In today's blog post, we talk about a more traditional part of the english wedding day, the family formals.

They may not be the most aesthetically interesting photographs on the wedding day, but they are definitely one of the most important.

It's a rare occasion when family and friends are together - some travelling from distant destinations within the UK, or abroad. To add to this rarity, everybody is smartly dressed, so it’s definitely an opportunity to create some lasting memories.

Parents, Siblings, Grandparents, Cousins, Uncles & Aunties and even Nephew's & Neices; this part can usually take a really long time on the day, leaving people feeling bored and frustrated. It can sometimes be pretty stressful for those involved. I try to avoid the long-winded approach, and do all of the organisational work before the wedding day. When the day comes around, it’s just a case of getting everybody together, and efficiently getting through the list of images.

The length of the “Family Formals” section very much depends on the bride and groom. For some couples, family photos are the priority, whereas other couples like to leave it within my hands to photograph the ‘standard’ images.

Location really isn’t everything in these images. I usually find somewhere with a fairly ‘plain’ background, so that the viewers eye isn’t distracted by other elements in the photograph, other than the people in it.

These images are more about the people, relationships and the connection between families, which means that they can be photographed in a wide range of areas in or around the venue.

My advice to any couple would be to plan & prioritise who the most important family members are to have photographed well in advance before the day. From that, build a basic list of images for the photographer to follow. This will save you stress on the day, and allow you to have more time with those you want to spend time with, and obviously more time at the bar! ;)