Photography - one of the best ways to capture your special moment and memorialize it forever. You can display the photo in your albums or frames, or you can even have it enlarged and made into a wall piece at your beloved house. 

Anything and everything can be safely stored in the beauty of photographs which is why it’s more of a tradition or a requirement for soon-to-be-married couples to have their photoshoot BEFORE the wedding which is more commonly known as a “pre-wedding photoshoot”. However, much like most things in life, your pre-wedding photoshoot needs an ample amount of preparation for it to live up to your expectations. With that said, here’s an ultimate guide to help your plan and prepare for your pre-wedding photoshoot!

What is a Pre-Wedding Photoshoot? 

Before we get into the guide, you first have to know what a pre-wedding photoshoot is. A pre-wedding shoot, also known as a prenup photoshoot or engagement photoshoot, is a photography session that typically happens a couple of months before the supposed wedding day. In spite of the fact that pre-wedding shoots have become a need for most soon-to-be-married couples, a great number of them still go through the whole debate on whether they should do it or not. From a practical standpoint, some people regard a pre-wedding photoshoot as a waste of money and is basically useless, however, we at Thinking Chair Studios beg to differ.

One of the best effects that having a pre-wedding photoshoot brings is it makes the couple a little bit closer to the photographer at the shoot. This is especially important if the same photographer will be taking the photos at the couple’s wedding day. Why? Because, for the couple, they’ll feel more comfortable with the photographer’s shooting style and will be able to come up with more natural, genuine shots. Meanwhile, for the photographer, the pre-wedding photoshoot enables them to understand the couple a little bit better, finding out about the couple’s style; do they have a more serious, quiet personality or a fun and quirky one? All of these can make or break the quality of photos that the photographer takes since a deeper understanding of the couple enables the photographer to plan in advance and prepare a more suitable atmosphere for your wedding day photos.

Your Pre-Wedding Photoshoot Checklist

Concept

One of the requirements for a photo to be regarded as “great” is when it is able to perfectly capture the emotions of the subjects and if it is able to encapsulate the subject’s story inside it. Concepts are one of the best ways for photographers to tell a story. However, the problem with having concepts is it’s difficult for most to come up with an original and unique concept that only they could use. This is why we’ve prepared some of the most creative wedding photography ideas to inspire you!

Location

Galleries, landmarks, and well-known tourist spots have their own excellent charms that will light up your pre-wedding photograph collection, as having famous places as settings can bring more life and various types of sentiments to your pre-wedding pictures.

There are many locations to choose from, but at the end of the day, it’s the couple that decides this ultimately. Would you like the shoot to happen in a garden? Or maybe the beach? Or if you’re adventurous, maybe you’d want the shoot to happen on top of a mountain. Basically, there are a variety of choices for you to choose from and knowing & choosing the location you’re happy with will make your wedding more unique and memorable for both of you.

The Couple

Lastly, you’ll be needing the couple - the stars of the photoshoot to be there ON TIME. Being able to stick to your schedules lets you have more control over the shoot and will also enable you to be ready for any unexpected variables that may come up. A sudden change in weather? This could be avoided if you’ve followed the schedule and started on time. Unexpected events can happen and not being ready for it is one of the biggest failures a photographer can do. 

The Dos of Pre-Wedding Photography

Do: Prepare

Above all else, the most significant action that a couple should take is PREPARING. Have a plan for every little thing for the shoot - the location, the attire, the photographer, the concept, the time, the schedule. EVERYTHING. One piece of advice - coordinate with your pre-wedding photographer. It helps take a load off and will also help you think of ideas. 

It is important for you to plan everything ahead of time. There are horror stories where couples and their photographers decided that ample preparation wasn’t needed. What happened? The photoshoot was a failure. There’s nothing wrong with being prepared. This enables you to avoid mistakes from thinking on the spot, having the vision on what you want the photos to look like, and you’ll have photos that you can be proud of. All of these things come from thoroughly prepare (or lack thereof) so do your part!

Do: Time the Shoot Perfectly

As mentioned above, having a schedule and sticking to it saves you a lot of trouble. You also have to decide on the best date and time for the photoshoot. It shouldn’t be that far-off from your wedding day but it also shouldn’t be that near. Photographers also have to refine the photos they took and this takes time. Scheduling the photoshoot near your wedding day is just putting unnecessary pressure on the photographer to finish the refinement as soon as possible. Then again, don’t do the shoot excessively far off from the wedding date so your visitors will likewise feel the fervor paving the way to your big day. 

Upon the set date and time of your shoot, pick the MOST ideal time to do the shoot. Again, you need to coordinate your photographer - especially if your photoshoot location is somewhere outdoors. The photographer will know what time delivers the most ideal lighting for your shoot, as it will decide the vibe and feel of the photos. Remember to likewise plan regarding the weather as well since that also changes quite unexpectedly.

The Don’ts of Pre-Wedding Photography

Don’t: Let Impulse Control You

Try not to let adrenaline and nerves lead you to make bad decisions such as a sudden change of hair color, haircut, or some questionable clothing choices. In your photos, you don’t need to be someone else you’re not. You just need to be you. You don’t need to make drastic choices to look good in photos.

Don’t: Forget to Talk to Your Partner

Lastly, this is the thing that one of the couples forget. You are not alone in the photoshoot. Your partner is there with you, so asking them what they would like the shoot to look like is important. Ensuring that you and your partner are in agreement for the concept and location for the photoshoot is tantamount to a successful shoot. Having a photo subject that is irked or irritated is a massive challenge for photographers since the desired emotion cannot be felt through the subjects. So, always communicated with your partner

More often than not, there’s a set standard for most wedding photographs - the bride should look as beautiful as possible, the groom should look cool and classy. While this standard is not a bad idea, originality and uniqueness are also important for wedding photographs. Your wedding photographs SHOULD have a story behind it so that when you flaunt the photographs to your family and friends, you’ll have an awesome story to talk about.

With that said, here are some creative wedding photography ideas to inspire you to think outside the box to be as original and unique as possible for your special moment!

Silhouettes are terribly underrated since they usually don’t contain the details that the soon-to-be bride and groom are flaunting. However, a carefully positioned silhouette can make the difference between a good photo and a great one. 

Here’s a great example of a silhouette shot from one of our beloved clients, Louie and Joey. No detail can be seen from their clothes but the photo exudes romance, serenity, and love. If this was not a silhouette shot, it would just be another photo at the beach for the lovely couple - which we didn’t want to happen since we wanted to memorialize their special moment forever.

Sometimes, the greatest wedding or prenup photos are those taken during unexpected times. The soon-to-be bride and groom not ready for the photo? Take the photo still. You never know how great the outcome would be. 

Beauty, love, and the most genuine emotions come from the times where we are not ready. And that’s perfectly encapsulated by our lovable clients, Rocky and Jade. It seems as though Rocky told a funny joke to Jade and she couldn’t hold her laughter in. Guess what? It resulted in a great, genuine shot for the couple.

We believe that a great photo isn’t just about the couple but all the details contained in the photo. This means that the unlikeliest of backgrounds can also result in a photo that you’ll be proud to show and flaunt to your family and friends.

This is what exactly Kumar and Alyssa did for their wedding photoshoot. They made use of the wall art to (aside from celebrating their marriage) celebrate their nationalism. Displayed in the wall’s painting is Jose Rizal, the Philippines’ national hero holding a bottle of booze. This picture says a thousand words and we’re sure Kumar and Alyssa will be happy to explain why they wanted to take a photo in front of this amazing piece of art.

The greatest photos can be taken in the unlikeliest of places. It only needs a little bit of creativity, the perfect angle, and the subjects that just radiate love and joy. A mere street that hundreds of people walk on can be the setting for a couple’s best wedding photograph. And this is what Ten and Javey had.

An intersection in Japan, used by hundreds of people daily, became the location for a great prenup shot. This specific photo just encapsulates Ten and Javey’s unity, love, creativity, and sophistication. Who knew a random intersection could lead to an amazing shot of the couple?

Lastly, one of the greatest shots we had the honor to take was with LJ and Dean. For their photoshoot, there was just one thing on their mind: have fun. And that’s what they did. They showed their fun and quirky personality all throughout the shoot and you can see it in the photos we took.

They just let loose and did whatever pose came into their minds and whatever get-up they could think of. And you know what? We all had FUN during the shoot and you can feel it in their photos. Sometimes, the most creative and unique shots come from the photo subjects just letting loose and having fun.

A wedding is one of the most difficult events to pull off since numerous factors have to align for this to work. Logistics, venue, headcount, design, musical arrangement, and the schedule - all of these lead to massive headaches for most couples. This is why most engaged couples hire wedding organizers that do the heavy lifting for them. Although this may be true, we’ve experienced many weddings and have noticed the way on how couples manage pulling off their weddings without the help of wedding organizers. It’s pretty simple. You just need to be ready. Ready in terms of planning, knowing what you want, and where to get the things that you want. So, to help you here are some summer wedding checklist and ideas just in case you’re planning this type of wedding.

Summer Wedding Ideas and Checklist

In the Philippines, summer weddings are very well known. The sun is sparkling brilliantly with practically no peril of downpour - the tropicality of the location is very pronounced. Another good point about summer weddings is that most people are free or are willing to take some time off work for that needed summer vacation - which is extremely helpful for out of town weddings.

Without further ado, here are some summer wedding ideas and checklist help you succeed in pulling off a magical and special summer wedding.

The Location

Having the right venue for your wedding is one of the most important factors you have to consider. Finalizing the location also enables you to focus on other tasks such as buying the needed decorations and having the plan to arrange them by your tastes.

There are many locations to choose from, but at the end of the day it’s the couple that decides this ultimately. Would you like it to be a beach wedding? Would you like it to be a church wedding? Or are you feeling really good about having a garden wedding? There are a myriad of choices for you to choose from and knowing & choosing the location you’re happy with will make your wedding more unique and memorable for the both of you.

The Souvenirs and Decors

Not all weddings give out souvenirs but if you would like to give your guests something to remember your wedding by, you can choose souvenirs that go with the theme of your summer wedding. Items such as keychains or plants are great souvenirs. However, if you would like to take the hassle of the logistics of your souvenirs, you can choose to set up a photobooth that instantly gives your guests something to remember your wedding by. 

Decor is also something you have to take note of. If you want your wedding to have a natural, rustic, and homely, you can opt to have wooden seats and tables, the color of your decor should also be themed appropriately, and the minor details such as the vases, placemats, etc should also be in line to the theme you’re going for.

Lastly, it’s not a wedding without the flowers. Your bride should be holding a beautiful bouquet and the venue should have beautiful flower arrangements. For summer weddings, the flowers of choice would be sunflowers, roses, orchids, and many more.

The Food

Lastly, food should be served at the reception. Without the finest cuisine, your wedding would not be complete. Some choices for summer weddings would be grilled meats, seafood, and salads. All of these are essential to keeping your guests happy while also completing the overall atmosphere for your wedding. Since it’s a summer wedding, serving cold desserts such as ice cream is also a great way to cool down your guests while adhering to the theme. 

Beverage is also an important factor to consider since a summer day is hotter compare to your average day. Keeping your guests cool and refreshed is imperative for you and offering them unlimited cold drinks such as juices, alcoholic beverages, or some simple refreshments will do the trick

Key Takeaway

Your summer wedding will not be complete without you and your husband or wife to be. So make sure to load up on vitamins since you wouldn’t want to get sick before or during your wedding day.

There are a lot of summer wedding ideas to choose from and you also have to take note of your budget. Plan, budget, scout, and repeat. That’s the winning formula for you to have a successful summer wedding.

Lastly, your summer wedding wouldn’t be complete without the wedding photographers that memorialize your special day. Thinking Chair Studios is here to help you make your ideas to reality. Check out our portfolio and you can contact us immediately so we can help you conceptualize the wedding of your dreams!