Wedding Photography - Your Questions Answered by the Experts

We know that booking your wedding photographer is a huge decision. So Wedding Journal Online caught up with Belfast based photographers 'Digital Bride' to pick their brains on your behalf.

There are many styles of wedding photographs, how does a bride decide which is right for her?

Because wedding photographers may have different interpretations regarding wedding photography styles, the list of wedding photography styles should be considered a general guide only. The Bride needs to consider whether a particular wedding photographer's style suits her tastes regardless of what it is labeled as. We at Digital Bride cover all 'styles'. It's just down to the Bride, if she likes the way we, or any other photographer, presents our final images.

How long should you expect to put aside for photographs on your big day?

Altogether you should be looking at 45 minutes to an hour to get the body of your photographs. By this, I mean the family, formal and posed shots. It's your day and we at Digital Bride try not to keep the Bride & Groom away from their guests for too long.

For the bride and groom who don't want to be away from the wedding party for too long, how can they speed up the process?

Make sure that you have everyone you want in your photographs rounded up and close to hand. For family shots your photographer should just be able to move your families in and out of shots and work around the Bride & Groom. This will speed up the process. A creative photographer will also be able to take several shots in the one area from different angles and make them all look completely different. This will save on you traipsing around to find different back drops for your photos.

What advice would you give to the self-conscious bride who is nervous about having her picture taken?

We at Digital Bride advise and include with all our photography packages, a pre wedding shoot. This is a shoot at a location of the Bride's choice, like a forest park, a beach, estate ground etc, about one month before the big day. This gets the Bride & Groom used to having a camera pointed at them and lets us see how they work together. Best of all, they get some nice engagement type photos from it.

How do the bride and photographer handle a groom who hates having his picture taken?

Make it fun! We all know that men never grow up, so try to add things in that he will enjoy doing - like hiring the A Team van to get him and his groomsmen to the service! And make sure that his friends get involved in the photographs too.

What steps should a bride take to ensure her make-up will translate well to camera?

She should have make up trial before the big day. If she is worried about how her make up will look, she should ask your photographer to get some sample shots beforehand. The biggest problem that photographers face is shine, but photographers nowadays are well versed in the art of Photoshop, and any make up blemishes can be fixed on the computer post wedding.

What happens if it rains? What are a bride's options for indoor shots?

When booking their reception location, make sure that the hotel has ample room indoors for photographs if it does rain. Before deciding on your photographer, have them show you some weddings they have done where it has rained and they have had to shoot indoors. Any good photographer will have shot several weddings indoors in their careers, because of the weather, so you will be able to see how creative they can be when faced with rain. We at Digital Bride don't see it as a problem if it rains. It's just more of an artistic challenge!

How should a bride handle family politics in group shots?
E.g. divorced parents/arguing in-laws etc.

Make sure you let the photographer know beforehand about any family politics that may be occurring. A quiet word on the day to point out who is who and your photographer will then be able to make sure that arguing in-laws are kept at separate ends of group shots, divorced parents get a photograph with their new partners and that everyone is kept happy and the atmosphere peaceful.

What is your best tip for getting the most from your photographs on the day?

Relax! If you have had meetings with your photographer beforehand, had a
pre-wedding shoot and built up a good rapport with them before the big day, then you will feel a lot more relaxed. And having a bit of fun and banter with your photographer will make the photographs less of a chore and more of a pleasure. And you will see this in your finished images.

Digital Bride Wedding Photography & Videography

Phone 07595599282, email info@digitalbride.co.uk or visit www.digitalbride.co.uk