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| What to look for in a Wedding Venue Choosing the Right wedding venue This is a topic I often see being discussed on wedding forums and in order to answer the question without repeating myself over and over I have written this little guide. Please note that my ‘what to look for in a wedding venue’ guide does have a photography bias, which is to be expected with me being a wedding photographer! Wedding Venue Exterior Immediate Grounds Pay particular attention to the area immediately adjacent to the wedding venue, as this is where you will have most of your wedding photographs taken and certainly your groups. A hotel may have several hundred acres of grounds but the reality is nearly always that time pressures due to your schedule won’t allow us to explore them fully and as you are unlikely to be wearing ‘sensible walking shoes’ the reality is we will probably stay fairly close to the main house for your photographs. Sun position It is worth noting which direction the grounds in which you are planning to hold your reception are facing. Remember that a the sun rises in the East and sets in the west and so in the afternoon you may be squinting into the sun at the bottom of an East facing garden. Likewise if the grounds are West facing, it may go dark much earlier than sunset if the sun dips below a tall wedding venue or line of trees to the East of the grounds. This of particular importance in Autumn and Winter months when the sun is much lower in the sky when it can be particularly problematic. When thinking about where your photographs may be held it’s worth considering where the sun will be on your wedding date as it may make that particular position you had in mind undesirable. Sandy vs. Clay Soil If the immediate grounds have a Sandy based soil they will be more appropriate for weddings in wet weather as they tend to drain better and not get waterlogged. This is particularly useful during Spring showers and Winter. Clay based soils tend to retain water and can get horribly waterlogged in winter and quickly turn muddy when lots of guests are walking upon it. However in summer as clay based solids tend to retain water then in times of little rainfall any grass and plants often stay Greener for longer as a result. Clay based lawns are often Greener in July and August than those with a Sandy base. Backgrounds The background of your photograph is often better when it is made of a line of bushes or tree’s rather than pure sky which is often distracting. However what you should really be looking for here is a selection of different backgrounds to give the pictures some variety. Shade / Trees Grounds with an abundance of shade and tree’s are more preferable to those without. Tree’s provide shade and relief from the hot sun in warm weather and shelter from light rain showers in the wet weather. Broad leaved deciduous trees provide more shelter in wet weather and in addition, take on the red, yellow and gold colours of Autumn. In a snow filled winter scene they also add much needed contrast in an otherwise perfectly White scene. Gravel and patio areas provide a solid ground to stand upon following wet weather when it has stopped raining, but the grounds are otherwise still wet and possibly a little mushy underfoot. Patio area’s are often one of the first outdoor surfaces to dry and can often provide you with the option to go outside when it wouldn’t be desirable otherwise when the grass is still wet. Landscaping Features Grounds with lots of landscaping features often make for better photographs by adding elements of interest. Lines of trees, garden structures and buildings, trellises, bandstands and winding paths are all good example of garden landscape features which can really lift a standard group photograph. Architectural Features The wedding venue itself can be used as a backdrop and many have great architectural features which can be used to great effect such as open doorways and courtyards, covered walkways and sweeping vistas. Exterior Lighting If the wedding venue exterior is lit at night this can open up a whole host of new opportunities for extra photographs after nightfall. Parking One of my pet hates is venues that have a fantastic area to the front, which is marred by it being strewn with parked cars of varying shapes, sizes and colours. It always seems such a shame! A venue which has parking to the side, rear or some distance from the main entrance tends to work better in your wedding photographs. Wedding Venue Interior Large windows For good wedding photography a light airy venue is best as at it’s heart, photography is all about light. Large windows which allow lots of natural light are a huge bonus. Consistent Lighting Every light source has a different colour, tungsten are orangey, fluorescent often with a tinge of Green. On their own these colour casts can be corrected and the photographers flash set to the same colour temperature by using a special colour gel. However when the venue has lots of different light sources this often becomes impossible, particularly when both light sources are visible in the same photograph. Wedding venues that have invested in a consistent lighting setup are far preferable to those who have taken a piecemeal approach. Neutral coloured Walls Neutral coloured walls are far more preferable than those with a strong colour such as Red or Green which can impart a colour cast on the photographs as light hits and is reflected off the surface. White is the most neutral, however light creams, stones and magnolia also work well. Avoid any wedding venue that has a bright Red or Green room! Mid to Moderately High Ceilings When we need to use flash indoors photographers often prefer to bounce the light off the ceiling rather than fire it directly at you which can look a little harsh and leave a shadow behind you. A mid to moderately high ceiling is best for this. Because of the inverse square law, objects twice as far away from the light source only receive one quarter of the of the amount of light. On low ceilings this translates so that the top of your head may receive more light than your feet when flash is bounced off the ceiling. With a taller ceiling, relative distances between the ceiling and your head and feet are equaled out and become unnoticeable. To give an example if you turn on a table lamp the light quickly falls away as you move away from the lamp, but with the sun being much further away from the earth, it doesn’t matter how far you walk away, it doesn’t get any darker! White Ceilings Again, to avoid colour casts, particularly when the photographer needs to bounce the flash off the ceiling a White or at least neutral coloured ceiling is best. Avoid Compartmentalised Ceilings & Beams Often in newer venues the ceilings are Compartmentalised as girders and support beams are boxed around. This can create barriers when bouncing a flash off the ceiling and leave parts of the scene underexposed as the flash is contained within a certain area by the structure of the ceiling. Venues with this sort of structure, particularly when the ceiling is low are best avoided, it becomes less problematic as the ceilings get taller. Separate Rooms for Service & Reception A separate room for your service and reception is absolutely essential in order to provide you with somewhere indoors to shoot your group photographs should it be raining outside. Wedding venues which use the same room for both service and wedding breakfast have turn over the room by bringing in tables and chairs after the service in order to get it ready and it is not usually possible to use this room for wet weather group photographs while this is going on. Fire Exit signs and Alarms I think every photographer hates these. They are a necessary evil however sometimes the placement and sheer quantity beggars belief. I know of one venue that has two fire exit sights, a ‘push bar to open’ sign, a smash glass box and a fire alarm box…all on the same doorway, all directly behind where the bride and groom stand for the service! It is best to avoid venues that carelessly create situations such as these and where it is unavoidable, to consider how the affect can be minimised with floral, balloon or other decorations. |