Helpful Wedding Day Tips
So! You have hired me for your wedding (thank you!). Now what? This page has thoughts and ideas for you to help me get the best photos for you, your family, and your guests to enjoy for years to come.
I am attending your wedding not as a friend or guest, but as a professional hired by you to take amazing photos or video of your special day. Please help me take the best photos or video for you by considering doing an "unplugged" wedding, and instruct guests to keep cell phones away (at least during the ceremony) and be present for you at your wedding as your friends and guests, not as amateur photographers. There's nothing quite like when I get the perfect angle lined up, only to have someone hold their cell phone up in front of me and block my shot, or going back through photos while editing only to discover that someone in an image wasn't staring at me but was staring at the person with the cellphone camera over my shoulder. Keep in mind, my contract states "Hans Ogren Photography LLC is the exclusive official photographer retained to perform the photographic and/or video services requested on this Contract". I know I cannot be everywhere at once in a wedding to get every shot, and I cannot control guests and their phones, but if guests interfere with my ability to take amazing photos by bringing their own cameras and taking their own photos around me, I consider my contract broken. If you hired a professional to remove a hornets nest, would you want your relatives to take a whack at it while the pro was working?
If you want amazing photos, allow me the time to plan out, prepare, and take the photos. I aim to work quickly and efficiently and not waste your time, but some photos deserve more time than a quick snapshot.
Some moments only happen once (First kiss, walking down the aisle, etc.) a little planning and choreographing can make a big difference in the final image. Plan to talk with me preferably in person either before the wedding date or on the day of the wedding before the ceremony starts to go over some of the angles or pacing to make sure we end up getting the best images possible.
Keep in mind that you know who is related to who and everyone's name, and as much as I try, I probably do not. When organizing group photos, I don't know who should be in what group photo without help.
If you are thinking to yourself "I want a photo with them" or a guest comes up with their cellphone and says "let's take a picture!", remember that is the reason you hired me to be there. I want to create the best photos for you of your wedding day, and I can't do that if I am not the one taking the pictures.
I am attending your wedding not as a friend or guest, but as a professional hired by you to take amazing photos or video of your special day. Please help me take the best photos or video for you by considering doing an "unplugged" wedding, and instruct guests to keep cell phones away (at least during the ceremony) and be present for you at your wedding as your friends and guests, not as amateur photographers. There's nothing quite like when I get the perfect angle lined up, only to have someone hold their cell phone up in front of me and block my shot, or going back through photos while editing only to discover that someone in an image wasn't staring at me but was staring at the person with the cellphone camera over my shoulder. Keep in mind, my contract states "Hans Ogren Photography LLC is the exclusive official photographer retained to perform the photographic and/or video services requested on this Contract". I know I cannot be everywhere at once in a wedding to get every shot, and I cannot control guests and their phones, but if guests interfere with my ability to take amazing photos by bringing their own cameras and taking their own photos around me, I consider my contract broken. If you hired a professional to remove a hornets nest, would you want your relatives to take a whack at it while the pro was working?
If you want amazing photos, allow me the time to plan out, prepare, and take the photos. I aim to work quickly and efficiently and not waste your time, but some photos deserve more time than a quick snapshot.
Some moments only happen once (First kiss, walking down the aisle, etc.) a little planning and choreographing can make a big difference in the final image. Plan to talk with me preferably in person either before the wedding date or on the day of the wedding before the ceremony starts to go over some of the angles or pacing to make sure we end up getting the best images possible.
Keep in mind that you know who is related to who and everyone's name, and as much as I try, I probably do not. When organizing group photos, I don't know who should be in what group photo without help.
If you are thinking to yourself "I want a photo with them" or a guest comes up with their cellphone and says "let's take a picture!", remember that is the reason you hired me to be there. I want to create the best photos for you of your wedding day, and I can't do that if I am not the one taking the pictures.