How to Choose a Getting Ready Location for Your Wedding Day

One portion of the day that can sometimes be forgotten in the planning process is the “getting ready” portion of the day. Though it might not seem as important or necessary, the location you choose to get ready on the day of your wedding can have a HUGE impact on the final product of your photos! While getting ready in the basement of the church or in a tiny hotel room might seem like the only option, I wanted to share a few criteria to help you choose a getting ready space that will not only make your bridesmaids comfortable, but will allow for the best possible photos!

When choosing a getting ready location make sure you have:

1.  Lots of natural light

Natural light will ensure that your photos are well lit – naturally. Flash can always be added, but natural light tends to be very flattering and will ensure that your photos are gorgeous and glowing! Natural light is also the best for having makeup done.

2.  A clean space

It’s always helpful to get ready in a location that has more than one room. Why? It’s easy to keep the room where the bride is getting dressed clean and tidy (i.e., a clean backdrop for the zipping of the dress!) if there’s another room for the bridesmaids and family to throw their bags, makeup, and miscellaneous items into!

3.  Close to the ceremony location

Choosing a location close to the ceremony location will save time (you won’t have to be ready quite as early), money (you might be able to save on a limo/party bus), and might even get you a few more photos (less travel time = more time for photos!). It’s a win-win from every angle!

So, you might be wondering – where can I find a place like this?! Some of my all time FAVORITE getting ready locations have been in bed & breakfasts. They are typically naturally lit, have lots of space, and they are all over the place, and therefore typically fairly easy to find in close proximity to a ceremony location!

Another great option is a hotel room – but when thinking of getting ready in a hotel, opt for a suite style with multiple rooms! This will ensure no one will be cramped and that the space won’t be too messy!

But what if your getting ready location has been decided for you in a small, dark, single room in the basement of your venue?! Here are a few tips:

1.  Be willing to relocate for the zipping of the dress and for putting on shoes/jewelry. In some cases where the getting ready location has been small and dark, we’ve moved the bride outside to a porch for the “finishing touches” of getting ready, allowing for some beautifully, well lit getting ready photos!

2.  Designate one corner of the room as the place to put everyone’s stuff before beginning the process of getting ready. This will keep the rest of the room clean for photos!

Should I Send My Photographer My Wedding Pinterest Board?

Chances are, if you’re a bride (let’s be honest, even if you’re NOT a bride) you’ve created some sort of wedding Pinterest board to store all of your floral and decor wedding fantasies – am I right?! ;) The Knot reported that over 40 million people use Pinterest to plan their wedding every single year, pinning nearly 900 million pins as a collective wedding community. Can you believe that?!

Because of these high statistics, it’s safe to assume that wedding planning will never be the same ever again. We have access to more and more ideas than EVER before in every style, variety, and color scheme imaginable, enabling our generation to DIY some of the most beautiful, elegant, unique weddings in all of history.

In addition to affecting so many other industries within the wedding industry – florists, caterers, planners, makeup artists, venues, and the like – Pinterest has also affected the wedding photography industry. It’s safe to assume that more brides than ever are pinning their “must have” shot list with perfectly posed, lit, and framed imagery full of emotion.

But the question is – is this doing us more harm than good? Is this good for brides? For photographers? For the relationship between brides and photographers?!

My answer is: all of the above. There’s no straightforward answer, no magical formula to conquering the “should I send my photographer my Pinterest board?” question, but there are several pros and cons to consider when debating it. A few months ago, I asked my followers on Instagram about their experience with using Pinterest when planning their wedding photos. Simply put, in hindsight: was there anything they wish they would’ve done differently in relation to their wedding photography?

Kim responded that she wishes she had “a list of poses that [she] wanted! [She] made a Pinterest board for it but then all the ideas [she] thought were cute and unique totally went out the window.”

It’s true, having a Pinterest board with specific ideas that you REALLY want can help guide and remind you on your wedding day, and sending that board to your photographer beforehand can relieve the bride from the pressure of having to remember those few specific shots they really want!

But the question is – can there be such as thing as too many photos on your “wedding photo inspiration” board?

Brianna wishes she had “someone to tell [her] to NOT be such a planner with photos and poses and let the photographer just guide and direct [her] as the moment unfolded. [She] got so caught up in specific photos [she] wanted that [they] probably missed some more authentic moments… [She] was the bride with the list of must have shots and they didn’t look the way [she] envisioned in the end. Still pretty photos, but just not as [she] had expected them to look based on the Pinterest photo. [She] think[s] attempting Pinterest photos is such a failed attempt most of the time because there are so many elements to perfectly recreating a photo!”

So – now that we’ve looked at two differing perspectives, what is the best way to move forward with sending your wedding photographer your Pinterest board and/or wedding photography ideas? As a former bride and current wedding photographer, here are my suggestions:

1. If there are one or two photos you REALLY want, definitely send them to your wedding photographer.

Of course your wedding photographer wants you to be ecstatic about the final product of your wedding album and get the photos you REALLY want, so if there are a couple of shots you have to have, send them along! Be sure to tell your photographer specifically what you like about each photo you send. Is it the light? The posing? The emotion? The background? Communicating to your photographer why you like the photo will give them an idea of how they can incorporate that pose, light, or backdrop into your wedding photos in a way that is unique to your wedding and your relationship!

2. Trust your photographer!

You hired them for their expertise and because you love their work in the first place, right?! Then trust their judgment and expertise to photograph your story in a way that truly represents your wedding day – not someone else’s version of it.

One of the BEST feelings in the world on my own wedding day was knowing that I had hired a kick-butt photographer who I could fully trust. I didn’t send her one single photo as inspiration because I had done my homework beforehand and KNEW without a shadow of a doubt that she would apply all of her wonderful skills and expertise to MY wedding to create something unique for me and my husband. And let me tell you, she totally delivered!

3. Don’t use Pinterest as your standard for your wedding photos.

This, my friends, is a tough one. Have you ever been scrolling through Instagram, looking at other people’s grams and suddenly feel discontent with what you have? No matter how amazing your house is, someone else’s will always look better. No matter how cute your hair is, someone’s will always be cuter. That is the lie of comparison. Comparing ourselves to others makes us discontent with what we have, making us unable to ever be content. So I encourage you – if you’re having some serious wedding envy (trust me, I feel ya!), close your Pinterest browser. Shut down your app for a few weeks, days, or even until after your wedding is over. Let your day unfold in the unique way that only YOUR wedding can, because you are unique. Your husband is unique. Your photographer is unique. And your photos deserve to be unique!

Well – that’s all folks! A big thanks to Kim Huwe and Brianna Jones for sharing their thoughts on Pinterest and wedding photography.

It’s an honor to serve you! Until next time – happy planning!