Wedding Photography Survival Guide for Introverts
Wedding Photography Survival Guide for Introverts
Once you’ve chosen your wedding photographer, you’ve cemented one of the biggest
bookings you’ll make whilst planning your wedding day – high fives if you’re one of my future couples!
You don’t need me to tell you it’s your wedding photographer’s job to record every moment of joy, laughter and love during your special day. Every frame they send you afterwards will be an immediate time machine back to those happy memories. But how do you cope when you’re completely camera shy? Here’s my wedding photography survival guide for introverts – I hope it helps you feel a little more relaxed!
When you’re camera shy
It often seems like every other person we ever meet avoids having their photograph taken. We’ve all had those moments where we’ve ducked out of shot at the last moment, but I get it – for some, having their photograph taken is truly terrifying.
For introverted brides and grooms (I was one of them myself!), just the knowledge that someone is going to be taking their photograph all day can become one giant source of distress. But, before you decide to cancel the wedding due to camera phobia, remember that there is a very valid
reason why your spouse-to-be wants the day recorded and from me to you, there are some surprisingly simple, mindful steps you can take ahead of the day to improve your relationship with the camera.
No regrets
You know you’ll regret it if you’re barely in any of your own wedding photographs. This is the biggest reason to deal with the issue ahead of your wedding day. For anybody that
always takes the photo, there is one clear regret – they are never present in their own
memories or in the album. Do you really want that for your wedding day? Nahhh, of course you don’t.
These will be timeless memories. Wedding photographs are not only a beautiful record of the
start of your married lives together but also a chance to have photographs with all your other
loved ones too. Treat your wedding day as the one exception to your ‘I’ll take the photo’ rule.
Practice looking at the camera in everyday life
This is the most stress-free way to reacquaint yourself with a camera lens and is perfect for
those nervous about their photograph being taken on their wedding day. Next time your loved
ones whip out their camera phones, don’t jump out of shot or make excuses. Ten seconds of
courage. You don’t even have to show teeth! Photographs are not always ones in which we think we look perfect but even those imperfect ones will be a memory in years to come.
Stay relaxed
Don’t let yourself dwell on the issue before, or panic on the morning of the wedding. Make
the choice and remind yourself that nothing bad is going to happen just because you hear the
click of a shutter.
Aside from formal portraits (which in itself, are not particularly formal if you’ve booked me!), your wedding photographer will blend in with all the other guests. In fact, spend time getting to know your wedding photographer and they will absolutely feel like one of your friends, which will immediately make you feel calmer in their presence.
Remember, wedding days are celebrations that you spend surrounded by your loved ones. They aren’t going to be judging you and neither is your photographer.
You’re gonna be dressed to the nines
Everyone is going to be looking pretty special – including YOU – and your photographer is
there to take good shots. You’ve chosen them because you like their style so trust them to
provide you with the same service. It’s completely different having your photo taken when you’re dressed in your Sunday best, you’re going to feel amazing and you’ll be shocked at how that alters your mindset.
Turn it into something fun
I offer engagement shoots, so for introverted brides and grooms, it’s a fab idea to plan a shoot ahead of the big day to help you be entirely comfortable when the wedding itself rolls round. We’ll pick a location that puts your soul at ease, somewhere that means you’re not ‘on show’ the whole way through. Wear something that always makes you feel incredible.
An engagement shoot is the perfect way to road test the way your wedding photographer works. You’ll be surprised at just how unaware you’ll be during the photo shoot and will know what to expect on your wedding day!
Frame it
Make sure you order at least one printed photograph from the shoot, frame it and hang it on
the wall. Heck, if you’re super skint from wedding planning – even if you print a 6×4 from one of the machines in the supermarket. This way, you’ll become used to having photographs of yourself on display. There is something soothing about a ‘professional’ shoot, which makes them a great way for you to become comfortable with your seeing your image caught on film, thus slowly changing your mindset so you feel less intimated when it comes to your photos on the wedding day.
Finally…
This is going to be the best party you ever throw so you will want to remember you were
there. Your wedding day is going to be filled with all the emotions that come with
celebration. There’ll be joy, happy tears, belly-roaring laughter and pride. Take a deep breath
each time you see the lens appear because fear is not an emotion you should have to waste
anytime on during your happy day. I promise you won’t even have to ‘Say Cheese!’ – well, not if I’m your photographer anyway! 😉