All wedding photographers need help.
When you select a wedding photographer, you also need to appoint or ask someone, preferably a family member, to help organise and gather family and friends for the formal photography after the ceremony. Everyone is in a happy mood, having a drink or two, moving all over the place and it can often be quite chaotic. This is where the family photo coordinator can be a great help. The photographer wont know who everyone is, their names and their connections and it shouldn’t be their responsibility to chase up people for the formal photography session. For the photographer, this can be a very frustrating and stressful time and they need to concentrate on their equipment and shooting to achieve the very best for their clients, not chasing up guests.
Nominate a family member, perhaps one from each side particularly if it is a large wedding, to round up the various people and groups to have their photos taken and keep things moving before people disappear particularly if the ceremony and reception are at different locations. Have the nominated coordinator create a checklist beforehand and check it with the bride and groom. Make sure that they understand that it is their responsibility to keep everyone together and in one place particularly for the group shot of all the guests and individual ones with the bride and groom and any special shots that are required.
Being organised really pays off, not only on the day but also later when assembling the wedding album or photobook where the bride and groom can keep those special memories that they can cherish forever. If the nominated coordinator is a fairly assertive sort of person, this will also help things run smoothly and keep everything moving and the whole process will be more organised, quicker and a lot more fun for everyone. – Peter
