What I Pack on a Wedding Day (as a wedding photographer)
Capturing the beautiful moments of a couple's special day requires skill, preparation, and the right equipment. As a wedding photographer, I always make sure I have everything I need to document the event seamlessly. In this blog post, I’m sharing five essential items that you should always have while shooting a wedding. These items will not only enhance your ability to capture stunning images but also make your job easier and more efficient.
High-Quality Camera and Lenses
Kind of a gimme but cameras and lenses are the backbone of our toolkits - without them we wouldn’t be able to do our jobs. That’s why it’s important to invest in a camera and lenses that are reliable and high-quality. After tons of back and forth I switched over to Mirrorless from DSLR and haven’t looked back. I find that Mirrorless cameras are faster, lighter, and more efficient - which is exactly what you want on a wedding day. I also find that Mirrorless cameras do incredible in low-light situations and have better high-speed continuous shooting so I never miss a shot! I personally shoot with a Sony A7 IV and LOVE her.
In the same realm, lenses can make or break your images so be sure to have a variety to get you through a wedding day! I keep a 35mm 1.4 attached to one of my bodies pretty much all day long and then I keep either a 24-70mm 2.8 or an 85mm 1.4 on my other body depending on the wedding. I personally LOVE prime lenses but have recently see the value in having a versatile zoom lens in my kit as well.
Extra Batteries and Memory Cards
Wedding days are LONG, and the last thing you want is to run out of storage or have your camera battery die during a key moment in the day. I always keep extra charged batteries and a sufficient number of memory cards with lots of storage capacity - either 64GB or 128GB depending on the point in the day I need a new card. Make sure the SD cards you’re working with are high-speed so your images write faster and there is no delay in refire time!
Flash
For my personal style and approach to wedding photography, a flash does WONDERS in certain situations. Not only can they be used for receptions in dark areas of a venue but they can also help fill light in the middle of the day if needed. A good flash (and rechargeable batteries) help out a ton on a big day!
Backup Equipment
Knock on wood, nothing has ever happened to my gear on a wedding day but in the off chance that it does, I want to make sure that I am prepared! For this reason, I always have 2 camera bodies with me on a wedding day, all my lenses, and an additional flash. Another way to ensure that you’re backed up is to make sure that your camera is set up to write to 2 memory cards at once just to make sure that your files are in two places in case one card corrupts. This way, you can handle any technical mishaps swiftly and maintain your professionalism.
Flat Lay Styling Kit
Capturing details is arguably one of my favorite moments of the day! I love getting to see what pieces mean the most to my couples and how they come together in a flat lay. That being said I like to bring my styling kit just to add some flair to their details. Things you might find in my kit are ring boxes, ribbons, trays, and risers. I try to stick to their day of color scheme to help everything feel cohesive - so be sure to have a large variety of items to choose from!
Comfortable Gear and Accessories
Staying comfy on a wedding day has become more and more important to me the most weddings I shoot - gear is heavy and there’s lots of walking. I use a camera harness that helps me not only carry 2 cameras at once but also helps distribute the weight of my gear a little more evenly so that my back isn’t dying by the end of the day!
Other gear to invest in would be a good fanny pack to make carrying around those extra batteries and SD cards, and maybe even a snack or two a little easier! Another item to keep in mind is your camera bag - for the longest, I had all of my gear spread out across 3 bags but I recently purchased the Brevite Jumper backpack and I can carry almost all my gear in there. For random miscellaneous items, I also recommend having small speaker, ibuprofen, sunscreen or bug spray, and an emotional support water bottle of sorts to stay hydrated!
Being a wedding photographer is the best job ever but it is also a job that you want to make sure that you are prepared for in every way possible. I am constantly working to update my gear and equipment to make sure I am set up for success. This makes it so much easier to go into each and every wedding day with confidence!
