bride | Zac Clark Photography

Brides often ask me if there is anything they should know to get better photos on their wedding day. My response is normally so long and filled with so many ideas that their eyes start to glaze over. So I figured I’d choose the best 5 (because I love a top 5 list) and share them. Feel free to bookmark this page for later use, it’s one you’ll come back to again and again on your day!

Set up an Engagement Shoot

Practice makes perfect! Many brides have never dealt with a photographer before in their lives. Having a little practice in front of the lens can really help prep you for the day! I offer my brides a free engagement shoot when they book me! It helps me get familiar with my couple and helps them relax around me. The same goes for most grooms. What I’m getting at is that people just don’t get someone to take their photo for them enough. I remember my mom used you carry around this polaroid that she’d hand off to every damn stranger for family photos. Now that we all have cameras on our phones we have forgotten what it’s like to have another person take our picture. Get used to that, It’ll happen several thousand times on your day!

Forget about being Perfect

We’re not perfect. And thats really a good thing. Hair is gonna blow around, flowers are going to be dropped, drinks will spill. It’s not your job to worry about that stuff. In fact, it’s your job to not worry about that stuff… FOR ONE WHOLE DAY. He didn’t fall in love with you because you were perfect, it was because you were perfect for him. Enjoy yourself, and stop worrying about EVERYTHING. I promise someone’s on it! Your pictures are gonna look so much better if you’re carefree.

Make a Playlist (Man, I wanted to say MIXTAPE so bad here)

I know I feel like strutting my stuff when I have Thin Lizzy, or the Rolling Stones bouncing around in my head. Maybe you’re more of a Kanye or Katy Perry fan. Take my advice, make a few playlists for down time and share them with your bridesmaids. If everyone has them on their phones no one is running around looking for a charger at the end of the night like Gullom from Lord of the Rings. You’re all rocking out during your getting ready rituals/limo time and I’m getting great photos of you singing into a hairbrush!

Strike the Hip and Pose!

Ok now for the real practical advice! Show some attitude. You are the star today! Take it, Rock it. This is the one time in your life that being shy is a no no. If you think it will make a good photo, make it happen! I won’t say no. SUPER SECRET: NO ONE WILL TELL YOU NO! I’m easy to work with like that. Short of getting you dirty/ruining your dress/make-up before the ceremony I’m up for anything.

Laugh!

Seriously, don’t forget to laugh. The whole day is gonna be a little stressful, I know, but take a second and just think about how wild it is that you’re here. This is the finish line. Ever see anyone not laughing at the finish line? Too much great stuff is happening to not laugh. I bet if you laugh it’s gonna make him laugh too. It’s good for the soul and its great for pictures. Don’t forget!

That’s the best 5 I can think of! Sorry I don’t have some cool pneumonic device for this. EPPPL haha That doesn’t really off the tongue. Anyhow, If you’re thinking you might like to just get some practice in I’m booking engagement sessions right now! Hit me up and we’ll get something neat going!

Go back

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Last weekend I bolted down to Virginia Beach for the wedding of my friends David and Angela. If you look back far enough in my archives you’ll see some really great engagement photos I did with them last summer. It’s awesome to see that they loved those pictures enough to hire me for the… main event, as it were. They had a really special and very personal wedding planned. So personal in fact that Angela did the bulk of the wedding planning, and the location for the ceremony/reception and after party was at Angela’s parent’s place. A huge under taking, no doubt, but Angela had a lot of help. She requisitioned the help of her co-workers and friends to pull it off. David, no slouch in the entertainment sector himself, pulled together friends for the evening’s entertainment. Easily one of the best wedding bands this old timer’s been privileged to work with! It’s impossible to fully explain how fun the night was. Of course, I was there snapping away for some of the best party photos on either side of the Mason-Dixon line.

This wedding was particularly special, not only because I was there to witness two great friends (and individually dynamic persons/musicians) come together in love and family, but it was the first wedding with a brand new assistant! My girlfriend, Victoria has taken up the lens and camera for this wedding. I’m super proud of some the shots she took and it’s so interesting to see how different our eyes for images are. In the future, I’ll be having her along on a lot more weddings, I can’t say how great it makes me feel that we’re building a future together in this business. She’s been an amazing support for my return to event photography and … well there’s not a lot more to say than that it feels good to share this with her.

Back to the wedding, Angela had us a in house for the the weekend to share with some of her friends while we traveled down. Angela’s friends were a total riot. I’m really glad she decided to mix it up and put us with her friends. I’ve known Dave for a bit longer and by proxy I’m friends with many of his friends. I love those folks, but the idea of making a bunch of new friends is just such a great way to spend a weekend at the beach. Just get a look at some of the shots from the wedding!