It’s the Fall which means a few things: I can finally wear the boots and scarves that have been sitting in my closet all year, the weather is cooling off (which prevents me from looking like a sweaty/hot mess), and …. There’s a surplus of afternoon showers.
For the past three weekends, the rain has offered it’s difficulties and proved that we cannot be 100% in control of the wedding day.
I thought today it would be interesting to blog about what I’ve learned shooting in the rain for the past few weeks, and how we managed to make it through with beautiful images to boot!
Below are a few of my top tips for shooting on a rainy day:
HAVE A BACKUP PLAN: Four to six weeks before the wedding day, I discuss a backup plan with the couple. Although it’s not something that anyone likes to talk about, having a backup is a must. During that conversation we discuss where we would shoot should it start raining and how this would impact the images. That way, if it does rain…it’s no surprise in crunch time.
BE POSITIVE: We once photographed a wedding in Pensacola during Tropical Storm Lee. The winds and rain were so strong they moved the entire wedding indoors. For this particular wedding, there was no planner so I made decisions on where and when the wedding took place inside their beach home. The ceremony was not as planned, but because we were open to the potential of whatever would come…the pictures turned out beautifully. The couple had so much fun that day, they even decided to wade out into the water (in the rain), an experience I’ll never forget.
- WAIT IT OUT: Especially in Louisiana, the rain is fickle. It can rain with sunshine, nearby and not where you are, or rain for a short period of time and then stop. For the past three weddings, we’ve either taken breaks in between shooting or waited it out entirely, in order to get the photos we’d anticipated to begin. Looking back, I still can’t believe how well the timing has worked out. But I think it’s entirely due to being PATIENT and PERSISTENT!
- STAY POSITIVE: A wedding day is stressful. If you add in rain and worry….the stress multiplies exponentially. Because everyone looks to us for advice and final decisions in terms of photography and schedule (especially when there is no wedding planner) it’s INCREDIBLY important to stay relaxed and keep a smile on my face. If my second shooter and I have concerns about locations and/or schedule, we leave the room to discuss. The last thing we want to add is any sort of concern to the day.
LOOK FOR NATURAL LIGHT: I am a natural light photographer so unless I HAVE to shoot indoors and break out a flash I won’t. For the three weddings I continue referencing above, we looked for natural light. Two of the three were church weddings so for both of these, we used the front doors of the church (with the subject facing toward the light) to shoot either the family portraits or the couples photos after the ceremony.
Yes, outdoors would be my first choice because of its beautiful light and lovely locations. However, I’ll take natural light in an ok location over ok light in a better location anyday.
During rain, I constantly lookin for covered outdoor areas; I’ll shoot standing in the rain with the subject sheltered if I have to.
IT’S GOOD LUCK, RIGHT?! 😉 I am a believer in love, fate, and good luck. The old saying is that “It’s good luck to have it rain on your wedding day!” So, if it happens…just remind yourself that it’s going to be ok. It’s good luck for it to rain on this couple’s day anyway! 😉
