Have you ever noticed that some people’s wedding photos look very conventional and predictable? If that’s your thing, that’s great, but you’re likely reading this because you want to spice up your wedding photos for your big day.
Some photos will undoubtedly get staged, such as standing outside the doors of a church or some other wedding venue. But, even those photos don’t have to comply with standard wedding convention. It’s your wedding day, after all, so you can tailor every aspect of it to your specific requirements. With that in mind, here are some unique and inspirational ways to spice up your wedding photos:
1. Have an Unusual Wedding Theme
One of the best ways to instantly add creativity to most, if not all, of your wedding photos is by having an unusual wedding theme for your big day. For example, you could opt for a Star Wars theme complete with light sabres and stormtroopers!
The happy couple could dress up as the main characters from the Star Wars movies, and you might even have Chewbacca welcoming guests at your wedding venue. The options are limitless for having an unusual yet highly memorable wedding theme. Or a 1950s style where everyone has to come wearing vintage (this is more us than Star Wars!).
How about ditching the traditional plain white wedding and embracing the dark side—not literally, of course! A black-themed wedding can be unique and different. Black can be seen as edgy, elegant, stylish, and bold. A couple in black, giving off that Victorian-era vampire vibe, will make a more interesting and memorable wedding photo than the conventional couple dressed in white or neutral colours. And if you really want to go all out, you can make all your guests dress up in gothic clothing or gothic-themed costumes! It will be an affair that will be hard to forget. And the wedding day photos? They’re going to be absolutely incredible!
2. Experiment With Negative Space
Many standard wedding photos incorporate focused or macro shots of people. But have you ever observed that few images feature subjects enveloped by a lot of negative space? Capturing negative space in some shots can add an artistic perspective to your photos.
The trick with negative space is to keep your compositions simple. If you’re hiring a wedding photographer, you can ask them to consider this idea when they go around taking photos on the big day. For example, you could have some photos taken against a large brick wall.
3. Add a Voyeuristic Flair to Your Photos
Something you’ll soon discover about weddings is that the happy couple seldom have any time to themselves during the main event and the celebrations afterwards. They will be very busy, even many hours after the sit-down dinner and the ensuing after-party.
It’s for that reason that you could add a voyeuristic flair to some of your photographs. For example, you could have someone capturing a stolen kiss between you and your new spouse by taking a photo perched behind some leaves in an outdoor shot.
4. Have Photos Taken Before the Event
As you can imagine, there is a lot of preparation that will take place before your wedding. On the morning of the main event, everyone will be busy getting ready and undoubtedly finding ways of calming their nerves.
You could have those moments captured so that you can treasure all those memories of your big day for years to come. When you look back at your wedding photographs, you’ll soon relive all the feelings and emotions of the day!
5. Focus on the Details
There will undoubtedly be elements of your wedding day that are highly memorable to everyone involved. It could be the intricate hairstyles of your bridesmaids, the vintage car that takes you to the venue, or even the over-the-top hat one of your guests wears!
Whatever the details, be sure to focus on them with your wedding photos. One fact about wedding photography is that it shouldn’t just focus on people; your images should offer an immersive photographic experience that you can always enjoy.
6. Take Some Photos With a Drone
One of the coolest ways to capture the essence of a wedding day is by having some photographs taken with a drone! As you can imagine, a drone enables you to have photos captured from a great height.
Drone photographs can capture the area surrounding your wedding venue to give viewers a sense of scale and splendour. You could even have everyone arranged for a massive guest shot if you’ve got a few hundred people attending your big day.
7. Inject Humour in Some of Your Shots
Let’s face it: the photos in wedding photo books can sometimes appear too formal and conventional, even for people with the most conservative of tastes. Your wedding day is a happy day, one where you, your new spouse, and your friends and family enjoy themselves.
That’s why it makes sense to inject some humour into some of your shots! Whoever’s in charge of taking your photographs will undoubtedly capture some hilarious moments during the day or night. You could even take some photos yourself with your smartphone!
8. Play With Perspective
Using a drone to take some aerial shots is undoubtedly a fantastic example of playing with perspective. But, there are other ways you can achieve that effect without a camera needing to ascend several hundred feet into the air.
For instance, you could ask your photographer to capture some photos of the main event from an unexpected perspective. It could be from a first-floor window, for example, or a high vantage point inside the church or whatever your wedding venue.
9. Use Natural Light to Your Advantage
Some of the most stunning photographs ever taken at weddings happen to be outdoors when the sun is shining, and the happy couple or other subjects are in front of sunlight flooding down to the ground.
With that in mind, you should use natural light to your advantage when having photographs taken at your wedding. Just make sure the sunlight is behind each subject rather than in front, or else you won’t see much from the processed pictures! Of course you can also take advantage of modern tools to edit your photos like a pro, so even if the lighting isn’t ideal on the day, this can be fixed after the fact.
10. Don’t Forget to Play With Colour
One final inspirational tip to bear in mind is that you should always use colours to your advantage with wedding photographs. Is there a particularly colourful backdrop at your wedding venue?
If so, you could have some fantastic photos taken against such a background. What’s more, bold and vivid colours can emphasise the clothing worn by each subject and make them a focal point.
(This is a collaborative post)