Wedding Photography Tips for Weather

Weather is on the top of my mind today since we’ve been back and forth a lot between California and Colorado lately. I figured there was no time like the present to talk a little about wedding weather photography challenges, or as we like to call them “opportunities for growth!” As people that love the outdoors, work in the outdoors, and play in the outdoors it has become a requirement for us to learn to roll with the punches, be prepared, and bring a raincoat. When planning a mountain wedding, or an outdoor wedding, weather is bound to be a consideration. For many it’s a concern and a barrier to their dream wedding, for us it just adds to the excitement. Sure we can’t predict the weather. We can however, prepare for it and make the best of it. Hopefully you find these wedding photography tips for weather helpful, or at least interesting. In case you’re not inclined to read the whole thing, I’ll summarize it for you: don’t see weather as a bad thing… and it won’t be!

1. The plan is always to make the best of whatever we get.

You wanted a dramatic winter wedding but it just didn’t snow? You wanted a perfect summer day but it was 110 degrees? Join the club, those things have happened to our clients and it even rained on our own wedding day. Even though we plan weddings six months to a year in advance and we try to control everything including our families, it’s nearly impossible to control the weather. The couple below came from the east coast to get married in California. They eloped in Sequoia National Park on a day that it was raining, they could have been disappointed especially since the previous day was sunshine and blue skies. Instead, we made the best of what we had which happened to include one of the best sunsets we’ve ever seen! This couple taught me that there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad attitudes! The weather just gave us the opportunity to try a few lighting tricks!

2. Weather is just an excuse for breaking rules.

Sure, weather tends to make some things harder. If we look on the bright side, which is a good rule of thumb for outdoor photography, we’ll see that weather also means we don’t have to follow any rules. A wedding in winter might mean you have to wear a jacket, it also might mean you get to wear a jacket. The tip here is, bring a jacket. Bring gloves, an umbrella, and a flexible attitude. In one of my favorite pictures from the Colorado mountain wedding below, the bride and groom are wearing jackets and gloves that were never meant to be part of the photos. We try to embrace the happy accidents.

3. Know that at the end of the day, the weather isn’t what matters.

This is the number one thing I tell people when they ask about outdoor weddings and weather. Typically, these are brides and grooms that have a little bit of an adventurous spirit. They love nature enough to want to get married outside. I share with them my own experience of rain on our wedding day, and how we had to move our reception inside. The riverside deck that I had chosen for the view and wildflowers was no longer an option. It didn’t matter. I was sitting getting my hair done by the amazing jewelry designer Viki, I was surrounded by friends and family, and I was about to marry my best friend. At that point, nothing mattered. I could have gotten married anywhere and I’m pretty sure our guests could have partied anywhere. Joy sure conquers a lot. In the wedding below, there was supposed to be so much snow that we couldn’t get to this spot. That would have been a shame because not only is this one of my favorite pictures but one of my favorite memories from that day!