You have the ring, you’ve told the family, and now everyone is looking forward to the big day. So what comes next? We think that two most important aspects of your wedding planing is selecting a right wedding venue and picking up your wedding photographer.
We know there are hundreds of different wedding websites and blogs, that give you suggestions how to select the best wedding location for your wedding. However they almost never take into consideration the aspect of wedding photography. We’ve decided to give you some tips about selecting your wedding venue from the perspective of Toronto wedding photographer. We’ve been shooting weddings for the last ten years and we have probably been to most wedding locations in Toronto, GTA and southern Ontario.
We are huge fans of private wedding locations. Not only they better reflect wedding couple’s personalities and who they are, but they also are far more unique and original in terms of wedding photography coverage. If you want your wedding pictures to stand out from typical wedding photos, selecting a unique location is a great start.
Private venues range from barns to private mansions and small restaurants, from empty fields to a picturesque mountaintops. A tents can build to offer some formal receptions space, and many private venues may host most of their festivities in gardens and on lawns.
Here are some general tips on pick-up the location for your wedding from photographer’s point of view:
- Start with setting up your rough budget for the wedding.
- Make an estimate how many people will attend the wedding – smaller weddings and smaller venues usually create more intimate atmosphere.
- Star thinking about your wedding theme or wedding style – it will drastically narrow the selection.
- Make sure the venue is large enough to accommodate your wedding with a lot of parking space.
- Inspect the location in terms of lighting. Try to see the site at the same time of day as your wedding is planned for. It might look great by candlelight, but dingy, during the day. Interesting light is the key to great wedding photography coverage of your reception. Make sure the lighting reflect the style of your wedding.
- Ask if you can bring in decorations from outside or does it have to be done through the venue – this may limit your wedding decorating vision.
- Scout our the location around the venue as well. Some wedding halls have great ground, garden and parks around. They can be used as a primary or backup location for your wedding photography.
- Find out if there is bridal suit available on the wedding day. It can be used for the “getting-ready” portion of wedding day.
- Ask if candles or other open flames are allowed – they are great for creating intimate mood!
- Ask about in-house rules and restrictions. Some of them may affect and limit your wedding photography as well such as having an access to the roof top for some night spectacular wedding shots.
- Find out if there is a wedding day coordinator on staff at no additional charge. This person’s job is to make sure everything goes smoothly during the wedding day. This person will be huge help and a “go-to” person in case of problems for your photographer.
Planning your wedding can be overwhelming but it can also be fun. The venue selection is the first and usually the hardest. Once you’ve made that decision the rest will follow and the process will get easier. One more tip make sure you start looking for the perfect wedding location well in advance of your wedding date so you don’t have to rush with your decisions.
Stay tuned for more photo reviews from different Toronto Wedding Locations on our wedding blog.