I’m the kind of person who always packs just a little bit too much when I go away on a trip just because I really like to be prepared. This is one of the qualities I think will make me a decent mom one day, actually…I always try to pack a snack and some kleenex. Because, I mean, you never know, right??

Wedding days are pretty much non stop, so I’ve learned to pack a bunch of essentials (and a few non essentials) for each wedding day. I blogged about what lenses I shoot with and the flash equipment I take to weddings, but this is the first time I’ve shared the random, miscellaneous stuff I bring! Hope it helps you think of something you can add to your wedding day kit, and if not…at least hopefully this post is entertaining enough to make up for it!

Miscellaneous Shooting Items:

• Vintage stamps (To style reception details)
• Scissors (Cutting tags off of jewelry when photographing getting ready details. I buy child’s sized scissors with a pointed tip so they are smaller and more portable)
• Glue (I mean, you never know)
• 3M Command Hook (In case there isn’t anything to hang the bride’s dress off of)
• Wood hangers (Always better to sub in than a plastic cheapie from the bride’s tailor)
• Lighter  (to light some of the reception candles if they aren’t lit already by the time I start photographing details)
• Double stick tape. (Helps stick stationery to a wall or to the floor if it’s windy or there’s not a great spot for it. Also sometimes helpful for ring shots or to keep a bridal or bridesmaids dress on a hanger for a shot)
• A yard of lace. (For detail photographs)
• White pillowcase (a nice, neutral fabric to photograph details on. You can also use this as something for the couple to sit on, if you want them to sit!)
• Mini stool (Important for me personally, because I am short and sometimes I’d like to get a better angle on things)
• Umbrellas (Kind of a personal one too. We have huge golf umbrellas and some clear ones to keep us and our clients dry if it rains)

Miscellaneous Personal Items

• Ban body wipes (This one is great for hot, humid wedding days. After shooting outside, I wipe off with one of these to refresh and not feel sticky and sweaty anymore.)
• Extra makeup (Again, important for hot, humid wedding days. I prefer to maintain a professional appearance and looking greasy doesn’t really work for that)
• Bobby pins
• Red Bull (Especially helpful for this introvert right before handling large bridal parties or family formals)
• Medications (Aleve, Pepto chewables, Allergy pills, Benadryl itch cream for bug bites, Dramamine)
• Bug spray (They sell a pocket sized one at Target!)
• Tide to go pen
• Blister bandages (Clutch! And actually way better for blisters than regular bandaids. If you haven’t tried them, do it! They’ll change your life)
• Instant cold pack (I broke a bone at a wedding once and am determined to be prepared if it happens again)
• Kleenex (Kind of self explanatory, I think)
• Wet ones
• Gum
• Portable silverware. (If you’ve been shooting weddings for a while, you probably know that it can sometimes take a while to get silverware before you start eating your meal during dinner. And since there’s usually a pretty limited amount of time in which we can eat, we don’t want to wait forever for silverware to arrive and then have to eat in two minutes before dances start, OR not get to eat. So I found these portable ones on Amazon for us!!)

Probably the BEST thing we take to every single wedding though, is our mini cooler!!! It only cost about $30 but it’s worth it’s weight in GOLD. Okay, maybe that’s a little bit of an exaggeration, but it’s awesome and we are so happy we got it. We keep all of our (many) waters and gatorades inside of it in the car instead of just keeping them in the hot car with nothing to insulate them. Before we had the cooler, the waters would get so hot throughout the day and you’re really not supposed to drink water bottles that have been in a hot car because of BPA. And no one really enjoys a warm water bottle anyway. I keep a bottle of water on me in my shooting bag, but we also keep a bunch of drinks and snacks in the cooler so they aren’t melting away out in the car.

(In case you were curious, our favorite wedding day snacks are: Pure Protein Shakes, Quest Bars (cookie dough flavor), Fiber One Brownies, Applesauce to Go packets, cracker chips, larabars, sour gummy bears etc)

So, that’s what we bring with us, in a nutshell! We are constantly adding and improving things we travel with on a week to week basis depending on when we see a need for something new. Hope you find at least one thing on this list that can make your wedding days run more smoothly!!