As a photographer, I’m with the bride almost the entire day and during the most important moments at the very least.  I’ve seen my fair share of wedding mistakes and have developed a list of common mistakes people don’t prepare for before the big day.  I always insist on people asking me as many questions as they can when it comes to the wedding details because most people only get married once and only plan a wedding once, so it is hard to know what to expect.  Here are five of the most common mistakes I’ve seen in the past 3 years of photographing weddings:

1. The Boutineers: Even though this isn’t a tragic one, about 1 out 2 weddings have an issue with the boutineers in some fashion.  Most of the time, there hasn’t been anyone designated to pin the flowers on the guys and since putting a flower on your left shoulder isn’t a normal routine for a guy, they usually stand around with their shoulders shrugged waiting for direction where there usually isn’t any.  In fact, I’ve been known to help put on several boutineers!  I don’t mind at all of course, it just eliminates a few minutes of a good photograph or two.  It is always more special to have the mom or some other relative help pin them and normally the parents are the ones running around taking care of everyone else.  So waiting on them delays even more time for photos and other events.  What I would suggest is to schedule a time for someone close to the groom to help pin them on and allow 15 min to do so for all the groomsmen as well.  Sometimes its hard getting those things on!

2. Scheduling: Writing out a schedule for everyone is so important.  It helps eliminate everyone in the wedding party asking a million questions and wandering when they should be somewhere else.  Especially when it comes to photos, if the group photo is of 30 people and 29 people show up, all 29 people have to stand there and wait for the last person and more than likely one of the 29 people has to go find the last person.  Sometimes, the last person shows up before the guy that went to go look for him comes back and so on… it can get frustrating.  Not to mention it delays everything else following.  Having a schedule posted on doors and in people’s hands help out so much for everyone.  Think of it like you are scheduling air line flights, more than likely, something is going to be delayed and it is going to effect the most of the events following.  You’d rather be early and have to sit around for an hour than be in a hurry on such a fun day!

3. The Bride’s Hair: Most people go for a more simple look these days.  There are probably a lot less metal hair spray cans in salons inventory these days.  Although, it is just one of many things that you can’t do ahead of time, it has to be done at the last minute.  If you are planning on doing your hair yourself, practice a lot before the wedding to make sure you have it right.  If someone else is doing it, have a trial run appointment.  If you are having engagement portraits or bridal portraits, the morning before your portraits would be a useful time.

4.  The Legal Stuff: You’d be surprised how many weddings I’ve been to and someone forgets the really important stuff because they were so worried about all the details.  For instance, the marriage license…yes, for real!  I’ve been to three weddings now where they have forgotten to go to the courthouse and get the marriage license!  The rings are a big one as well.  The bride thinks the groom has it, the groom thinks the best man has it, the best man thinks the dad has it… I have also been to two weddings where the bride has completely forgotten to put her veil on!  Veils aren’t as popular these days so usually no one notices if there isn’t one.

5. Flowers: The flowers can be arranged differently than you hoped very easily.  If you are having a florist arrange and deliver them, make sure you are very specific about what you would like.  There are many kinds of flowers, colors and designs.  Bringing photos help a lot.  One less expensive and less nerving approach you should consider is silk flowers.  I know, it sounds really stupid, but if you know where to go to get some nice silk flowers, they look fantastic.  Some flowers are really hard to get in different seasons so silk flowers gives you way more options.  Plus think of other fun things to add to your arrangements like peacock feathers, christmas decor, ribbon, etc.  Visit www.etsy.com for some fun ideas.