Are you a wedding photographer? Check out these tips to organise an irresistible pre-wedding shoot

A pre-wedding reportage is a photo session prior to the day of the celebration that usually helps couples to familiarise themselves with the photographer and the camera, and it is also a great way for the professional to see how the couple acts in front of the lens before the big day. In the pre-wedding shoot the photographer can see if the bride and groom are spontaneous, shy or a bit more fun, so this type of pre-wedding reportage can become the key point for the photographer and the couple to get to know each other much better before the wedding.

If you want your clients to book this couple photo shoot, it is important that you know how to sell it. Think that many brides and grooms are not going to know exactly what this photo shoot consists of and explaining the benefits and all the options you are going to offer them will increase the sales of this photo shoot before the wedding. Also, if you want to be more original than the rest, you can organise a small dossier explaining the different varieties of pre-weddings you do, in this article we are going to give you several tips that will help you to give much more value to your pre-wedding photo shoot.

Gain the bride and groom’s trust in the pre-wedding photo shoot thanks to these ideas to surprise them.

What does a pre-wedding reportage consist of?

A pre-wedding shoot is a session organised a few weeks before the wedding day to take photographs of the couple. The idea is for the photographer and the bride and groom to get to know each other better, for the professional to see how their clients act in front of the camera and for them to feel more confident about the big day.

These photo shoots can be arranged in a multitude of ways and offer couples a complementary service to the wedding reportage which, as well as helping them to be more relaxed on the day of the wedding, can also be used to decorate and set the scene for their wedding. And thanks to these extra sessions, the wedding photographer can increase the budget for the weddings he or she closes.

Why is a pre-wedding reportage so important?

A pre-wedding shoot can be very useful for you and for the bride and groom if you know how to “sell it” and these are some of the reasons why if you are a wedding photographer offering a pre-wedding shoot is a good idea:

• Connection between the couple and the photographer: this can be one of the strongest reasons you can make the case for selling a pre-wedding session. Explain to your clients that after the session they will feel much more comfortable with you on the wedding day and vice versa.

• Personalisation of the wedding details: this is usually another reason why taking this type of pre-wedding photographs can be an opportunity to decorate some of the details of the big day, to set certain corners of the wedding or even to create the wedding invitations.

• Surprise for the guests: you can also propose to create a slideshow to liven up the banquet with a slide show of your pre-wedding photographs. It will be a very emotional moment for everyone.

• Disconnecting before the wedding: a pre-wedding photo shoot can be a great way to spend an afternoon as a couple and disconnect for a while from the intense wedding preparations.

Pre-wedding sessions are a great way for your clients to become familiar with posing in front of your camera, be more relaxed on the wedding day, be able to use these images at their wedding and spend some time away from the organisation of the big day.

You can use these arguments to your advantage so that the bride and groom who choose you to cover their wedding day are also encouraged to have a photo shoot before the big day.

Increase your income through pre-wedding photoshoots

As we have already mentioned, one of the advantages that will benefit you directly from offering pre-wedding photography to couples is, without a doubt, being able to increase the budget of the bride and groom who hire you. This session together with the post-wedding session, the albums and the sale of extra images in your private gallery can be the extras you need to increase your income in every wedding they hire you for.

In the following article we will talk more in depth about all the options you will be able to offer in your private galleries.

>> Private galleries: the best tool for delivering photos to clients

If you have not yet tried all the business possibilities that you can offer your clients with Arcadina’s image sales galleries, you can now try them out for 14 days completely free of charge.

Tips to sell more pre-wedding sessions in the upcoming wedding season

When “selling” these pre-wedding sessions to couples, it is important that you explain very well what this extra photo shoot consists of and why other couples like them have decided to live this experience before their wedding.

And so that the pre-wedding photo session is much more than just a simple wedding photo shoot, we are going to give you some ideas that can inspire you when creating a mini post-wedding dossier.

1# Organise a pre-wedding session at a special location for the couples

If you want these photographs to show all the love that your engaged couples have for each other, you can propose to organise this romantic photo shoot in a location that is really special to them, for example: the place where they met, the village where they used to spend the summer when they were teenagers or even the city where one of them decided to propose to the other.

If they have a special place, they are sure to love this idea, it will make them feel more relaxed and will also allow you to recreate much more romantic scenes with them in a setting they already know.

2# Offer a pre-wedding reportage abroad

If you are a photographer who likes to travel, another proposal you can make to the bride and groom is to go to a city in a charming location outside Spain, for example: Paris, the city of love, Venice for a gondola ride or even Marrakech to turn this reportage into an adventure.

This type of session can be very appealing to a more select clientele with a bigger budget for their wedding and if you offer them this option in your dossier, many of them will be encouraged by your proposal to enjoy a romantic weekend getaway before the wedding.

3# Are you a photographer based in an inland city? Suggest a session on the coast

If you are willing to travel but don’t want to go abroad, you can organise a couple’s photo session in a coastal location, because if you live in an inland area, this will certainly attract couples’ attention.

And if you are lucky enough to have your photography studio very close to the sea, you can do the opposite strategy and look for some more inland locations, for example, in a lush forest or on a simple route through a mountain with a view. The idea is that you can offer your clients a different pre-wedding reportage to the ones that your closest competitors are doing at the moment.

4# Look for charming locations around your city

And if you are one of those who don’t want to or can’t travel far when it comes to organising the pre-wedding shoot, you can also prepare a pre-wedding session close to your studio. If you do a little research on the locations in your area, you are sure to find both more urban and more natural places where you will be able to offer couples this reportage option.

The idea is that you put on the table different options close to your studio and make them see how beautiful the images can be in those locations that they may already know.

5# An urban pre-wedding is always a good idea

Most couples who organise their weddings tend to look for outdoor venues with large gardens and natural spaces to celebrate the banquet, so proposing something different such as an urban pre-wedding can be very tempting if you know how to sell it to them.

You can suggest that couples look for a more central urban area and take advantage of the city lights at sunset to create a unique and very different reportage to that of their wedding day. You can even bring the session forward to the Christmas season and prepare a photo shoot taking advantage of the Christmas decorations in the city centre.

6# Surprise couples with a pre-wedding shoot in abandoned locations

Although at first couples may find the idea of going to an abandoned building, train tracks or an old factory a bit strange, the truth is that in these places and with the right light, very cool and original photographs can be taken.

To finish convincing your clients, you can show them a small portfolio of other couples who have opted for this original pre-wedding shoot. We assure you that when they see the images, they will also want a photo shoot in this style.

7# Adventure pre-wedding session for sporty and adventurous bride and groom

There are many couples who like to practice sports together or even organise outings to the countryside, for this type of client you can organise a more adventurous pre-wedding session and turn the reportage into a day of leisure and photos.

You can organise an outing to the countryside for a simple hike and end up at the top of a mountain with a view, or go to a park where they can train for a while while you take some photos that will reflect their complexity as a couple – an experience they will love.

8# Holi powder in the pre-wedding report

Using holi powder for a bridal shoot can turn the shoot into a fun afternoon and you will have the opportunity to take images with lots of colour and movement.

To make this session more attractive, you can also propose to the couple a change of wardrobe so that in the first part they can have some photos of themselves as a couple in more formal clothes. And then, for the second part of the session, the most fun part, you can encourage them to wear jeans and a white T-shirt.

9# Bride and groom photo shoot at night

If in addition to wedding sessions you like to do night photography or lightpainting as a hobby, you can propose to your bride and groom to organise a pre-wedding as original as this one. You can take advantage of the sunset to create the first romantic images and when the night falls a little more, start with the lightpainting session.

For this type of reportage to go well, it is recommended that you organise them in a place where there is not much artificial lighting, in an area away from the cities these sessions are best carried out.

10# Couples lifestyle photo shoot in your own home

If there is one thing that characterises brides and grooms who are organising their wedding, it is the lack of time. Between their respective jobs and taking care of all the formalities involved in organising a wedding, finding time to organise a pre-wedding reportage can often be difficult.

Therefore, offering your clients the possibility of having a more intimate and natural couple session in a more comfortable and familiar environment for them, such as their home, will be very original and easier for them to fit into their busy schedules.

11# Couple with children? Organise a more family-friendly session

Another idea for pre-wedding photos if the bride and groom already have children, is to transform their pre-wedding photo shoot into a beautiful family session. A walk at sunset in any location near your studio will be more than enough for the family to relax and you can take some beautiful family photos.

In these sessions remember to take a few photos of just the couple so that they can also have a much more intimate memory of this session before the wedding.

12# Themed pre-wedding photos

On many occasions you may come across couples who are organising a themed wedding, for example, set in famous films, superheroes, Disney, medieval, fantasy, biker, retro, etc.

So that the couple can use these images in the decoration of their wedding, you can propose a couple photo shoot with the same theme as the wedding. This way the bride and groom will be able to take advantage of many of the ideas that will arise when organising this session prior to the wedding.

 

13# Couples photo session with pets

If the bride and groom are animal lovers, as well as suggesting that they go to an environment with animals, for example, an animal recovery centre, a shelter, a horse farm, etc., you can also propose a photo session with their own pets.

It will be a fun-filled afternoon full of games and licking and the photographs they will keep with their pets will be a unique memory for life.

14# Couple’s photos on board a ship

Whether you live in a coastal city or you have no problem moving to one of them, organising a couple’s session on board a boat can be a unique experience for the bride and groom.

The idea is to take advantage of the last hours of sunshine to take some pre-wedding photographs on board a boat. You don’t need to be on the high seas either, if you get a little further from the coast it will be enough to capture the complicity of the bride and groom under a unique landscape.

 

15# Stag and hen party and pre-wedding in one package

Especially for couples who decide to celebrate their respective stag and hen parties together, having a photographer present on the day to capture the highlights of the party with their closest friends will make the experience unique.

This type of pre-wedding can be very interesting if you see that the bride and groom are not convinced by the idea of doing a session just the two of them, due to lack of time or simply because they are still a bit embarrassed when it comes to getting in front of the camera.

With this type of session, they will see how spontaneous the photos of their wedding day can be and they will see for themselves that, after the first few minutes, they will see you as a friend.

Offer a pre-wedding reportage that really appeals to the bride and groom

As you can see, it is not enough just to inform your clients that you can do a pre-wedding photo shoot, following this strategy you will not be able to sell more pre-wedding photo shoots, because every session or extra service you offer to couples, you have to know how to sell it explaining to the bride and groom the benefits of each product and the different alternatives you offer.

Use these ideas to sell more of these sessions to bridal couples who book you for a wedding and increase profits for each client.

This is a very good way to make your photography business grow little by little without having to contract more weddings per year and at Arcadina we also help you to have more visibility on the Internet, automate processes, sell more images and offer your clients a much more modern and up-to-date service.

Today we are going to share with you the interview of the wedding photographer David from Josan Fotógrafo.

>> Interview with David de Josan Fotógrafo: children’s and wedding photographer

And to finish this article that can help you to organise a pre-wedding photo shoot that is interesting for your clients, we would like to know: What kind of pre-wedding photographs do you most like to take? We’ll read you in the comments.

 

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