There is just one more day until our first wedding of the year! We are gearing up (pun intended) for Jason and Kayla’s wedding on Saturday and I can’t wait to jump into wedding season. As we get ready for this weekend I thought I’d share the 10 things we just can not do without on a wedding day. I’ve already shared the gear we use here, but these are things besides cameras, lenses, and lighting that accompany us on every wedding day.

 

1.Snacks and Hydration.

Often on a wedding day we are running from place to place, follow the couple around, and not sitting down until well into the reception. Even then we quickly eat so we can get back to shooting. So we always have plenty of things to keep us going and our energy up throughout the day – peanuts, granola bars, and lots of Gatorade and water.

 

2.A wooden hanger and 3M hooks.

When we are doing all the detail shots at the beginning of the day we love to have a nice wooden hanger available to put the dress on. Normally from the dress shop they only send you with a cheap plastic one, and we never want to showcase your gorgeous dress on a less than beautiful hanger. A lot of our brides now have the personalized ones that we love, but just in case, we always have one on hand. And the 3M hooks are great because we may find a space with great light, but nowhere to hang the dress! So we put up one of our pretty silver hooks, shoot, and then they remove easily without messing up any paint or decor at the venue! They are a must have :)

 

3. Our emergency kit.

You never know what a wedding day will bring so we like to be as prepared as possible. In the car or on us we always have emergency items such as a mini-sewing kit, bobby pins, safety pins, tide-to-go pen, chapstick, nail files, and more. Often wedding planners have these items too, but better to have too many than not enough! (P.S. Brides, if you want to make your own kit we have a list of must-haves here!)

 

4.Extra batteries!

You can never have too many. I have backups and then backups to my backups :) Both for our flashes and both our camera bodies. Same goes for memory cards. Normally we just shoot on one card each so the whole wedding is in one place and so we don’t have to swap out cards in the middle of a big moment, but I always have multiple backups on hand just in case.

 

5.Kelly Moore Bag.

I have two camera bags and love both! For wedding days, I go with the Brownlee because it fits more and then use the Saratoga for Engagement sessions. If you’re curious, Scott is currently shooting with the Undfind bag :)

 

6.Comfy shoes.

I can’t iterate this one enough. It’s rare to sit during a wedding so we need shoes that will let us be on our feet for 8-10 hours and still keep going. This year I’m trying out some new flats and I’ll let you know how they do!

 

7.Wedding day timeline and shot list.

In triplicate :) We always have multiple copies of the day’s timeline so we can stay on schedule and know what’s coming next. Along with that, we have the list of family formals ready to go so we can make sure we get every single image the bride and groom want.

 

8.Rainy day essentials.

I always have a clear umbrella in case the rain decides to pay us a visit. But I also have this rain cover for the camera and a rain jacket in the car. We are normally the ones standing in the rain while the couple is covered and want to protect our gear!

 

9.Backup gear.

Ok, this one is kind of a gear thing. But we always have extras of everything on hand – cameras, lenses, flashes. We clean and inspect our gear but just in case something happens we want to be prepared!

 

10.My second shooter.

I have shot weddings on my own and it’s gone great. But now that Scotts joined the team (and before him, my main girl Jess) I wouldn’t want to be without them. It’s so nice to have someone supporting you, who can stash the bags, run and get the gear you need, head to the ceremony or reception early and set up, feed you handfuls of peanuts as we drive to the next spot, and also to work with all day. Having a second makes my life easier and the day goes smoother and I’m so glad Scott is a permanent fixture to the team!

 

11.Wine.

Ok this one is a bonus one – and no I don’t bring it with me, but a glass of red after a long day is the best way to unwind as we cull through the images of the day.