The bridal detail checklist is one of the biggest resources I share with all my brides. I decided to finally write a blog post for all brides and photographers! The bride has a million things running through her head on the wedding day. The last thing she’s going to remember is to grab ALL of the wedding bands so that the photographer can get a shot of them during the prep time. I was a bride once and I remember how CRAZY that morning was!!
This post is for brides AND photographers to use and share in preparation for the wedding day.
Now, I’m not making a checklist for the WHOLE day… this is just a checklist for the BRIDAL PREP TIME. I normally photograph the bride and the bridesmaids getting ready for about an hour and a half before the first look! This gives me time to shoot all of the bridal details well and still capture the girls getting ready together. After the details are done and we’re about 30 minutes away from the first look, I photograph the bride getting into her dress and the day begins!! This bridal prep time is a GREAT time for me to get warmed up and for the bridesmaids to get used to me being around. I know it’s VERY tempting for brides to cut this part short when they are only working with a certain number of hours but this time is vital.
After I arrive and give the bride a big “It’s your WEDDING DAY!” hug, I begin to get settled and these are the items I start looking for! I realize not EVERY bride is going to have ALL of these details…. these are just the most common items I shoot:
Wedding Details to Consider
– DRESS (I also shoot any specialty hangers. HUGE TIP: Even if you don’t have a custom hanger, make sure you have a decent hanger for your beautiful gown. Your wedding dress deserves more than a plastic/metal hanger and believe me, having a classy wooden/white hanger makes a HUGE difference in your images. If you forget this, most hotels and venues have extra “nice” hangers in coat closets… I “borrow” them all the time!)
– RINGS (All 3 of them! Many times, the best man has the bride’s band at the start of the wedding day. I love getting the ring shots with all of the other detail shots and so I try to have my brides keep all of the bling with her until the bridal party is together after the first look! THEN the ring shots are done and the bands can go back where they belong!)
– SHOES (Some brides wear heals but only for a few portraits and then they switch into something more comfortable. I’ve even had some brides have me take pictures of beautiful, uncomfortable heels that they NEVER even wore on their wedding day but man, they looked good in the album! How funny is that! Whatever works! 🙂
– KEEPSAKES (handkerchiefs, heirloom pins, something blue, etc)
– PERFUME
– INVITATION AND OTHER STATIONERY
– BOUQUETS & BOUTS (If you’re sharing a FIRST LOOK…which I encourage all couples to consider, they are amazing!…. Then you need to have your bouquet delivered to wherever you’re getting ready so that it can be ready when you leave for portraits! )
– EARRINGS AND OTHER JEWELRY (I asked brides to wait and put on ALL jewelry once their dress is on! It just gives me one more chance for some beautiful bridal shots!)
Hope this helps all of you brides out there as you prep for your big day!! Here is the Bridal Detail Checklist simplified:
-DRESS
-RINGS
-VEILS & HAIRPIECES
-SHOES
-EARRINGS
-NECKLACES
-OTHER JEWELRY
-KEEPSAKES
-PERFUME
-INVITATIONS
-BOUQUETS & BOUTS
-GIFTS
-PURSE OR CLUTCH
Want to view a few of my favorite weddings that included beautiful details?
Here you go! >>>
