WEDDING GROUP Photos?

But I thought you were all about real moments, Shaun?

Well, yeah. I am. But here’s the rub. If you don’t get at least SOME group photos on your wedding day - you’ll probably regret it. When I first started doing this I went in HARD on the opinion that the day mustn’t be broken up in any way shape or form. The sanctity of the wedding experience must be upheld! I used to say things like - you don’t want to be stood around for hours and hours in the rain standing in neat lines forever do you? WELL, DO YOU!?!? That was just inexperience talking.

The fact is that getting a few formal wedding photos doesn’t take that long at all, doesn’t really disrupt the day and depending on when you do them - can actually be fun. And if you don’t get them you’ll probably wish you did later. As an adult, with our busy lives, getting everyone together in the same place at the same time can be a rare occurrence. It’s possible that old friends that you barely see have managed to get to your wedding or you have elderly relatives.

How often is everyone you love going to be in the same place at the same time?

NATURAL LOOKING GROUP Photos

Your group wedding photos don’t need to be stuffy and formal or take a long time. It really can be as simple as getting everyone together, cuddling up and just being themselves in the moment.

Sometimes a big cheesy grin can be a good thing, you know? Or maybe brooding seriousness… I‘ll be taking literally hundreds and hundreds of other more candid photographs throughout the rest of the day - a few squad photos aren’t going to do anyone any harm.

And you’ll be thankful that you have them later.

THE IN-BETWEEN

Some of the best natural group photos are found in the moments between the more formal ones. Remember it’s your wedding day. Everyone is having fun, laughing, interacting, messing around. This doesn’t just suddenly stop because we’ve gathered people into a group. Often it encourages it!

I’m always on the lookout for these little flashes of humanity. The moments that you find in the in-between.

Wedding Group Photos - SUPER HELPFUL TIPS

Ok, so we’ve established that having some group photos done at your wedding is probably a good idea. The next step is to make sure the whole process runs as smoothly as possible. Luckily I’ve compiled a list of handy tips to make sure that happens and to stop it from turning into a giant PITA for everyone involved. Let’s get started.

↠ Limit the number of group photos that you do. Think about the pictures that are most important to you. Which ones are you actually going to use in your album or keep coming back to? It’s not necessary or practical to take pictures of every possible combination of family member and guest. Everyone will get bored, you’ll probably only look at half of the pictures once anyway and it can cause the wedding to grind to a boring halt.

↠ A good starting point. Pictures with the bridesmaids, the groomsmen, a mixed picture of both together and pictures with the parents and grandparents are a good place to start. Obviously, if there are more people you want to include then that’s fine - but bear in mind that more people = more time. More time away from the wedding and more time rounding them up in the first place.

↠ Assign a member of the bridal party to round everyone up. It’s always best to give someone close to you that knows everyone the task of gathering your guests. Your photographer can concentrate on finding a good spot, good light and actually taking the group photos. The official rounder-upper can make sure that everybody is there and ready to be photographed.

↠ They don’t all have to be done at the same time. Although generally, I think it’s best to make sure that everything is done in one go, it’s also possible to tick group photos off the list as the day goes on. The photo above was taken in the morning before we left for the church.

↠ Make a list and stick to it. Discuss beforehand which photos you want with your fiance and make a list. Again, make sure that you think about why you’re taking these pictures. Don’t just whack everyone on the list for the sake of it. Try and concentrate on pictures that you’ll actually use and keep coming back to. This way when the wedding day comes you will know the pictures we’re taking are being taken for a reason. Stick to the list and don’t let the group photos spiral into a giant undertaking that takes over your day.

Creative Group Wedding Photos

If you like, you can even take a bit more time to come up with something more creative but it does depend on the people in the photos. In the picture above we started out with a more traditional lined up group but I soon noticed that everyone kept busting out these awesome poses. So I moved them around into pairs and staggered them up and down the steps. Before we knew it, everyone looked like they were in vanity fair.

group photo of everyone

This is where I’m going to give you my hot take. I don’t think it’s really worth your time (with the exception of very small weddings) to do a big group photo of everyone. Now, I’m MORE than happy to do it if that’s what you want. But a large group photo of everyone causes a lot of disruption to the day with very little payoff. Massive group photos don’t look good, It’s just a giant mob of barely distinguishable people. Each person is just a tiny head.

It’s not so bad with a small wedding but with more people the problem of rounding up (sometimes unwilling) guests becomes exponentially harder. It’s also the one time where I have to start shouting PAY ATTENTION PLEASE!! WE’RE GOING TO DO A BIG GROUP SHOT!! at everyone. They’re just trying to enjoy their drink and don’t want that. I’m not sure anyone really wants that. Especially the poor bridesmaid or groomsmen tasked with herding everyone into place.

The photo above is about the right amount of people for it to be worthwhile I think. Any more and it starts to feel a bit redundant.

But either way, I of course will do my best to accommodate your particular needs. This is subjective advice, not the rule of law.

WEDDING GROUP photos - yes or no?

So as much as some people don’t like to do them… As much as some photographers will tell you they ruin the day… I think that group wedding photos are needed. What you have to remember with photography is that the pictures will gain more and more value as time goes on. They may seem like just a bit of fun a few days after the wedding but in twenty years time everyone in these pictures will be drastically different and some may not even be there anymore. Even a simple, straight forward group wedding photo could end up meaning the world to you.

I think it’s important to take a short amount of time to go aside and get them done. And like I said - you may even enjoy it!

Wedding Group Photos - Yes or No?