bridal guide

5 Must-Read Tips for Church Weddings | Hampton Roads Wedding Photographer | Business

5 Must-Read Tips for Church Weddings | Hampton Roads Wedding Photographer | Business

While I never set out to target church weddings, over the years I have ended up photographing a lot of them - especially Catholic wedding ceremonies! From working in multiple churches and different buildings I have seen what works best and what is not ideal for the ceremony - both from a picture standpoint and from the perspective of the bride. Here are my top 5 tips if you're getting married in a church, whether in Hampton Roads or beyond!

1) Make sure there is plenty of light at your ceremony time. Even if flash can be used, natural light ceremonies usually make for the prettiest pictures and allow us to be as unobtrusive as possible by not keeping our flashes on or setting up a flash during the ceremony. In addition,  this allows your photographer to move around as much as they are able rather than being restricted by certain places where the flash will or will not light it.

2) Find out any photography restrictions in advance.

A Gift for Maria Grace Brides | Business

Maria Grace Photography Bridal Guide

Through planning my own wedding five years ago and talking with so many brides-to-be who are in the midst of planning theirs, I know the whole process can be extremely overwhelming. There are so many details to think of, from when to send save-the-dates to how you can plan for the actual flow of the wedding day. It always helps to have a wedding planner and/or a day-of coordinator, but I wanted to give an additional resource to my brides to help them think about their wedding day and the time in-between.

I had a goal earlier this year to create a bridal guide, and for awhile I was stuck - there are some beautiful templates that can be fully customized and some amazing examples of what you can do with it. The examples were so great that I began to spin my wheels, trying to decide exactly what to put in there. Finally I set myself a deadline and got it done!

So without further ado, here's a sneak peek at the 2016 Maria Grace Photography Bridal Guide. There are pages on how to plan for your engagement session, what a first look is (and why I always encourage one), and an ideal timeline for your wedding day. In addition, I've included some amazing resources to help plan your marriage as well as your wedding day - because ultimately, that's the most important thing anyways! 

Of course, no bridal guide can have every single detail or cover every question, but I worked my hardest to answer the most common questions and provide the most helpful tips and tricks I could think of. I can't wait to send these out in the upcoming months to all my new 2016 brides. Happy wedding planning!

Maria Grace Photography Bridal Guide
Maria Grace Photography Bridal Guide
Maria Grace Photography Bridal Guide