Your Ultimate Guide to Pre-Wedding Photography

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