Wedding Mishaps

Let it be!  So your wedding day is upon you. The white wedding that you always dreamt of and you want it to be perfection!  Unfortunately some of the best laid out plans can hit a speed wobble and therefore cause some stressful moments.

As a wedding photographer, I have seen quite a few mishaps and as a result now take every opportunity to warn brides that plans may go astray and some plans are just out of your control. Embrace your special day and don’t worry about those small mishaps that could consequently ruin your day.

How to handle mishaps

The best advice is to put someone else in charge of making sure that everything is going to plan and most of all they must deal with it and not bother you on your special day …but that is easier said than done …sometimes you will have to be made aware of a hiccup …but don’t panic …take a deep breath and try and resolve the issue as quickly as possible and if it can’t be resolved …then Let it Be …do not let it ruin your day.  Let it be!

If you are having an outside wedding …always have a Plan B!

JC & Manuela

I got booked for JC & Manuela’s wedding a couple of years ago and we were all very excited as this was a themed wedding , a Medieval theme. They had chosen to have an outdoor wedding as Manuela’s family was from Germany and she wanted them to enjoy the sunshine and some outdoor games. Unfortunately Cape Town produced howling winds that day and it became uncomfortable to be outside. They were lucky to manage to get through the ceremony outside ….and yet ….the gale force wind lent itself beautifully to the scene and assisted me in getting dramatic images.

  Their wedding can be viewed here!

 Graeme & Candice

First of all, Candice and Graeme’s hiccup was so small that I don’t think anyone even noticed except for Candice and when she mentioned it, we couldn’t help but laugh. It will be a good story to tell their grandchildren one day. Candice had organized baskets for the flowergirls to throw the rose petals from. But because of the mad rush to get to the church no one had given the baskets to the children …and so as Candice and Graeme were leaving the church she suddenly saw that the little girls were handing out the rose petals from pick n pay bags. I think at first she was horrified …but the moral of the story is that no one noticed …only her!

  Their wedding can be viewed here!

Chris & Gemma

Chris and Gemma’s story wasn’t really a mishap …except she was the first bride who was ready even before I had arrived. This is highly unusual …and she was eager to get going and marry her Prince Charming ….except her guests weren’t quite as eager to get to the ceremony 30 minutes before the designated time. The bridal car had to ride around for awhile waiting for guests to get seated. They decided to park in another parking area down the road ….and gave the guests at that wedding the fright of their lives as everyone thought their bride was waiting for them. Their wedding can be viewed here!

Niel & Monique

Everything was going according to plan with Niel and Moniques’ wedding until just after she had walked up the aisle and was hugging her dad.   Suddenly a gust of wind lifted her veil and as a result,  it floated off  into the sky.  Luckily, Monique just “Let it Be” and carried on with the ceremony. While the ceremony carried on, one of the groomsmen went and found the veil.  Most of all, I loved the moment and being able to capture the look of surprise on the bridesmaids faces.  Priceless!

Leanne & Alan

Leanne and Alans story is slightly different. They had married officially overseas and wanted to come back and hold a ceremony for friends and family in Cape Town. During the time of planning, she fell pregnant with Ella. Luckily it worked out well as Ella would be 5 months old when they held the ceremony in Cape Town.

Ella is normally a happy, easy baby but on the day of the wedding unbeknown to everyone else she was coming down with an ear infection and therefore was not her happy self. This obviously caused Leanne to stress about her child and panic about her guests. It became obvious that the baby needed to be calmed down and sorted before the wedding could happen. Luckily it was her brother doing the ceremony and SA was playing a rugby match that all the guests would have been forced to miss. So we put our heads together, sent a message out to the place of the ceremony and let everyone know that there was a delay, and that they should grab a drink and the venue would organize a television for them to enjoy the rugby. In the end it all worked out perfectly ….problem diverted.

Their wedding can be viewed here!

Sarah & James

Sarah and James’s hiccup which consequently ended up delaying their wedding by 30 minutes. The minister had left their personal vows at his office which was almost two hours away. At first everyone was trying to keep this information away from Sarah as they did not want to stress her but she started to stress when she was being delayed from walking down the aisle. As a result of this, they told her the truth, after a few minutes of panic, she suddenly got her wits about her and realized that James had his laptop in his room from where they had forwarded the vows from. So a quick search through the laptop and the problem was diverted and Sarah was able to walk down the aisle and enjoy her special day. Their wedding can be viewed here!

In conclusion, this day will only happen once therefore the most important thing to remember is that you are marrying the person you want to be with for the rest of your life and consequently that is all that matters!

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You’re invited!
Ask someone that you trust to preserve their invitation in all its glory until the big day, to bring it along to the ceremony. Ideally, opt to have a spare made up with the originals that you can keep untouched until the wedding day! Preferably ask a member of your bridal party or the mother of the bride to bring it along to the “getting-ready” portion of your wedding day, during which time your wedding photographer may have a few extra minutes in which to set up for, and take, detail-oriented shots of your wedding invitations.

Squeaky clean
If you want your wedding photographer to take detailed photographs of your wedding shoes, especially when you do not yet have them on, ensure that they are clean inside and out. Wedding photographers are often asked to take detailed shots of, in particular, designer shoes purchased specifically for the wedding as well as a bride’s wedding accessories, such as earrings and her engagement ring, posed with, or even on, her shoes. Scuff marks and stains make for unflattering detail-oriented wedding photographs. It is also advisable to keep the insertion of gel insoles to a post-detailed-photography activity; nothing ruins the designer label in your glass slipper more than an unflattering, puffy gel sticker wedged into the side of said shoe’s open toe.

Hang on!
Bringing a customized, one-of-a-kind, or simply beautiful hanger on which to hang your wedding dress for wedding photographs is always a wonderful idea. Tuck your hanger into the bottom of your dress bag at your last fitting and avoid forgetting it at home during the last-minute scurry to get everything done on time!

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