Tampa Wedding Photography

Your wedding day will come and go faster than any other day in your life. Months, sometimes years of planning, anxiety, bills, romance and even arguments will culminate and begin to blossom and then explode into full bloom on your wedding day. Ever increasing in speed like that fast forward warp speed you have seen used to document a blooming flower.

If I have any advice as a Tampa wedding photographer,it is to prepare not only for your guests to enjoy your day, but consider that above all, you and your fiance should enjoy your wedding day. Enjoy it and remember it! for goodness sake with beautiful wedding photography. One way to do that is to allow yourself enough time to enjoy the whole process: the preparation, the ritual, the gathering of family and friends. Your family and friends and those closest to you will be near and involved prior to the ceremony- enjoy your time with them! Once the ceremony is over, you will be overwhelmed with all of your "out of town guests" or extended family, and associates etc. Here are my top five recommendations for a lovely day and how to work with your photographer to get the most fantastic images possible:

1. Limit The Locations For Your Tampa Wedding Photography
   This is key. First, try (if possible) to limit the number of locations you are planning on including on your wedding day. This will result in less time in the car, less instructions, fewer maps, fewer guests getting lost or left behind, and yes, more time for me to photograph you. Ways to do this: Ask your peeps to come to you. Hair and makeup people should come to your place, hotel, or comfy place close to, or better, at the ceremony location. Look for a venue that can accommodate your ceremony and your reception, there are many gorgeous options. OK, speaking of locations and gorgeous options:

2. Locations, Locations Locations
   When deciding on venues around Tampa Bay for your wedding, please, look around- is it pretty? Is there natural light, anywhere? Is there a garden, gazebo, lake, beach, bridge, interesting architecture, anything at all that might lend itself to pretty backdrops for photographs? Once a couple have chosen their location (s) for ceremony and reception, it is my job to find the best opportunities for the most beautiful scenery to use as backdrops for their photographs. That can prove difficult if the venue is drab. If at all possible, consult with your wedding photographer before committing to a location, a professional will likely already know the venue, or will visit it with you to help you decide on these details.

3. Timing- Start early!
   No, even earlier than that! Remember how fast this day will fly by, start early to make the most of it. Allow abundant time well before ceremony (3 hours or more is ideal) for your "getting ready candids," bridal portrait and bridal party portraits. If you have allowed yourself enough time, you will be more relaxed, you will have fun and make great memories with your closest family and friends. Having fun and being relaxed translates into beautiful images.

4. Natural light is the cream de la cream of light.
   If you start early enough, and have chosen venues with options for either getting outside or letting the outside in (windows, skylights) you will have hours of this beautiful light to light your day, your gown, your face, and your loved ones.

   Ask any professional photographer or artist, and they will agree hands down, that natural light is the most flattering and produces the most beautiful images. Often a photographer will use fill in lighting, flashes, or strobes to boost the natural light, but if given options, a pro will choose a beautiful backdrop with a warm glow of natural light. This is another opportunity for you to chat with your wedding photographer prior to committing to timing on things. He or she will help you navigate through these decisions. Ultimately after the guests have gone and you are back to the real world, you will have your photographs to look forward to- give yourself the best ones you can.

5. Formal Portraits
   These are generally done after the ceremony, but more and more the bride and groom are deciding to do these prior to ceremony, so that they can dedicate more time to their guests after the ceremony and get right to the reception. It is still somewhat untraditional, (groom seeing bride before ceremony) but increasingly it has become a viable choice.

   Heres why: You and your fiance can arrange to have a private moment together before all the madness starts - if you set aside time for this, you will be more relaxed during ceremony, having already "seen" each other; this special moment is yours alone (not witnessed by hundreds of onlookers); and you can participate in getting some great images without all of your guests looking on. In either case, doing portraits prior to ceremony or after, just relax, and allow the photographer time to create art- it should be thought of like anything that is worth having is worth waiting for.

6. OK, one more- speaking of formals
   Here's what I recommend for the family portraits- limit them! A great big group shot is really all you need, plus of course you with your parents and immediate family. Resist the urge to pose one at a time with each aunt, uncle, cousin that requests it or is standing nearby- these each take time, and encourage more people to step forward, all compromising how much time you will have for the most important people of all- you. The images you will treasure most, the ones you will print, mount, frame, put in your wallet and keep next to your heart will be those of you and your new husband or wife.

   Some smooth ways to handle this are asking the official to announce to guests to move on to reception area, and have some disposable cameras at tables, so when you visit tables after dinner you will have plenty of time for individual family photos.