“Let’s talk about prep, baby

Let’s talk about you and me

Let’s talk about all the pastries, and the croissants,

you 👏🏼 won’t 👏🏼 eat

Let’s talk abouuuut prep.”

Now if you have absolutely no idea what I’m banging on about there, please play Salt-n-Pepa’s smash hit ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’ along with those lyrics. Kerpow!

I know you guys bloody love the ‘getting ready’ part of a wedding day! It may explain why some of you (*cough* ladies) take 6 hours prep time just to have a ceremony that lasts 10 minutes 😛 but we won’t dwell on that. I get it! The excitement of being with your besties; the prosecco flowing; the general giddiness, it’s getting ready for a night out but x1000 and it’s your WEDDING DAY!

My standard full day photography offering includes covering your preparations on your wedding day. This means I’ll be there to capture the wedding preparations before the ceremony, for example a bride having her hair and make up done before she gets into her dress, or capturing the gents fiddling with waistcoat buttons and going on YouTube to look up how to tie a tie. Not only do these shots give you a brilliant reminder of all the fun, nervousness and adrenaline of getting ready before saying “I Do”, but they are also a great keepsake particularly as your partner won’t have seen them first hand!

Whilst you and your friends or family are getting ready for the wedding, I am usually found (or rather, not found) in the background, silently snapping away to capture lots of very natural, relaxed shots, which form part of the story of your wedding day, and this photography is sometimes known as documentary-style or reportage. Truth be known, this is one of my FAVE parts of a wedding day and these candid photos are often treasured.

So, after having shot over 350 weddings, I’ve put together some top tips on how you can get the best out of your surroundings to ensure better ‘getting ready’ photographs of your big day. Let’s goooooo:

1. Where are you getting ready?

Chances are you’ll either be getting ready in a suite at your venue, or at home. Sometimes you may be at a hotel or the place you’ll be staying after the wedding. In any case, to ensure really lovely photographs (and I cannot stress this enough), pick a space to get ready in which has plenty of light. We can’t control the weather, but having a lot of beautiful natural light absolutely TRANSFORMS your photos. I know this isn’t always possible, but where you have options, turn the lamps off, open the curtains, and position yourself near a window for your hair and make up. Most make up artists will ask you to do this anyway. Natural light is your friend, so let’s not rely on a thousand ring lights, let's let that lovely window light flood in!

If you can afford a hotel the night before, maybe consider getting an AirBnB near your venue instead. Many AirBnBs can sleep several people meaning you and your squad can stay together before the big day, and usually they will have an airy, light-filled room such as a kitchen/breakfast room where you can get brilliant prep photos. Do it, do it, do it.

2. Have a tidy up!

I realise it’s your wedding day and you’re not exactly going to be going around with the hoover. But do ask your bridal party who are with you to try and keep the getting ready space clutter-free. Keeping things tidy will ensure those beautiful, natural photographs of everyone will really pop, instead of rubbish strewn in every shot, like carrier bags stuffed everywhere or plates of uneaten toast. And if I had a pound for every time there’s a bright orange Sainsbury’s bag in the background of my prep photos, I would be significantly wealthier!

3. Pump up the jam

It is, in fact, the law for peeps to have music on whilst they are ‘getting ready’. This applies to any outing, not just weddings. So bring your iPod speakers, or crank the radio up, and get some music on in the background for some ambience, a fun atmosphere and to calm everyone’s nerves. If I walk into prep and I’m met with silence, I can already tell the vibe is off! So get your jamz on, and coupled with a glass or two of fizz, it’s actually one of the best bits of the day!

Something important to note: if you are having a videographer, discuss with them ahead of the wedding day whether they are fussed if you have music on in the background or not. Some videographers frequently use ‘getting ready’ footage with other audio edited over the top, which can be a really nice effect, and this isn’t possible for them to do if there’s tinny music in the background. So if you’re going for a wedding video, check with your videographer first. If there’s no problem, crank up those tunes!

4. Get your shit together, Carol!

Bridesmaids Kristen Wiig GIFfrom Bridesmaids GIFs

Yes. Please get your shiznit together before I arrive. I’m not talking emotionally (although maybe that too??) but I am talking about your outfit, your details, your little accessories that form part of your wedding day get-up, because I’m going to photograph them. For example, please hang your dress up where I (or someone else) may access it easily, if I need to move it. Take it out of its bag and take off the labels! This saves me sooo much time when I arrive, and I’m not missing fun moments as I’m struggling to take your dress out of ten yards of cellophane. With that, put the following in a little pile where it’s easy for me to access (this is the same for the gents, during prep):

Ideally: Shoes, perfume, meaningful jewellery, a copy of your invitation, rings.

Gents: Shoes, aftershave, cufflinks, tie, watch, sunglasses if applicable, rings.

5. Eat something, dammit

So this doesn’t relate to the photos, but as someone who has got married themselves, let me tell you from experience, that even if you feel too nervous to eat, have something anyway. Once the nerves and adrenaline fall away after the ceremony, you will be STARVING! So eat some toast or a croissant at the very least, even if it’s to soak up your champagne whilst you’re having your hair done. You don’t want that tower of 40 croissants to go uneaten.

6. Keep an eye on the clock

I’m sure you’ll be doing this anyway, so as not to keep your beloved waiting at the altar, but also bear your timings in mind with regard to photographs once you’re in your outfit, and your bridal party is completely ready. I always ask you to try and be ready in your outfit 30 minutes before you’re due to leave for the ceremony, as it allows a short period of time for me to shoot much-requested shots, such as the bride in her dress, with her bouquet, and often her bridesmaids and family too, before rushing off to exchange vows! This is true of the gents and everyone else too. Time goes super quick on a wedding morning, and your smug “We’ve got loads of time!” will soon turn to “We’ve only got 5 minutes until we have to leave!”

If you want specific photos (“Can we have one with our robes on?”) then you need to build in time for that. Often with large groups of ladies, one of the group will be having their makeup done while another is having their hair done, and it’s difficult to get you all free at the same time for a photo as it’s interrupting the hair and makeup artists who are doing their job. So decide in advance if it’s something you want, find the time in your schedule, and don’t let it delay your hair and makeup artists.

7. Have fun!

There’s plenty of time for seriousness on your wedding day, and in between that and the nervy tummy, just remember that getting ready can be just as fun as everything else, so eat, drink and relax, and enjoy those moments of preparation before you set off to tie the knot.