HOW TO PREPARE FOR YOUR WEDDING DAY — A GUIDE FOR MY COUPLES
If you've booked me for your wedding day, you'll hear most of this again in your questionnaire. But I wanted to put it all in one place — because these aren't just photography tips. They're things I've learned over eight years and hundreds of weddings, from the feedback couples share after their day when they wish they'd known going in.
I share them because I genuinely care about how your day feels — not just how your photos look. The two are more connected than most people realize.
GATHER YOUR DETAILS, AND PUT THEM SOMEWHERE I CAN FIND
Your details tell the story of your day before it even begins. The invitation suite, the rings, the perfume bottle, the earrings your grandmother wore — these are worth photographing, and they photograph best when they're gathered intentionally rather than scattered across three different surfaces.
Before I arrive, pull everything into one place. A small box or tray works perfectly. You don't need to style it — that's my job. You just need to have it ready.
DESIGNATE A POINT OF CONTACT
This one saves more time than almost anything else. On your wedding day you should not be the person answering questions from your wedding party, your family, or your vendors. Designate someone — a maid of honor, a family member, a coordinator — whose job it is to handle the incoming.
When your people know who to go to, they stop coming to you. And when they stop coming to you, you get to actually be present for your own wedding day.
BUILD BREATHING ROOM INTO YOUR TIMELINE
I'll work with you on your timeline before your wedding day, and I'll always advocate for more margin than you think you need. Here's why: something will run long. It always does. Getting ready takes longer than expected, travel takes longer than expected, family photos take longer than expected.
When there's breathing room built in, those delays don't cost you anything. When there isn't, they cost you everything — rushed portraits, a frantic walk down the aisle, a cocktail hour you barely experience.
A steamer is also worth having on hand the morning of. Wrinkled dress, wrinkled suit, wrinkled anything — it takes two minutes and it shows up in every photo.
TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF PHYSICALLY
Drink water. Eat something small before the ceremony. I know this sounds obvious but it genuinely isn't — I've watched brides go hours without either on one of the most physically and emotionally demanding days of their lives.
You cannot be fully present when you're running on empty. Hydration and food aren't logistics, they're part of how your day feels — and how you look in your photos.
COME IN WITH THE RIGHT MINDSET
This is the one that matters most — and I say this with love.
Come into your wedding day prioritizing time with your people, not collecting moments for a camera. The photos will happen — that's my job. Your job is to be there.
If you haven't already, this is worth reading before your wedding day: You Don't Have to Perform at Your Own Wedding
I'll send you a questionnaire before your wedding day that covers your shot list. For family formals, yes — have a list ready, and keep it manageable. Nobody wants to spend an hour gathering relatives in a receiving line. The shorter and more intentional your family list, the faster we move through it and the sooner you're back with your guests.
For everything else, let me take care of it. I don't want you planning your wedding day around someone else's Pinterest board.
YOUR GUESTS ARE WHO THEY ARE
I love that you have a Pinterest board. Inspiration is useful and I want to know what draws you in visually. But there's a difference between sharing your aesthetic and building a list of must-have shots from other couples' wedding days.
Your guests are going to show up and celebrate you — authentically, the way they actually are. And that's worth more than any script. A reception that looks like a confetti-filled dance floor in someone else's photos requires guests who are actually on the dance floor. If your people aren't dancers, no amount of planning produces that photo — and spending your night chasing it means missing the moments that are actually happening.
If you want energy and interaction in your photos, create the conditions for it. Sparklers during your exit. A late night ice cream or coffee cart that pulls people together. Lawn games during cocktail hour. Activities create candid moments better than any shot list ever will.
Your setting is different. Your people are different. The way you and your partner interact is different — and that's what makes your photos yours.
ONE LAST THING — SHARE YOUR TIMELINE
Send your timeline to your wedding party and your family before the wedding day. No surprises means no last minute questions, no confusion about where to be, no one pulling you aside to ask what's happening next.
It also means nobody shows up late. Late family during formals is one of the most common reasons portrait time runs long — and it's almost entirely preventable with one text sent or conversation the week before.
The less you have to manage on your wedding day, the more you get to enjoy it.
