Your wedding day is probably going to be the most important day of your life, with the exception of the birth of your first child. It is a day you will never forget, which means it’s one you need to extensively photograph. While you will always remember the day, exact memories will fade.
Photographing and recording your big day is an effective way to ensure you remember the smaller details of your wedding. This post will explore this topic in more detail and tell you everything you need to know about photographing and recording your wedding.
Table of Contents
Hire a Professional
The first thing you need to know is that you don’t have to do the work yourself. It is possible to hire a professional photographer to do it for you! If you plan on hiring a photographer, hire one with experience in wedding videography, too. This is so you can get videos as well as photographs shot. Videos can capture a lot more emotion than photographs can.
Plan Ahead
In order to effectively have your wedding photographed or videoed, you need to make sure that you plan ahead. Planning ahead means finding an experienced and qualified photographer, figuring out where you want photos and videos to be taken, and even scouting locations, so you can find the perfect venues for photographs to be taken. A good photographer can make locations come alive in their work.
Quality Equipment
Quality equipment is essential if you plan on photographing your wedding yourself or asking a loved one to. The cost of new camera equipment can sometimes be more than the cost of hiring a photographer or videographer, however, so take this into consideration. If you plan on buying your own equipment, you need to be confident that your loved one is going to be able to take good pictures and videos, otherwise it is a waste of time, and you should hire a professional.
Location Scouting
Location scouting is another important consideration, as mentioned above. The right location can bring your wedding photos, and your wedding, to life. If you are interested in finding the perfect location, which you should be, consider how you want your wedding to go first. For example, if you want your wedding to run late into the night, you need to find somewhere without noise restrictions. The last thing you want is for your wedding to be held somewhere with restrictions that could impede your fun. A venue’s various rules and restrictions will be advertised on its website.
Candid Moments
Instruct your photographer or videographer to capture as many candid moments as they can. The good thing about video cameras is that they make it possible to capture candid moments more effectively than photographs because they can capture events leading up to candid moments, and the aftermath, which photos cannot do as effectively.
Use Multiple Angles
Consider hiring a second or third photographer or videographer, so they can capture multiple angles of the same events. Multiple angles make it possible to get everybody’s good side photographed or videoed and ensure nobody is going to walk away from photographs or videos feeling upset about the way they look.
Record High-Quality Audio
Make sure that the cameras used are able to capture high-quality audio, so you can actually hear what people are saying. Hearing what people are saying is an effective way to capture not only candid moments but also important speeches. If you hire a professional videographer, they will likely bring a high-quality microphone–you don’t usually have to tell them to.
Use a Tripod
A tripod can be used to stabilize your shots. Make sure that if you plan on taking photos or videos yourself, or want to ask a loved one to do it for you, you have a tripod. A tripod will not just stabilize shots but also make it possible for the loved one you ask to take photos to get in photographs or videos. This is because they can set a timer on the camera, set it on a tripod, and then get in the photo before it is taken.
Backup Photos Immediately
Once photos and videos have been taken, you need to make sure you back them up immediately. This is so that they don’t get lost. The last thing you want is for the memory cards in the recording equipment or cameras used to get damaged or go missing. You should back photos up the same day that they are taken, otherwise there is always a risk they could go missing. If you hire a photographer or videographer, you don’t have to worry about mistakes being made, because their devices will likely automatically back photos and videos up using cloud technology.
Print Copies Out
Once the photos are ready, print them out. Printing photos out is a great way to ensure that they are never lost. While the cloud and cloud technology is very advanced and usually quite trustworthy, technology is not infallible. Printing photos out ensures you have hard copies that you can hold onto forever.
Be Discreet
Instruct photographers or videographers to be discreet. If they are not, then you might not capture candid moments as effectively. Most professionals will be discreet anyway, so as long as you hire a professional, you shouldn’t have to worry about them being obvious.
Record Reactions
As well as candid moments, instruct photographers to record people’s reactions at important parts of the ceremony. In particular, tell them to record the reactions of your parents and close loved ones, as these are likely the ones you care most about. Try to get their reactions on video if you are able to.
Upload Photographs
Finally, upload photographs on social media, so guests can see them. It is important to upload photographs as opposed to sending them out by email because sending emails with thousands of photographs in can take hours and even days. Uploading them means all guests can view them instantly.
Photographing and recording your wedding is definitely something you need to consider. Use the guidance given above to make sure that your wedding is professionally shot. Ensure you hire the most experienced and qualified photographer you can, so that photos and videos look their best.
