Hello, beautiful Brides!
First off, congratulations on finding the person you want to spend the rest of your life with! That is no easy thing to do in this world. I am also a bride! I just got engaged in July of 2021 (so crazy that's it's already been this long since then), and I don't have a date set yet because of how unpredictable this year will be for me and my future hubby. I want to share some advice from a future bride and someone who has witnessed dozens of other brides on their big day.
Enjoy your day with your partner!
The most important piece of advice you can get for your big day is to ENJOY IT! Please do whatever you can do to plan a stress-free day. I have seen brides that really just got so stressed on their big day, and it made me so sad to see. I know some people (like me) just have that type of personality where you're always worried about trying to control everything and make sure everything is perfect. If you are like this, try really hard to do all of that leading up to the wedding day, but, when the big day arrives, take a deep breath, and remember to live in this moment.
You and your partner both deserve a stress-free day, so if that means only inviting a few people, or maybe eloping, do it! Don't have a wedding to make everyone else happy. I know you want to please everyone, but don't worry about anyone except your partner. Make sure you have someone (bridesmaid, wedding planner, friend, etc.) to help you with all of the stressful things that could arise. Don't forget to breathe and don't let anything bother you on this happiest day!
Leave time for your photographer AND videographer to get great shots!
Most of the time, your photographer or wedding planner will be making the itinerary for the day. Make sure that when they do, they leave enough time right before or right after the ceremony for just you and your partner to take good photos and grab shots for the video. One of the worst things is having your photographer and videographer rush to get good shots of you and your groom. When scheduling the day, try to allow around 20 minutes for your photo/video peeps to capture you two alone.
Also, try to take some time (about 10 minutes) to get some shots of just you, the bride. This is especially if you didn't do a bridal session with your photographer, but your video looks great with some shots of just you, too. Making this space ahead of time for your pictures and videos will make your vendors happy and, most importantly, make you even happier on the day and with the final product!
An unplugged wedding is the best wedding!
"Unplugged" means that everyone puts their phones away during the ceremony. This is so good for many reasons. As a videographer, I can tell you that it's great for me because I have had so many shots ruined by friends or relatives trying to get their own perfect shot by either stepping in front of the camera or behind the bride or groom when I'm filming them. Photographers can photoshop people out of their shots, but for video, it's a lot more complicated. Sometimes it's nice to have those cell phone videos and pictures right after the wedding because you will be waiting for a few months for your full film and edited photos. In that case, you can always designate a couple of close friends to record and take pictures with their phones, so you can have those memories to look back at right away.
Have a mic for the ceremony!
As a videographer, the sound is SO important because it's part of telling your story and allowing you to relive that day as if you were actually there again. Obviously, you want your guests to hear you well, but you also want the audio in your video to sound good. Almost every videographer will put a lavalier mic on your groom or you or both (I personally don't prefer to mic my brides), but they will also probably have an audio device that captures the audio that comes through the mic. The more audio sources a videographer can capture, the better! We love backups!
Choose a venue with good indoor lighting OR a great outdoor space!
This advice is coming purely from a videographer. Photographers can always throw a flash on to adjust to low lighting, but videographers can't always set up lights. To make sure you have the prettiest and most natural-looking shots, make sure you have a venue with some good bright indoor or outdoor lighting. Natural light is the absolute best for photos and video. It's not really hard to find a good place to take pictures or video at each venue, but when it comes to the ceremony, that's when it gets tricky. An outdoor venue is preferred, but an indoor ceremony venue with big windows, lots of natural light spilling in, and minimal yellow (tungsten) lights work well, too.
I hope you take this advice into consideration when planning your big day. Most of all, I hope you have the most special day with your partner and an even better honeymoon! If you have great vendors, and an amazing wedding party, you will certainly have a great day. Always remember that you are a beautiful bride, and this day is all about you and your partner starting the rest of your lives together. Enjoy it, love it, and never ever forget it! I wish you all the best!