Orlando Wedding Photographer Advice

As your wedding day approaches and you begin last minute preparations for the big day, there are a few helpful tips I like to share with all of my brides & grooms to help make sure your wedding photography is the best it can possibly be! Of course, none of these are deal breakers– trust me I can work with anything that’s thrown my way. ;) But they are nice to keep in mind and can make your wedding photos (and video!) that much better.

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1. Get Your Rings Professionally Cleaned

You usually have to go to your jeweler for this and sometimes they will have to send them out for professional deep cleaning so make sure to do this with enough time before your wedding.

Once you get your super sparkly rings back, keep your engagement ring in the box! I know, I know… you feel naked without it– but it gets gunky with lotions and easily picks up fibers from clothing, and it will show up when I take a mega close up shot with my macro lens.

If you want to personalize your details further, order a customized ring box online with your wedding color or initials. It’s always a cute touch for your lay flat bridal details pics.

If you don’t have one, I keep a neutral colored velvet ring box in my kit too!

2. Get an Aesthetic Dress Hanger

Etsy has a ton of adorable dress hangers from hand painted ones to sequin hangers to customized wire hangers! However, don’t feel like you have to get anything super fancy if you don’t want to. A simple notched wooden hanger will do just fine. (The notches are important otherwise the dress will slip right off!) Velvet hangers work well also.

Throw this extra hanger in your dress bag as soon as you get it so it doesn’t get left behind!

What we want to avoid is the cheap white plastic hangers from the dress shop. They tend to detract from that beautiful image of your wedding dress hanging by itself.

Also make sure to remove any tissue paper or cardboard that may be on the dress. This way we don’t take up extra time on the wedding day prepping it, since this will take away from the designated time we have to take photos.

I may also occasionally want to take it out of the room to stage it somewhere else for the prettiest photo so be sure to let me know if you prefer it doesn’t get moved or if you don’t want anyone to see it before the ceremony.

3. Have Your Dress, Shoes & Wedding Details Ready

One of the first things I will do when I arrive on the wedding day is gather your details to shoot them. In order to get this done quickly so I can get right back to you for final prep, it is super helpful if you plan to have everything in one spot ready to go when I get there. You can set everything in one corner of the room with small items in a shoe box so I can easily grab it and go. No need to set it up or make it pretty– that is my job.

Here is a list of things you might want to include:

1. Wedding dress (on it’s pretty hanger & with any tissue paper or cardboard removed)
2. Shoes
3. Jewelry
4. ALL of the rings (your engagement ring and both wedding bands)
5. Vow books
6. Garter
7. Veil/Hairpiece
8. Perfume bottle
9. Invitation suite and any other paper goods plus ribbon, stamps, wax seals, etc.
10. Extra flowers from the florist for photos (usually you can request this at no extra charge!)
11. Any other heirlooms or important details you’d like captured

We also bring a kit with cute details like mini scissors, silk ribbon and vintage stamps that we will throw in as appropriate to really make your details look super editorial.

Extra Tip: The groom should do the same and have things like this tie, cuff links & shoes ready to go!

4. Plan to Keep The Getting Ready Area Un-cluttered

I know this can be hard! There are usually way too many people in the getting ready room and there are flip flops and bras flying everywhere. Just do your best to keep all the clutter in one corner, preferably away from windows which is prime photography real estate. If you have a hotel suite with two beds, but all of your bags and things on the bed closest to the door and leave the other bed and the area by the window as clean as possible. This will help tremendously to avoid distracting stuff in the background when you’re getting into your wedding dress.

We will also help clear the area when we get there so don’t worry– this is something we look for before we begin shooting as well.

5. Get Some Pretty Robes or PJs

We will capture lots of fun moments as you are getting ready and getting coordinating robes or cute pajamas that button down for you and your girls make for extra pretty shots during this time! Bonus points if you get them customized or monogramed and turn them into a gift for your bridesmaids.

What I like best about robes is that aside from being cute & comfy, they won’t ruin hair or makeup when you’re ready to get dressed. Just make sure you go for something that doesn’t have to go over your head!

A confetti popper or a champagne toast is always a cute idea to do in your PJ’s as well. Many brides also like to read a letter or open their gift in their pre-wedding dress outfit.

Lastly, if you want a photo on the bed with your girls make sure to call housekeeping to have the bed made as needed so it doesn’t look a mess. 🙃

Author: Elle Baez, Orlando wedding photographer

(Originally published February 2017, updated February 2024)