-A little love from Hannah; she's more than just a pretty pretty face.-
Hannah was our photography intern last fall and came back to the Toronto area again this summer and we're enjoying some more of her mad talents.
Good evening masses and happy Tuesday.
Today, I thought it would be fun to give you all a little taste of my experiences with photographing weddings and how it's affected the way I'm planning my own. I've come up with a list of tips that you can take or leave and I hope it helps you make your own wedding to be as smooth and stress free as possible. My dream is for every bride to be blissfully happy on their day without having to worry, be stressed, or rushed.
So a little about me: I got engaged back in June of this year to a wonderful guy named Ben. We've been together a long time and decided we needed a short engagement so our date is October 11th (which is like 33 days away...what?!). Our wedding is in Washington State where we're from but I've been interning here in Brantford for the majority of our engagement and wedding planning. Crazy, I know but it's working out and it's been pretty helpful to work with Jono and Laynie shooting weddings. I've been getting all kinds of different ideas and perspectives from various weddings.
Here's a collection of my advice to make a wedding go as smoothly as possible:
1. I always recommend having a first look and to schedule all photos do be done before the ceremony. It's so worth it to get them done and out of the way so you can go straight to enjoying being Mr. & Mrs. and celebrating with your guests.
Pros:
-Have an intimate, private moment with your love.
-No feeling rushed after the ceremony to finish with photos and get to the reception as quickly as possible. You will want to cherish your photos forever, best not to rush through them.
-For some reason, family photos are easier before hand when there's a set time and place for everyone to be instead of after the ceremony where people end up getting lost and time is wasted trying to find them.
**Random suggestion: Schedule 30 min for the first look, 30 min for the wedding party, and a good hour for the family photos if possible.
2. Wedding Coordinators are your friends.
If you can swing it, I highly recommend this. It's so worth the money. Research well and find someone who fits your needs. Everything will be so much smoother and you will have a lot less to worry about.
3. Focus on what's important to you.
Many people will suggest things to you and recommend different ideas. There is no right or wrong way to do a wedding. It's all about your own personal tastes and what embodies you and your fiancé the best. Take all the advice in, then sift through and decide what YOU want. It's all about you anyways. :)
4. Be open to things going wrong.
I've never been to a wedding where nothing went wrong. The simple solution is not to worry about things that haven't happened yet and when it does happen to let it go. The only thing that matters is that you and your love are together.
5. Be happy.
I think the number one key to a stress free wedding is choosing not to let things stress you out. Make sure you get your relaxation time and rest in the midst of all the craziness. Get away with your fiancé and do something fun that doesn't have anything to do with wedding stuff. The goal is to enjoy your wedding day because in the blink of an eye it will all be over and you want to soak in every last minute!
That's what I have for you for now and I'll have to let you all know how my wedding ends up going and if this advice is actually worth it haha!
Have a good rest of your week!
Hannah
We've loved having Hannah here at Jono & Laynie Co. She's recently shot a wedding with me at Riverbend in Niagara-on-the-Lake and another at the Old Mill in Ancaster. She's a talented photographer, great friend and rockstar intern.