Back in the day (okay, a couple years ago) I started a blog series about what I learned about planning a wedding from my experiences as a bride. The farther and farther we get into this whole marriage thing, the more silly it seems for me to write about how I felt when I was engaged because, well, I can’t really even remember it all that well anymore. Four and a half years later it’s kind of becoming a blur! Realizing this made me excited to start a new series, this time sharing my perspectives as a professional instead! I think both perspectives are really valuable to how I run my business and approach each wedding day, but I think this new series will be really helpful to our clients and even those who aren’t our clients!

I wanted to start off with chatting with you guys about guys getting ready. Most people don’t know what to expect when it comes to this part of the day, so I think this post will help explain it a little and give you an idea of how the process works!

What does “guys getting ready” time consist of?
Guys getting ready is usually a lot more laid back than girls getting ready. Guys don’t have to worry about makeup or complicated hairstyles, so a lot of their wedding day morning is spent relaxing and hanging out. Often the guys will go out for lunch before even starting to get ready! Photographs of guys “getting ready” doesn’t mean photos of them actually putting clothes on…it really means photos of the groom and groomsmen putting “final touches” on their attire for the day. Tying ties, buttoning cuff links, etc. If you plan to gift the groomsmen something and really want photos of it, we suggest waiting till we arrive for this part of the day so we can capture it!

Do you photograph all grooms getting ready?
We probably photograph 60 percent of our grooms getting ready. Whether or not we do depends on a few things, the biggest being where the guys will be getting ready. If the guys are getting ready in the same location as the girls (either at the venue or in the same hotel) it’s easy for one of us to pop over and photograph them for a while. If the guys are getting ready at a separate location, it often isn’t really feasible for us to do both since we travel to each wedding together. In that case, we will sometimes stage a few photos of the groom putting the final touches on his look before the ceremony once he arrives at the venue. This all depends on personal preference and what’s feasible based on wedding day timeline and logistics! We will plan this out with you prior to the wedding day.

When do guys get ready?
Usually the guys begin to get ready about a half an hour to forty five minutes before the first look or ceremony. It depends on the location and how far you have to travel if there’s any travel, and again, this varies with each wedding. Generally speaking though, the guys don’t need to be ready super early in the day since their prep doesn’t take quite as long. The more people involved, the more time you should allot. I.E, if you have a larger bridal party, you’ll need more time than if you only have a few guys.

Any tips for making this part of the day go more smoothly?
As with most parts of the day, it’s always a really smart idea to pad your timeline with extra buffer time in case things run long or something goes wrong (rhyme totally unintentional…but it works!). It’s almost inevitable that something will probably go wrong on your wedding day no matter how carefully you plan or how type A you (or your wedding planner) are. For this reason, padding the timeline is always smart because it means that if a groomsmen forgets his suit back at his apartment, or if buttons need to be sewn on, or if there’s a boutonniere emergency, these things won’t cause the entire day to run super late.

I also always suggest choosing a clean, clutter free space with lots of natural light for the guys (and girls too, really) to get get ready in. Sometimes the guys are stuck in a dark, small space, and that’s not really conducive for great photos.

In a nutshell, those are the questions I get most often about guys getting ready. Do you have another question?? Feel free to shoot me an email or leave a comment!