One of the most popular questions I get asked as a wedding photographer by brides is What happens if it rains on my wedding day? In Atlanta we have some really bipolar weather, so this is a totally understandable concern. So I’m sharing some of my top tips to help ease your mind if it rains on your wedding day.
Don’t always trust the forecast
The weather forecast can be accurate sometimes. BUT don’t rely 100% on what the forecast is saying or stress if 7 days out the forecast is showing rain. It changes hourly and most likely will continue to do so on your wedding day. If the forecast is higher than 50% it’s possible you might get rain on your wedding day. But I’ve also seen the forecast showing a 100% chance of rain but it never rains. So you just never know!
Trust your vendors
Let your photographer worry about photos & making sure the shots are perfect. I always like to scout out locations right before the wedding starts. Just in case there is a chance of rain we already have an idea of what we’re going to do. When it comes to rain on a wedding day, my philosophy is all you really need is one covered area or a porch with an overhang or a gazebo. That is all you need to get natural light, beautiful photos that are colorful and you’re not going to get soaked in the rain.
Have a rain plan
Have a plan set up incase of rain. This way there are no day of or last minute changes that you didn’t get to have an opinion on. Have a plan set in place with your venue and make sure that plan is communicated in writing to your wedding coordinator or planner and all of your vendors. Even the ones you feel like it might not have an impact. It never hurts to over communicate.
Consider a First Look
If rain is something that is really concerning to you, consider doing a first look. If you choose to do a first look you will have more time to be flexible throughout the day. For example, it might be raining during the 1 hour you had set aside after the ceremony to take photos. If you’ve done most (or all of your photos) before the wedding it’s not SO crucial that it’s raining later in the day, because we’ve already taken most of your photos.
Leave the umbrellas at home
I know a lot of photographers carry tons of clear cute umbrellas with them. And that trend is so cute, BUT! My thought is that having photos with tons of umbrellas draws more attention to the fact that it was raining on your wedding day. I don’t want you to have photos that just remind you again that it rained on your wedding day. Check out the blog post on Walker and Julie’s wedding – You would never know it rained the whole day on their wedding day and you’ll see zero umbrellas in their photos.
There is an old saying that says rain means good luck on your wedding day, which is always a good reminder to ease your mind about rain on your wedding day. But as a photographer, I want you to have the best images. The best photos that remind you of the best memories from your wedding day and for most brides, if it rains on your wedding day, you would rather not remember that part. I personally don’t like umbrellas in photos, so I try not to use them. Instead I tend to choose a covered porch or overhang of a building- that’s going to look a lot better and more natural than having you under an umbrella.
Creativity thrives – roll with it!
As a photographer, when it’s raining on a wedding day it forces me to get creative! I tend to shoot in different areas of your venue that you might not have used if it wasn’t raining. And it always turns out beautiful. This again goes back to trusting your vendors, especially your photographer. Enjoy your wedding day and let us get creative for you! The rainy day on this wedding day at The Waterfall Club made for the perfect touch to the mountains in the background.
Be flexible
If the forecast shows rain for your wedding day, its not normal for it to rain ALL day. Rain will come and go and we will do our best to sneak in your photos during the parts of the day that it’s not raining. So one of my biggest tips here is to be flexible with your timeline. Let us keep an eye on it for you. Trust us to rearrange the day a little to capture photos during the parts of the day it’s not raining. We have your back and will do the best we can if you are able to be flexible with your wedding day timeline.
There are so many things you can do to prepare for rain on your wedding day. But I hope my suggestions have helped ease your mind. It will be okay, I promise. Your photographer is there to get the best possible images for you.
I always tell my couples, if there are going to be disastrous hurricane thunderstorms and we just cannot even go outside, I always offer the option to photograph them on a separate day where they can get dressed up in their wedding clothes. We can go somewhere, either their venue or somewhere beautiful and get some pictures of them together. I sincerely hope this has brought you some peace about the possibility of rain on your wedding day!
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