Dear Brides,
You’re not a bad person if you hate the planning process of your wedding. I will repeat that… You’re not a bad person if you hate the planning process of your wedding. This is totally ok! We are all different, some people love “BIG IN-DEPTH” planning, planning in the realm of making an enormous amount of decisions on every little detail like the timeline, colors, arrangements, seating charts, lighting, entrees, table arrangements, table cloths, every song played, every photo taken, every pose set up, choice of cutlery for guest, napkins, favors, bridal line up, exit procession, church seating and the list goes on and on.  And some of us like to make a base plan and then let things more or less flow (me included). I personally am a big fan of hiring a pro in their respective fields to take care of each aspect of the wedding day. However, this does require a large budget. So what to do?

You’re probably someone who usually likes to plan in the “normal” sense of the word (I am too). But being bombarded with questions on every single aspect of a very large event can be very difficult: it can cause tail feathers to ruffle. If your palms start to sweats and your stomach feels sick as you think of all the planning, its time to think about deligating and getting good reliable referrals.

I was first a bride and now a professional wedding photographer who has shot well over 100 weddings, this is what I personally recommend.

1.) Make your base plan. The base plan includes choosing your wedding location, reception venue, photographer, DJ, cake, colors, florist, wedding planner or at least a day of wedding coordinator and your wedding dress.

2.) Get reliable referrals from a trusted vendor. The best referrals usually come from your photographer (as long as you have chosen a photographer who is passionate about taking amazing care of you and your wedding day). I am not saying this to be bias. I say this because we, as photographers, pay the most attention to every detail at your wedding. It is our desire to shoot gorgeous well put together weddings that flow beautifully. When I come across an amazing florist that produces fabulous arrangements I take note to refer them, when I meet a DJ that is great at keeping the party going leading to great reception photos I refer them, when I see a cake that not only looks great but tastes great they go in my referral book and when I work with a wedding planner whom is on point they become my favorite person and number one referral.

2.) Delicate the smaller decisions. For example, once your wedding color is chosen it makes life easer to delegate decisions on table cloths, napkins and chair covers to a trusted family member, friend or wedding professional who knows and understands your style. Let them make the selection and you give the final OK after seeing the selection. Once you have a great florist let her know what your dreaming of and ask for a sample bouquet, if you love it then trust her to do everything else to match. A good florist works magic! Let your best friend (who is most likely your maid of honor) choose the bridesmaids dresses. She knows you and your style. Of corse you have the final ok, but let her do the shopping. Meet with your venue and share with them your vision + guest count, trust them to decide the best layout for the tables + cutlery to use, they have done this over a hundred times or more. Table arrangements, let the moms take care of it, after all they know just about everyone who is coming + they know about any drama;) Bridal line up, wedding procession, church seating and all ceremony logistics can be trusted to your wedding planner or day of wedding coordinator. Basically once you have a base plan that is set up with reliable vendors let them help in this creative venture. And don’t be afraid to let your trusted friends and family members pitch in.

Repeat this to yourself at all times: “I’m not a terrible bride if I don’t love this process.”