Top Wedding Tips For Grooms To Be

Grooms To Be

I have photographed many weddings in Yorkshire, Uk and across Europe. I would like to offer some top tips for making your wedding day as smooth as possible.

You have popped the question, and your wife/groom to be said yes. Don’t spend the rest of the planning time with your head buried in the sand. Get involved and put your personality into the big day. If you want to get ahead and show your partner how invested you are in the planning, show them my emotive and relaxed wedding photography — click here.

Wedding Planning – Be Supportive To Your Partner in Crime

Planning a wedding can be stressful. Show your partner support, and don’t just be a yes-man!! Giving your opinion will show your partner that you care. The great things the guys can help with are seating plans, timings, arranging all the suit fittings, and remembering to leave plenty of time if they need alterations. Consider writing your own vows to make them more meaningful, romantic, or funny!!

Choosing The Best Man/Woman And Groomsmen

So, the first thing to do is choose your best man/woman. Choose wisely; you will need supportive and reliable people around you. For starters, you need to get to the wedding ceremony on time!!! He should be able to keep you calm and not let you go wild with the tequila shots the night before!!! The last thing you want to do is stand saying your vows, feeling rough. It’s always good for you to discuss what you will eat on the morning of the wedding, it may be a long time until you sit for the wedding meal. A good idea is to have something slow-releasing energy, or if your nerves will allow it, why not go for a full English? Your best men/woman can also help you with the logistics of getting to and from where you need to be. It is always good to plan ahead and even do a trial run on the same day and at a time similar to your wedding day.

Ties And Button Holes

Getting married is regularly hallmarked as one of the most stressful things you will do. Simple things like trying bow ties, cravats, and pinning floral corsages into your buttonholes are not done daily. This is something you can practice; this will ensure that the guys feel prepared and confident on the big day.

Here are some YouTube videos to help.

Wedding Cravat

Bow Tie

The Pocket Square

To attach the Boutonniere correctly

Get In The Good Books

Have I mentioned that weddings can be stressful to plan? They can feel incredibly overwhelming. Being supportive and taking pressure off your partner can earn you some excellent brownie points. Please share some of these mood boards and published articles to inspire them.

Mood Boards / Articles

Ceremony

I am sure the nerves will be there; don’t worry. It is good to feel a little nervous. Lean on your best man for Dutch courage, or take a swig from your little flask of something warm!! When you know your partner is there and walking towards you, take a long, deep breath and wiggle your toes in your shoes. This will give you grounding and help stop you from overthinking. Turn around and look at your partner; this will be the first time you have seen them after the glam-up; the wait is over!! This is what it is all about!

Additional Ceremony Top Tips

The official can sometimes be challenging if you marry in a church. Most are lovely; however, I have had several bad experiences. In your meetings, ask your vicar/official about your photos. They can say one thing to you, which can be different on the day. Ask me about the time I was told if I move an inch!!!
Find out if your photographer can stay at the front of the church. Often, we are not allowed. Therefore, wedding photographers can only capture imagery from the back; sometimes, I have also been stopped doing this.
When I photograph church weddings, I am super respectful, quiet (with silent camera shutters), and not a crazy, mad photographer who gets in the way.
It’s a good idea to know how the procession goes. If the officials are walking down the aisle first before you all, please be mindful that it will block the view of the bridesmaids, flower girls, and the bride or groom.
Don’t be scared to cry, and let your emotions flow. These moments make amazing images, and emotional moments are incredible memories captured.
Once your partner has made it, hold your hands, have a moment and say hi; you can speak to each other!! See some of the reactions I’ve captured below.
Hold hands and stand close to each other. This will help with the nerves. It stuns me how many couples stand so apart. Don’t worry about not saying “I Dos” correctly. If you say something wrong, it creates a giggle and, again, makes the best memories and moments to capture.
Enjoy your vows. It’s what it is all about it’s
When it comes to the best bit, you may now kiss. No hen-pecking chicken feed, please. Go big or go home!!!
Walking back down the aisle, enjoy this moment; you are married, so give it some wellie!! Let it all go.

Wedding Portraits

Now, most guys aren’t keen on this bit. However, portraits do not have to be posed or made uncomfortable. You’ll be pleased to hear that I take a very candid approach to photographing wedding day portraits; no false cheesy smiles are required here. The best photographs are moments between laughs, giggles, and little glances. So it will be a chilled, relaxed few minutes where you can catch your breath and spend some time with each other. I promise we will have a giggle, and it will be fun, relaxed, and not awkward, so don’t worry.

Gone are the days when you wanted to be away from guests for too long; I only plan to take you away for 2 x 10/15 minutes, and in this time, what I can capture is magic! Please don’t take my word for it. Please check out what Laura and Chris said when they left me a Google review. Click here.

Booking an engagement session is a perfect way to feel more relaxed in front of the camera before the big day. Contact me to see my availability and pricing.

Remember, not all light is equal; light is crucial in any photography, so one of the 10/15 minutes should try to be during the golden hour, the hour before sunset. So, when planning your timings for the day, try to factor this in around speeches/first dance, etc.

Dive in deeper – here is an article I’ve written about how to ace your wedding day portraits. Click Here

Group Photographs

Get involved with your partner in the group photography list conversation the weeks before the wedding. Speak to your photographer and seek their advice. I have many years of experience photographing wedding day group photographs. I always bring in a little humour when shooting this part of the day; this makes your guests relax.

I always advise at most 8/10 images as they take longer than you think. 2/3 minutes per image if they are running smoothly. If people wander off, which usually happens, you need longer per image. Couples typically get frustrated with group images. A fabulous way to speed up your group images is to designate someone who knows everyone to help prepare them for each image.
Ask bridesmaids to hold onto their bouquets until after the group images, the number of times they pop them down and have to run around to find them. Ask all your groomsmen to tuck in; shirts can go wild. I always look out for this; I want everyone to look bright for the group images.
If you have an information sheet you send with your invites, telling guests your plans is a great idea. Let them know you will do your group shots; I find the best time to do the group images is after everyone has congratulated you. I recommend about two hours for the reception; this gives you plenty of time to enjoy it without feeling rushed. From a photography perspective, I get plenty of time to photograph everything I need to, and you will ultimately gain more candid imagery.

For more tips and help with your group images head over to this article I wrote for stress free groups shots. Click here.

The Speeches & Wedding Breakfast

Even the cake was in tears. “oh dear”!! Firstly, please don’t use that one-liner.

Your new father-in-law has moved half the room to tears with his speech, and now all eyes are on you. Take this opportunity to express to everyone how amazing your partner is. Consider bringing along some notes if you might get nervous. Having bullet points to adlib off those points is good if you are a confident speaker. Keep it short and sweet if you are not a confident public speaker. Thank everyone you need to thank, say something extraordinary about your partner, and then raise a toast. If you are super nervous, think about having the speeches before the meal, then you can enjoy the wedding breakfast.

Give yourself lots of time to write the speech and practice. Here are some helpful tips. And remember, some of the best speeches come from the heart.

Remember to thank your parents or anyone who has had a significant role in your life. The groom should also thank the bridesmaids and his groomsmen.

I always look forward to the entrance, so why not add some fun to it? Play a great, upbeat song, and have everyone waving napkins, dancing, or just going wild. Have some shots ready for you to drink once you arrive at your table. Here are a few of my all-time favourite wedding breakfast entrances and reactions from wedding speeches.

To Re-cap

Take an extra shirt – this is great for hot summer or destination weddings.
Hit flask with a bit of whiskey for the ceremony nerves!!
Practice tying the ties and buttonholes. See the above links.
Practice your speech and make some notes.
Help with the panning of group shots and have a designated groomsman who knows everyone on hand to call family and guests.
Have a bottle of water close to the ceremony.
Have an SAS kit with some essentials, like scissors, plasters, a sewing kit, and paracetamol.
Take all your labels and stickers off the shoes, ties, and anything new the night before—it’s surprising how much time this takes.
Many guys have a drink to settle their nerves. This is a great idea, but be careful to have only a few!
Get your guys a gift bag and show them how much you love and appreciate them. For more groomsmen inspiration, check out my Pinterest board.
Go over your timeline together the week before.
If it rains, don’t panic; be flexible. For some top tips, please check out my blog on what happens if it rains. Click here.
Taking time out together for you and your new wife/husband is essential. Use the portraits for this so you can breathe. See my top tips for portraits here.
Try to mingle together, so you can spend more time together on the day.
If you don’t want to do a first dance, don’t; it only needs to be the very first verse of the song, and then get everyone else to join in. This gets everyone on the floor.

And Finally

Don’t worry about the small stuff. Things can go wrong; however, in the big scheme of things, they don’t matter. Sometimes, things are out of our control, so letting go and enjoying your day is the best way to go into it. In the spirit of Frozen, let it go!! You have put your trust in the suppliers and venue you have paid for. Let them do their jobs, and you just let rip and have the best time.

ONE LAST THING – THE MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL

Have fun. These moments are treasured and are a massively important part of your life story.

Documenting Your Wedding Day Story

Although I’m based in Yorkshire, I’m cool with going wherever your wedding photography needs me.

If you want to contact me about my availability and pricing, hit say hello below.

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Grooms To Be

Wedding Planning – Be Supportive To Your Partner in Crime