Lake Geneva Wedding Photographers | Wedding Prep- Planning For Your Getting Ready Photos
Its all in the details…
Take a deep breath. You've got this! And we've got your back. By planning ahead, you can ensure that you're going to enjoy every single moment. Because when you blink, it's all over! A well planned timeline will not only ensure you're going to have a stress free day, but it ensures that we can capture every single moment for you to treasure for decades to come! Let’s talk all about Wedding Prep and everything you need to ensure its beautifully documented!
wedding prep PHOTOS
These first couple of hours are a fabulous way to set the tone for the entire day! Every bride deserves to enjoy the morning with her girls and get a little TLC. If you have the luxury of hiring a makeup or hair artist to take care of you and your bridesmaids, we strongly encourage you to do so. (And if you need a recommendation, we would LOVE to send you a list of our favorites!) These artists are experts at ensuring your hair and makeup will last till the very end of the day. Having a team in place to take care of those getting ready details ensures that you will get to sit back, relax, and have a wonderful time with your closest ladies. So, turn on some music, and enjoy a mimosa or two!
Location
If possible, we recommend that the bridesmaids and groomsmen get ready at the same location (hotel or ceremony location). If you’d like to have final prep photos taken of both the bride and groom, it’s so helpful for not only your photo/video team, but it’s also helpful for the bride, groom, planners, and florists. Lots of communication and transferring of details / information is happening at the beginning of the day. It can save a whole lot of headaches on everyone’s end if everyone is in close proximity. If it is not possible to get ready at the same location, then we recommend getting ready no further than 20 minutes away from each other. This will ensure that you’re getting the most captured with us during our time with you.
Looking for a photogenic Prep Location?
It’s all about natural light and neutral colors. Your space doesn’t need to be huge. It also doesn’t necessarily have to have those creamy white walls either. It’s the natural light that’s the most important factor. White ceilings also help immensely and color tones that compliment your color palette.
DETAILS
When we arrive to the Bridal Suite, we always recommend that we start off with the Bride's detail's right away. We've found that if we don't, the day rolls like a snowball and we will never get a chance to shoot those important details later on. So, have all your details ready to go when we arrive.
Here’s what we’ll need from you:
- dress (& your special hanger if you have one)
- rings
- A ring box (if you decide on having one)
- shoes
- veil
- invitations
- loose blooms from your florist (*such a beautiful detail to incorporate. Make sure you ask your florist with plenty of notice )
- jewelry
Here’s what we’ll bring with us:
- flat lays (to arrange your paper goods, rings, and shoes on)
- silk ribbon
- A light blue Mrs. box to arrange your ring in
- Cheese cloth
- extra neutral fabric
We also recommend giving us 30 minutes to shoot all of these details when we arrive. As soon as we are finished we are focused on you, your ladies, and all the candid bliss of wedding prep! Get your cute robes on and lets pop the champagne!
GETTING INTO THE DRESS
We are true believers that this moment should be savored and never rushed over! This is when the day gets REAL! Remember to give yourself plenty of time to get into your dress. We recommend 15 - 20 minutes. Especially if there are intricate buttons, details, or lacing involved! And, if it's just a simple zip, make sure to still give yourself extra buffer time just in case. We've seen some last minute wardrobe malfunctions, but there's no stress if you've given yourself plenty of buffer time to handle those fixes with the help of your lady squad.
useful items you might want to have on hand:
- steamer
- scissors
- needle & thread
- button hook
- Static guard
- stain remover pen (never use before testing on a small unseen portion of the dress)
*We love to encourage whoever is helping you into your dress to get dressed first so they’re confident and photo ready. We’ve got your momma’s back too!
GROOM & GROOMSMEN
We encourage the groom to set aside just 30 minutes for getting ready photos. We encourage you to be “pants ready”. That means that you’ve already showered, hair is ready, pants, undershirt, and base shirt are ironed and on. Let those last details be captured during Jordan's arrival such as neckties, cufflinks, jackets, and watches.
* A note about Neckties: If you have never tied a necktie before, make sure to practice before the day of your wedding. It can be quite a learning experience and time consuming if you wait to try for the first time on your big day. There are lots of great youtube videos out there to learn ahead of time.
