Getting Ready
Distance to the ceremony (or first look location if taking pictures in advance), ideally keep it under 30 minutes to maximize time
close to ceremony
Tidy the space to remove clutter before photography begins
Easy to clean
A large enough room (living room or larger) that can hold your wedding party comfortably without feeling squished and to ensure we can have enough room to capture the full dress
A large room
Neutral-colored walls for a clean background
Neutrals
Lots of natural light with access to large windows (avoid basements and classrooms)
natural light
what to look for in a space:
If you have the option of a getting ready space at your ceremony or reception location, be sure it has lots of natural light and non-distracting backgrounds. This keeps the focus of the images on you and helps us achieve the signature look you have come to love about our work.
You may want to consider getting ready in a hotel (opt for the presidential-style suites) or renting a studio space to avoid dark backdrops with outdated furniture in your site's getting ready space.
choosing a location for getting ready
- Brooke Elisabeth Studio (Anoka, MN)
- Marriott Minneapolis Southwest (Minnetonka, MN)
- JB Studio (North St. Paul, MN)
- L'Etoile Room at the St. Paul Hotel (Saint Paul, MN)
Ideally by the time we arrive, hair and make-up is already completed or wrapping up. If something is going to delay the beginning of the day, it’s often finishing hair and make-up.
The girls getting ready portion of the day often looks like:
Girls getting ready
for the bride & bridesmaids
- Matching Bridesmaids Attire (eg. robes, pajamas, etc.) - 10 minutes
- Detail Pictures - 30-45 minutes
- Bride putting on her dress, veil, shoes, jewelry, lipstick, and accessories - 30 minutes
- Reveal to your bridal party - 5 minutes
- Celebratory pictures with your girls - 5 minutes
- First Look with dad, mom, or a loved one - 10 minutes
- Letter reading or gift exchange - 10 minutes
It is easy to think that getting ready "won't take that long" when in reality it goes a lot slower than you'd expect. You're stepping into your dress differently than you normally put it on, likely wearing new undergarments, and adding more accessories than usual - all while being photographed at each phase of the process.
Don't forget to buffer extra time in case of wardrobe malfunctions that need mending. For this reason we always recommend at least 60 minutes for getting ready pictures.
What takes you 5 minutes to do on a normal day, takes 20 minutes to do on a wedding day.
As you get ready to put on your dress, refrain from putting on any jewelry beforehand. Katzie loves shooting all of those final steps after you are in your gown! It’s also helpful to avoid putting on too much lipstick beforehand so that it doesn’t accidentally smudge your dress.
JEWELRY + LIPSTICK
02
It’s natural for a getting ready area to feel like a tornado ran through it when you have that many people all trying to get ready in the same space. However, this is distracting in photos and we want the focus to be all on YOU! Ask your wedding party to pitch in and help make the room look like a cleaning maid came through. This gives us a blank canvas to work from and makes everything run smoothly on the wedding day.
Tidy the space
01
day-of reminders
1. Complete hair and makeup before photos begin
2. Schedule a 30 minute buffer for the hair and makeup teams to clean up their gear before pictures start.
3. Prioritize mom (or whoever is helping the bride into her dress. Most moms don't want to be photographed in their sweatpants so make sure she has time to get her HMU done + get her own dress on prior to photos starting)
A few other reminders:
Some brides choose to go to a salon and other times they have a team come to their getting ready location. We ask that both be finished by the time we arrive so that it does not delay the timeline. At a minimum it is important to have your wedding makeup finished so that you have a polished look for all of the photos.
Hair & makeup Schedule
03
- Groom Detail Pictures - 10 minutes
- Groom Putting on Attire - 20 minutes
- Celebratory photos with groomsmen - 15 minutes
- Mom pinning boutonniere on the groom - 5 minutes
- Letter reading or gift exchange - 10 minutes
The guys portion of the day is very laid back. If everyone has their dress shirt and pants on, they’re doing great! Ben will take a few pictures of the groom’s details and then instruct him on how to get dressed for pictures with some time for celebratory photos at the end.
Guys getting ready
for the Groom & Groomsmen
Speaking of ties… all of the guys should practice tying their tie or bow tie before the wedding day. As charming as it is for a group of guys to be huddled together watching a YouTube video tutorial on the wedding day, it does take up a lot of time to figure it out if you’re doing a special kind of knot or aren’t familiar with the style ahead of time.
Ties & Bow Ties
The groom should decide who he wants to be a part of these pictures. Most grooms choose to either have their best man, dad, and mom there to put the finishing touches on his outfit. It’s fun to see the generations together and have mom pin on the boutonniere and dad help adjust his son’s tie for extra candid moments together on the wedding day.
Who to include
Your photogaLlery
WEATHER TIPS
VIDEOGRAPHERS
DON'T FORGet
Emergency Kit
Vendor recommendations
Sample timelines
catholic wedding tips
delegating
hair + Makeup trials
dress fitting
transportation
florals
VEIL OPTIONS
Overview
tips + tricks
feeding vendor team
cocktail hour
cake cutting
special exits
Out of sight time
Traditions
timing & logistics
Nuptial blessing
receiving lines
aisle Reveals
girls getting ready
guys getting ready
choosing location
detail pictures
special first look
letters + gift exchange
Table of contents
