The day before the wedding

This is the fifth in a series of articles all about how we prepare for your wedding photography. To read more of this series, please go to the index on Preparing for Your Wedding Photography.

A week or two before the wedding, we will call you to go over any last minute changes or questions that you may have and double check your timings and any special requests. So many things are going on in those last few days that you may not even have thought about the photography, so it’s always good just to have a quick chat to be sure you are all set for your ‘close-up’ and there hasn’t been any last minute changes.

The day before your wedding, we will be packing our gear. It would be closer to the truth to say this starts several days before the wedding, things like testing our equipment for faults etc.

We will revisit your pre-wedding photos if you did one (you DID do a pre-wedding shoot, didn’t you? It’s FREE, after all!!) and remind ourselves what you did or didn’t like.

We also take a look at the results of our earlier scouting mission, to remind ourselves of the location, opportunities and other things to be aware of. We will check maps and ensure both Dasha and I have a printed timeline as well as made a note of addresses for the bride and groom’s preparations, the ceremony, and reception venue. We will save these addresses into our sat nav, listing them in the order that they will be visited, for quick reference on the day.

We will also both keep a list of any specifically requested shots to make sure we don’t miss them.

I always lay out the entire gear closet of stuff that we will be taking with us, before I re-pack it ready for the big day. This way, I can be sure we’ve not forgotten anything.

By “stuff”, I mean;

• cameras
• lenses
• flashes and wireless flash controllers
• wireless camera remote
• tripod and monopod (aka, ‘the lightstick’)
• lens cloths and a camera cleaning tool (a funny little device called an Arctic Butterfly. Funny by name, highly effective in use)
• light stands, with sandbags to keep them from toppling over
• softbox and other light modifiers such as honeycomb grids (I know, I know. They’re called that because… well… they look like a honeycomb)

with backups and spare batteries for EVERYTHING!

As well as all the camera gear, we take all manner of straps and bungee cords, gaffer tape, a small sewing kit, mini multi-tool and torch, a backup USB battery charger for our phones, spare shirt for both of us, bottles of water and light snacks (in case of emergency)

Ready for anything!

Most weddings, we could happily manage with a single camera and just a couple of lenses and a flash (although the sewing kit and multi-tool have seen action on several occasions too). We don’t use half of what we take with us, but at least we can be safe in the knowledge that we are ready for anything!

Before packing it all away, we see to it that the batteries get charged, cameras and lenses get cleaned thoroughly to prevent dust spots or dirt affecting your photos and that all other equipment is in working order.

In the morning we will load everything into the car so, once packed, the bags get laid out in such a way that it’s clear in what order it’s going to get loaded.