After your wedding ceremony, everyone is so excited and all they want are a few minutes to shower the bride and groom with love. As I'm sure you've learned, you have limited time to get all of the group shots you need in between events. It takes a skilled people person to be able to rally the troops and get everyone organized while keeping everyone happy and smiling at the same time - I'm that girl. ;) Group shots are a tedious and we aim to make them fun, creative, quick and painless - below is the She-N-He method to the madness:
1. 30 days before your wedding we send out a questionnaire asking about timeline, must have photos and most important - your formal group shot list. We'll offer a comprehensive list of shot examples that couples have asked for in the past. We ask that our couples review the list and tailor it to their specific needs. You'll want to take your time with this. Ask your parents and other family members. Think about this list when you have time to give it some attention. Your wedding day is going to be fast and thrilling, you don't want to be racking your brain about who should have a group shot and forget anything.
2. Once we have your list we'll go over it with you. This insures that we don't have any redundancies and gives the bride and groom a chance to make any edits or additions necessary. You don't want to be like Hillary Swank when she won her first Oscar for Boys Don't Cry and forgot to thank her husband... that was a colossal mistake, she heard about it for months. Moral of the story - triple check and write it down.
3. Then, we organize. We make sure that grandparents are finished first so they can sit down and enjoy AC (or heat). If Aunt Becky needs to be at the reception venue, she'll be next. We make sure to prioritize each shot in a way that makes the most sense for your group.
Fun Fact:
While I'm shooting group shots, I notoriously forget names (what? there's a lot of y'all!). I make up light-hearted nicknames for everyone, which usually get a giggle or two, and we move forward. If at the end of the session guests are calling each other by their given nicknames - success!
Have any tricks of the trade to getting a great group shot? Share them in the comments below!