As wedding season gets into full swing, and restrictions start to ease (although many are still in place), we talked to one of the UK’s top photographers, Laura Babb, for her top tips to ensure your day is Covid-friendly, but equally as wonderful!
“As wedding season starts to ramp up, I’m excited to be heading into a busy Summer after a year of hardly photographing any weddings at all. I photograph weddings all over the UK and Europe, so I’m itching to dive into a summer with more normality and fewer restrictions.
We’re not quite there yet, and many couples who are getting married in the next few months are still navigating restrictions. That means wedding photography is more important than ever – both as a record of that time you got married during an unprecedented point in human history, and as a way of sharing your wedding celebrations with the people who couldn’t be with you in person.”
Here are some suggestions for creative ways to maximise your wedding photography while Covid restrictions are still in force!
Be open to adapting
It can lead to something really special! Lots of my couples are choosing to adapt the format of their wedding, to mitigate some of the restrictions that are still in place. For example, it was important to Marika and Sean to exchange personal vows and they couldn’t do that as part of the Civil Ceremony, so they met up before the ceremony to do this outside, just the two of them. It was a really special moment.
Add more special touches!
While guest numbers are limited, supplier numbers aren’t. Jacqueline and Henry eloped in London with just two witnesses, but they also had an amazing musician along for the ride. Walking through the streets of Hackney, being serenaded by a guitarist while we took pictures was pretty magical. Andrew and Dina were serenaded by a mariachi band, which was a lot of fun! You could have all sorts of creative and personal touches like this to add a bit of magic to your day. Working creatively with your suppliers leads to great photos!
Play with the format
Fewer guests can mean an opportunity to space out parts of the day a bit more, or even switch the format up completely. You might want to meet before the ceremony to get any formal group shots out of the way, so you can enjoy more time with guests at your drinks reception. You might want to do the speeches during the drinks reception, so speakers can relax and enjoy their dinner. While you have to follow Covid-related rules, you can throw other the rules out of the window! The photography benefits of playing with the format is that you can arrange for key parts of the day to take place in the best possible light!
Have a Highlights Slideshow
While restrictions are in place, it’s likely that you’ll want to share your pictures with the people who weren’t able to join you. Add a highlights slideshow to your wedding photography collection and you’ll be able to give your guests a peek into your day in an engaging way! Sarah and Lauren had a small wedding before Covid was a thing and they were able to share their slideshow with loved ones from around the world.
Embrace the historical significance!
The signs telling people to socially distance, the masks and the hand sanitiser liberally dotted around your venue are hugely significant from a historical and social documentary perspective. As a documentary photographer I find these details fascinating and so meaningful. It’s great to capture these as part of your day! Of course your love is definitely the main context for your wedding but I think it’ll be really interesting to look back on this time in years to come and remember that you got married at such a unique point in history.
Go on an adventure!
With bigger weddings, you’re often a bit more time pressured because, of course, you want to spend time with everyone who’s come to celebrate with you. With smaller weddings things can feel calmer, giving you a bit more time to sneak off into the countryside for a picture on the side of a hill, or down to the beach for some beautiful shots against a backdrop you might not have time to access otherwise. The world is your oyster! You could adventure through the streets of the city where you’re getting married and stop for a coffee somewhere, you could head into the woods for some whimsical photos in nature or you could head into cornfields as the sun goes down.
Go with the flow!
Ultimately a good, experienced photographer will capture the joy and beauty of your day, what ever format it takes. Find a photographer whose style you love and who gets you and the kind of day your aiming for, make sure they know the details of what you’re planning and then let them work their magic! Reduced numbers definitely doesn’t mean reduced joy or reduced happiness, and ultimately that joy and happiness is what will shine through in your photography!
Our thanks to Laura Babb for these amazing tips! Laura Babb is a Birmingham based photographer, photographing weddings all over the UK under her brand Babb Photo. Laura loves hiking, 90s indie music and is a mindfulness teacher and trainee counsellor on the side! If you’re looking for a wedding photographer get in touch via https://www.babbphoto.com/