at your wedding reception. And that is the next must-have on your list of wedding photography shots. Try to use proper lighting on this one because this will be done at the reception dinner and everybody will be relaxing and having a good time. Blend in as much as possible because you do not want to startle the guests. Capture the faces of the couple while they hear a heartwarming toast from their loved one.
The wedding day is about the bride and groom. And full attention should be given to the couple itself. Couple portraits are one of the most significant ones on the wedding photography shot list. These portraits can be taken at any moment. One of the “should not miss” moments is when they are exchanging wedding vows. They are going to relive this moment for the rest of their lives, so it is only fair to make this moment as memorable as possible. You can plan a separate photoshoot for couple portraits after the wedding ceremony, where you can make use of the wedding location and other accessories.
One of the biggest dreams for a bride is to walk down the aisle holding her father's hand. And this is a moment waiting to be captured in the camera. You can get creative with this one in the wedding photography shot list. You can get a close-up of them walking down the aisle to the altar. Or you can get a long shot from the top using a drone camera photoshoot. As for additional shots, you can capture the reaction of the groom as she is walking towards him and take pictures of the guests looking at the bride and the groom.
A wedding happens not just between two people, but between two beautiful families. And without the shots of your family and loved ones, your wedding album would just be incomplete. The most candid and raw photographs you could get would be of the couple interacting with their family and friends. So this is definitely an important shot in the wedding photography shot list. You can capture the moments where the bride and groom dance with their parents on the floor or the emotional moments being shared with a mom and daughter or a father and son. A family will be the missing piece to the puzzle of your wedding album.
The decoration at the wedding adds more character and aesthetics to the whole event. And pictures of that should definitely make it to the wedding event photography shot list. There are many opportunities in this area that could be useful for you. It could be a beautiful seating arrangement for the guests who arrive at the venue. Or it could be the aisle entrance for the wedding ceremonies. Everything has the potential to give an amazing photographic output. If the venue is located in a landscape that gives you more creative freedom, take advantage of the location too.
Children just light up the event with a single smile of theirs. And they are waiting to be captured on the camera. Pictures of the children present at the wedding wearing beautiful dresses and their beautiful smiles and naughtiness are definitely a delight to witness in pictures. You can actually do an exclusive kids photoshoot where the couple interacts with the kids, and that will come out cheerful and very candid wedding photography. You can capture shots of the flower girls and flower boys leading the way to the aisle, which is going to look magical and dreamy, like a fairy tale.