How I Photograph Bridal Details
When I photograph a wedding in the Boston area, I will tell a story of the day through my lens. Part of that story is with my clients’ bridal accessories, so I like to make sure that I give each detail the attention it deserves. I think it’s important to photograph them in a styled format before the bride puts them on, then again when she’s wearing them.
Before a wedding, I spend 90 minutes with the bride before she’s completely done getting ready. I first start with rounding up all details and then create a lay flat. The elements included in each lay-flat usually are:
Wedding invitations
Save the dates
Wedding jewelry
Shoes
Florals
In the photo shown below, you’ll notice that there are some flowers. The bride Megan asked her florist for a few additional flowers used in her bouquet to tie them into this photograph. After I arrange the flat lay and things are the way I like, I take an overview photo of it. Then, I move in closer and photograph each detail.
An experienced Boston wedding photographer can work quickly if time allows it. I will also take some of those items in the lay-flat, find an excellent clean background next to the window, and quickly take each item's photo. This will give us the option for a bridal accessory detail page in the album. On the side of the spread, there will be an overhead photo of the lay-flat.
The last time I photograph the bridal details is during the portrait sessions part of the wedding day. I think bridal accessories always look best when they are being used or on the person. It only takes about a minute to photograph everything again, and it also will give my clients another option to see the details in a different light. The accessories that can be photographed at this time are:
Earrings
Hairpieces
A wedding bouquet
Hair
The back of her dress
It may seem like a lot of photographs for small details, but every little moment is a treasure to the happy couple, and will be a reminder for years to come. You don’t want to spare a single thing.
In conclusion, I photograph the bridal details and accessories three times throughout the wedding day. That might seems a little much, but this gives clients more options for the album and does not take much effort to go the extra mile for them.