Video： How to shoot wedding reception
The wedding reception is a time for everyone to enjoy themselves on a wedding day, it is full of laughter and excitement, and today I am going to talk about the tips for shooting a wedding reception, let’s get started.
The wedding reception normally comes after a wedding location shoot, but there will be some weeding that lets the reception start straight after the wedding ceremony, so make sure you’ve done good communication with the couple and have a clear idea of what will happen on the wedding day. You should reserve some time for you and the videographer to get yourselves fully ready before the reception as well, it is not smart to shoot a bridal entrance five mins after you arrive at the reception.
Typically, a wedding reception would have the bridal party’s entrance, the cutting of the wedding cake, the first dance, the speech, the Father and daughter dance, the mother and groom dance, the boutique and garter toss, and the exit of the newlyweds. Sometimes there will be some games or performances among the guests during the night, discuss the plan with your couple in detail so that you won’t miss any key moments of the night.
Similar to the wedding ceremony, you and your crew members should arrive at the wedding venue a bit earlier than the beginning of the reception. By saying beginning, it usually stands for the announcement of the bridal party. So make sure you will be fully ready by then and have done some pre-reception shoots, and a thirty minutes prior arrival to the beginning of the ceremony would be a decent amount of time.
Before the guests enter the reception, detailed photos of the reception decorations should be done. The shots list should ordinarily include The interior of the reception, Flower arrangement, centerpieces, flower wall, Wedding dance floor vinyl and initials, Bridal table and table setting, Wedding cake, Wedding guest list board, Wedding signage and gift box, etc. Especially for some lavish weddings, the reception might be full of sophisticated decorations including the vinyl dance floor that has the couple’s initials engraved on it. So make sure you’ve seized the opportunity to take the couple inside the venue for some photos within their spending setting. You can also capture candid photos of the guests during this time until they are invited to take their seats. In general, the guests will stay outside the reception for some canapes and drinks, they would mingling around and sometimes there will be laughter among them. Some rustic weddings would have lawn games as well, so try to capture some fun moments during this time. For some Asian weddings, there will be another group photo session before the start of the reception. The newlyweds would set a decorated welcome board outside the reception and have several photos with each guest. Be patient for this part as it may last for an hour for some big wedding, so ask the couple to reserve more time for this part if they plan to have such a photo-taking session. Similar to the family photo session after the ceremony, a loud voice and the correct setting of the camera are key to success.
After the guests are seated, the bridal party will be introduced shortly. Double-check the schedule with the DJ and MC to make sure you are on the same page, as the plan may change sometimes. I will change to the zoom lens to make sure I have the maximum flexibility for shooting. If the ambient lighting is insufficient, I will also set an on-camera flash light to provide extra light for the photos. Just simply point the flashlight up toward the ceiling so you would use the technique of bounce flash to create flattering light. Adjust the setting before the reception as the setting of different venues will be different. Setting the white balance to a certain figure may help you to keep the color temperature of the photos consistent which will make your post-editing easier.
Introducing the bridal party marks the start of the wedding reception, and there will be many opportunities for memorable photos during this period. It is highly suggested to install the full-charged battery beforehand as you may not know how long the entrance will last.
Usually, the parents of the bride and groom will enter the reception first, followed by the page boy and flower girl. Then, the bridal party will walk into the reception in pairs. Lastly, the MC will call the guests to stand up and cheer the arrival of the newly wedded couple. For some traditional weddings, such as Lebanese weddings and Viennese weddings, a grand entrance with push the atmosphere to another level. The couple at a Lebanese wedding will usually hire 6 to 10 drummers who will welcome the couple with quite a display. Some couples even arrange for special effects, such as fireworks, which will go off when they enter the reception venue. In some Asian weddings, such as Chinese and Viennese weddings, it is traditional for the couple to hire a lion dancer when the couple enters the reception. For big wedding receptions such as this, a highly concentrated attitude can help you capture splendid photos. Some weddings might not have a formal introduction of the bridal party, the bride and groom may randomly walk in so double-check with them to see if they want the entrance to be captured.
Depending on the schedule of the wedding reception, the formalities will start one by one, you should always be aware of the time and get prepared several mins before the start of the next formality. Especially for the first dance, or so-called bridal waltz, all the brides are expecting some stunning shots of this part. During the bridal waltz, you can use a wide-angle lens to capture a wide shot of the couple dancing. You can also shoot from a lower angle to make the scenes look even more luxurious and romantic. An On-camera flashlight is necessary when the light condition is non-ideal. For the wedding reception with the fireworks, make sure you will capture the moments while the fireworks sparkle. It usually happens at the high point of the first dance, the fireworks will simultaneously follow the groom lifting the bride or having a dip, so make sure you’ve talked with the couple and know at what time it will happen.
The father and daughter dance and mother and son dance may follow the first dance, and then the bridal party may jump into the dance pool.
For some traditional weddings, there will be several group dances as well. For example, at a traditional Macedonian wedding, people would dance in a big circle with hand holding. Don’t be afraid to step on the dancefloor to get some close shots of the celebration as this is a indispensable part of the reception. When working at such a big wedding, make sure you’ve intake enough food before the dances.
The speech will be a relatively relaxed part of the wedding reception. Depending on the light condition, you may consider setting an on-camera flash light when needed. While looking for good angles for photos, you would need to listen to the speaker as there will be some opportunities to capture the emotions of the newlyweds or the guests.
After the dance pool opens, guests would jump in having fun with the couple. You don’t need to capture everything during this period, though it is a good idea to keep an eye on the dance floor in case of some unexpected climaxes.
The bouquet and garter tossing will be one of the funniest moments of the night and it could happen at any time of the night. The MC would make an announcement prior to the throwing, so make sure you can find the best place to capture the reactions among the newlyweds and the guests. For bouquet tossing, I would stand several steps away from the bride and face the bride and the single ladies, so that I can capture the entire process. For the garter tossing, I would stand on the side facing toward the couple for the shots of the groom taking off the garter. Then I will choose a similar position with the bouquet tossing to capture the groom and the single boys. Don’t forget to ask the lucky ones to have some photos with the bride and groom.
The bride and groom may want a couple of night shoots during the night, and some wedding venues have fairytale drape lights set up outside, which you can use as ambient natural lighting for the nighttime shots. Since it is usually pitch black outside at this time, the led light or off-camera flash light is a good idea to provide some fill light. If you wish to set the flashlight behind the couple for some dramatic effect, make sure you have tested the output power of the light so it won’t be overexposed.
If you survive until very late the night, then there might be an exit for the newlyweds. Sometimes the bride and groom will have a formal farewell with the guests by doing a circle farewell or guard of honor. For the guard of honor, the guests will form an archway using their arms on the dancefloor, you could wait at the end of the archway to take some shots of the bride and grooms’ exit. Sometimes there will be a sparkler or a firework exit, you could also grab a sparkler and wave it in front of your camera to generate some dream-like photos. Don’t forget to ask the couple to have another kiss halfway while they are surrounded by the blesses. Remember to say farewell to the couple at the very end of the night as well.
To sum up, for the wedding photographer, the wedding reception might be a less-stress time during a wedding day, but you still need to have a clear idea regarding the plan for the night, keep an eye on the time of the Bridal party’s entrance, the cutting of the cake, first dance, speech, etc, and by the time you arrive home, don’t forget to back all the photos up. Thanks for your watching, this is Nick from Tree Studio, see you next time.
