So, I’ve been working on a little something to bring along with me on wedding days, and I wanted to share it with you! Today’s blog is the second installment in my series about what’s in my bag when I head off to photograph a couple’s big day. You can view the first post about which lenses and cameras I bring to wedding days right HERE.

So, as many of you know, wedding days are about the pretty as much as they are about the love, and one of my favorite things to photograph are the bride’s details. Her shoes, jewlery, gown, invitations, the like. All of those little things are important to document to me as a wedding photographer because I know my bride will want to remember every little part of her day in a few years. But sometimes the getting ready room for the bride and her girls isn’t the prettiest or doesn’t match the colors or theme of the wedding, so I’ve got to find a way to photograph her details in a way that compliments the wedding as a whole. That way when we get to the album design of the experience, I can create spreads of images throughout the WHOLE album/day that match and carry along the same vibe and colors.

These past two wedding seasons, I kept running into this problem of non-cohesive getting ready situations or just NOT pretty ones, ha, and scrambling during my allotted time for detail shots to style the bride’s things in a way that matches the rest of the big day. SO, I decided, instead of keeping my fingers crossed on the way to wedding days in hopes of a pretty place to shoot the details, that I would create the pretty environment myself.

This idea lead to me collecting the items in what I’m calling my “Detail Styling Kit”! Now you’re probably like, “Whaaaaaaat is that, exactly?” Well, let me show you!

I’ve put together a random assortment of pretty to bring along with me to weddings so I can style the bride’s details anywhere, anytime, whether her room is pretty or not! The first item I want to mention is the big canvas that everything is sitting on. I covered a standard sized blank canvas in a neutral cloth so I will always have a flat neutral surface to shoot on. Perfect for shots of jewlery, invitation suites, or special gifts.

Next, I made sure to purchase a neutral colored Mrs. Box for ring shots! Though it was a little pricey, TOTALLY worth the money to make every bride’s ring look stunning.

I also went to a local fabric store to pick up a few yards for tulle in ivory and pink, and I also bought a few yards of different types of lace for shots of the smaller details like earrings, necklaces, ect. Tulle and lace have such an ability to soften up any image, so I have those ready incase I need a little extra pretty.

I also bought ten different colored ribbons and wooden spools for them to go on. I have almost every primary color a bride might use for her wedding, and three spools of neutral colored ribbon in case I just need a little extra detail to the shot. The colored ribbons are when I need a little pop of color or a way to incorporate the wedding’s colors into a frame without just placing all of the items right on a bridesmaids’s gown (which I’ve done like a bajillion times now, ha!).

Another thing I wanted to incorporate in my styling kit for wedding days were vintage stamps. I keep seeing them in detail shots by other photographers that I admire (heyyyy Jose Villa!!), so I was racking my brain on how to get my hands on a few for, like weeks. Until one day I was talking to my dad about what I was thinking and looking for. He immediately jumped up to grab me a few envelopes of old letters and stamps my grandmother had collected years ago!! I had a blast going through all of her old postcards and hand lettered envelopes to find the coolest stamps possible. I made sure to collect many different types with different color schemes so I can match them to my couple’s theme or invitation’s colors. And let’s be honest, it’s pretty awesome that MY grandmother’s stamps are going with me on wedding days to add just that extra little touch!

Oh, and these stamps aren’t ‘fake vintage’ either! Every single one was actually used during the 1950s-1980s on a handwritten letter or postcard. HOW cool is that, right?!

I’ve included a few other random assortment of things like two rolls of twine for a more rustic wedding day and a few sparkled ribbons incase I have a extra girly bride or want a POP in my image.

All in all, this detail styling kit is just one way I’m making sure I’m prepared for ANY wedding day and any detail situation. I want to providing my brides with consistent images that match my style and brand, and bringing this little kit along with me is going to make that task just SO much easier!

I hope you got some good ideas either for your wedding’s details or, if you’re a photographer, I hope you’re inspired to create a detail styling kit for your own wedding days! Let me know what YOU think in the comments below!