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Weddings

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Welcome to my blog, where I share highlights of everything from my client's wedding days and portrait sessions, to recent features and our adventures around the world. 

Hi, I'm Alicia.

Untouched Wedding Reception Details

Jul 9, 2015

The idea of “untouched” reception shots are probably a bit foreign to most brides, which isn’t a bad thing! After all, that’s why you hire a Washington, DC wedding photographer to teach you about these things :) Think of it like this… your Aunt Sally sticks her head in brief just for a view at what is to come; she notices the name card table and searches for her name, seeing she is at Table 5 with the rest of her family. She scopes out the location of Table 5 and picks out a seat that she thinks will have the best view of the head table. To mark her spot, she sets down her coat and purse so it can’t be mistaken! Now imagine 5-10 other people do the same thing; before you know it, the room is no longer in the clean, pristine condition before your introduction! So I like to make sure I slip in there before Aunt Sally and her friends so that you have the opportunity to see the room like you had planned it to look! But it’s not so much the “what” that I want to explain today, it’s more of the “why” behind the the idea — why they are important to photographers and our couples! 

So, why do I ask all my brides for a time to get in the room before guests? Well, I’m glad you asked :) 

Only Chance to See Them!
Wedding days are absolutely crazy, no ifs or buts. They go by in a flash and so, so often, I hear from my brides about how excited they are to look through their pictures because they remember so many moments that they either missed or forgot about! One of the biggest “unseen” moments is always the reception! You spend so much of your time picking everything from centerpieces and chair colors, to table linens and charger platers and yet often times, you barely have a minute to truly take the beauty of them in. That’s where I come in! I start by photographing your plate set up and gradually get wider and wider until you have a shot of the entire room. No detail goes unnoticed so that when you sit down and look through your gallery, you’ll have a chance to see that all your hard planning paid off! 

Tells a Full Story
I only provide full wedding day coverage to all of my brides; my minimum amount of coverage is 8 hours, which I feel is the least amount of time I need to fully tell your story. I work closely with my clients from day one to help develop a timeline that not only gives them maximum portrait time, but reinforces the idea of seeing the entire day from beginning to end. Part of that day is your reception space! So this is important to your story for two reasons. First, think of someone who wasn’t able to attend that day! They want to live the experience from beginning to end, and that includes getting a clear picture of what your reception looked like! And secondly, if you ever decide to invest in a Legacy Wedding Album, you will certainly want to include details of the room — the centerpieces, the cake, your chair signs. 

Publishing
Finally, like I outlined above, I know how much time and effort you put in to picking out all of the elements to create your dream reception room! I do my absolute best to get your day published on a wedding blog so that you can get the recognition you deserve — and one of the biggest requirements by publishers is to have untouched reception images included in the gallery for them to review! The mindset behind that is that they want to engage and inspire future brides — just like you searched Pinterest for wedding ideas, they want your wedding images to be pinned and repinned so everyone sees how great the day was! 

The best part is, all I need to make this happen is 10-15 minutes in the room before your guests have access. It doesn’t matter where we squeeze it in your timeline, just so long as the room is completely put together, I can get to work! And if you still don’t believe me, take a look at some of these beautiful spaces I’ve captured, untouched, in the past! 

Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it.Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it. Washington, DC wedding photographer, Alicia Lacey, explains why time is always requested untouched reception shots and the importance behind it.

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