Creating Your Must Take Photo List

Since you've been planning this day for a while, you probably want to make sure that everything is captured on camera; great shots of you and your husband/wife, all of your family, fun shots of your bridal party and friends, and of course all of the details. The amount of photos you want to take can really start adding up. In order to make sure you get all of the photos you want that day, a must take photo list should be created that both the wedding planner and photographer can follow to help the photo process run more smoothly throughout the day. Below are some ideas and examples on how to begin creating your must take photo list. 

Bride and Groom Photos

Do you want that classic picture on Broad Street in front of City Hall? Do you want to make sure you snap a picture in front of the LOVE sign in Love Park? Maybe you want a fun photo doing the airplane like Casey and Will did below. Wherever it may be, these photos should all be part of your must take photo list. The trick here though, is determining whether or not you can include and fit these photos into your busy timeline for the day. As wedding planners, we will help create a timeline that allows you to go a little out of your way to get these shots you want. 

Casey and Will's Wedding
Photo courtesy of 217 Photography

Kristen and Steve's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Mike Landis Photography

Lauren and Phil's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Hoffer Photography

Family Photos

Taking family photos during your wedding day can often be a long, arduous task if you haven't already pre-planned your family photo list. You will always have that aunt who asks for one more photo with this set of cousins or your mother who wants to make sure you get a photo with every last aunt and uncle individually. Though we are sure you love your family, you don't want to be spending an hour or more taking family photos during your wedding day, you want to get off to cocktail hour to enjoy it with the rest of your guests. Here's where the family photo list comes into play- a pre-planned list of every "formal" family photo combination you would like to take. Having Proud to Plan on staff the day of can also help facilitate this process much faster, as we always assist the photographer by calling out family members' names and making the photo process much smoother and faster. 

Here are the key tips to creating your family photo list: 

-Really think about what photos you would actually get printed or potentially frame and put those as your first priority. 

-Try to place your aunts, uncles into groups. We doubt you will look back and wish you got a photo with each set of aunts and uncles separately. 

-Include first names on your list to make the process much faster. 

-Start with large groups and dwindle down- start with one photo of everyone on one side of the family and break down from there, allowing those that are finished from the first photo to go directly to cocktail hour. 

Here is an example breakdown of a formal family photo list. Of course we know that every family is different, so modifications will need to be made for individual couples:

Officiant/Readers:

#1 Bride & Groom, Officiant/Readers

Her Side:

#2 Bride & Groom, Her Parents, Her Siblings, Her Grandparents, Her Aunts & Uncles, Her Cousins

(All her aunts, uncles, and cousins are finished after this)

#3 Bride & Groom, Her Parents, Her Siblings, Her Grandparents

(Her Grandparents are finished after this)

#4 Bride & Groom, Her Parents, Her Siblings

#5 Bride & Groom, Her Parents

#6 Bride & Her Mother

#7 Bride & Her Father

#8 Bride & Her Siblings

Both Sides

#9 Bride & Groom, Her Parents, His Parents

#10 Bride & Groom, Her Parents, His Parents, Their Siblings

#11 Bride & Groom, Their Siblings

(Her parents and her siblings are finished after this)

His Side: 

#12 Bride & Groom, His Parents, His Siblings, His Grandparents, His Aunts & Uncles, His Cousins

(All his aunts, uncles, and cousins are finished after this)

#13 Bride & Groom, His Parents, His Siblings, His Grandparents

(His Grandparents are finished after this)

#14 Bride & Groom, His Parents, His Siblings

#15 Bride & Groom, His Parents

#16 Groom & His Mother

#17 Groom & His Father

#18 Groom & His Siblings

(His parents and his siblings are finished after this)

Bridal Party Photos

Unlike family photos, most bridal parties are similar; they just vary in size, so there is no need to create a formal list of who should be in each photo. The bridal party will all be together during photos so there is no need to gather members or call out names. The one thing to consider when it comes to bridal party photos is if you have any specific photo looks you want to accomplish. A good photographer will always know great ways to lay out your bridal party for photos, but it's okay to also mention a few styles or layouts you may have seen that you really like. 

Here are a few bridal party shot styles you may want to recreate:  

Latda and Troy's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Rob Korb Photography

Danielle and Chris' Wedding
Photo courtesy of Sublime Photos

Danielle and Chris' Wedding
Photo courtesy of Sublime Photos

Sophia and Nick's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Alyssa Maloof Photography

Group Photos

Among your wedding guests you also will have groups of friends or coworkers whom you may want to get a picture with. The best time to do this is at the reception after all of the main formalities. Creating this list in advance and naming each group is the first step and we always try to suggest to our clients to limit these to only 1-3 group photos at the reception. For example, you may want a photo with all of your college friends, all of your work friends, and all of the friends who you may have grown up with in your hometown. You can simply name these "College Friends", "Work Friends", and "Hometown Friends". During the dancing portion of the night, the DJ can help announce these groups and tell them to meet in a specific location where we will have the photographer waiting to snap a few quick shots. These photos also tend to be more fun and carefree which is the best way for them to be. 

The Details

Every good photographer will be sure to take shots of every detail of the day: your invitations, your dress, your bouquet, your shoes, your centerpieces, the cake, and so on. You don't have to provide them a list of the details you want taken unless there is something really out of the ordinary you would like to request. 

Jenn and Gonzo's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Jennifer Childress Photography

Lacey and James' Wedding
Photo courtesy of Claire Hudson Photography

Sophia and Nick's Wedding
Photo courtesy of Alyssa Maloof Photography

The bottom line is that you never want to over art direct your photographer, if you choose a great one, you should be confident in their ability to get all the shots you want during the day. Trust the professional!

-Caitlin