Category Archives: Engagement Sessions

LMP Wedding Planning Timeline (Part 2 of 5)

Six to Nine Months Before Your Wedding

Plan an engagement session with your photographer.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Create and send out Save the Date cards. Many brides and grooms choose to use one of their engagement photos for this, so it’s important to communicate with your photographer and give yourselves plenty of time for the shoot, photo editing, printing, and mailing.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Find and order bridesmaid dresses. Just like the wedding gown, your bridesmaids will need time to get alterations completed.

Order invitations and develop a wedding website. This ensures that your guests will have all of the pertinent information, including location, attire, accommodations, and more.

Begin planning the honeymoon! You’ll want to make sure your passports are up to date and flights and accommodations are all booked.

If you wish, begin taking dance lessons. You’ll need the time to get smooth on your feet!

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Three to Six Months Before Your Wedding

Find a rehearsal dinner venue. Depending on how many people are coming, you may want to give yourself plenty of time to find the right place.

Begin confirming with all of your vendors. It’s never a bad idea to touch base and make sure that everyone is on the same page, from florists, to photographers, bands, DJs, caterers, and more.

Shop for men’s formalwear.

Find and hire wedding day transportation—limousines, trolleys, etc.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Attend your wedding shower—usually planned by your close friends and family.

About three months ahead of time, order your wedding cake.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Two to three months out, have a deep-cleanse facial. (You never want to do this too close to your wedding—a deep cleanse can bring out toxins and make your skin look a little worse before it looks better.)

LMP Wedding Planning Timeline (Part 1 of 5)

We all know that after the engagement glow is over and the wedding planning begins, everything can seem a little daunting. With over 25 years of experience working with brides and grooms as they make their way toward their wedding days and down the aisle, I have plenty of advice to give to make sure that you get through it all.

One Year or More Out

First things first: find a venue site.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Most vendors will not book a wedding couple unless they have a venue chosen and committed. The reason is that without a venue, there could still be a change in the date—we need to know that we’re 100% committing to a certain day to ensure we are available on your wedding day.

 

Ask friends and relatives to be in the wedding party.

Begin looking for a photographer. You’ll want to find someone who matches your personality, style, and price range. This will involve meeting with photographers, reviewing portfolios, and then the planning. (More on the photographer in a later post!)

Nine Months to a Year

Pick a theme. Know the style of the wedding you want. This will help you when choosing the other key details of your wedding, from the gown to flowers to yes, even the right photographer.

Hire an Officiant.

Start looking for the right wedding gown. With the time it can take to find the “right one” to the time needed for alterations, you don’t want to wait too long.

Begin a proper hair, nails, skin care, and exercise routine. Brides and grooms want to look their best on their wedding day, and that means getting yourself started early on. Do you want your hair grown out for your wedding? Make sure you give it enough time!

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Find the right hair stylist and makeup artist—vendors book up early, especially if your wedding date falls during the busy wedding season (May to October).

Research and find florists, bands, DJs, caterer (if not included in venue), and more. Again, vendors will book up quickly! You do not want to wait too long. Remember to consider your ceremony and cocktail hour as well—do you want someone playing during that time? They’ll need to know.

Your venue may take care of tents, linens, tables, etc. for you, but make sure that’s the case. If not, or if you’re doing this yourself at home, you’ll want to reach out to rental companies early on.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Have an engagement party—remember to register for gifts!

Research and reserve accommodations for out of town guests. Most hotels will book room blocks for your wedding at a special rate—make sure to contact them early to make sure they have the availability.

Fun Tip: A lot of brides and grooms seek inspiration from Pinterest—set up your boards early on and start pinning ideas that could bring your perfect day together.

A Great Review from a New Year’s Eve Wedding

I photographed Elise and Mike’s wedding on December 31, 2015, at the Peabody Essex Museum. As you can probably imagine, their New Year’s Eve wedding was great fun, and I was so happy to receive this glowing review from Elise on The Knot:

We had a fantastic time working with Louise for both our engagement photos as well as our wedding. Her and her assistant were great to work with – and fun. We were so happy with how everything worked out.”

And another on Facebook:

Louise and Mike are awesome!! So much fun to work with and the photos are incredible. A true professional, who we were so happy to have been a part of our wedding!

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A toast to the bride and groom! May their 2016 continue as wonderfully as it began.

She said “Yes”!

New groom-to-be Stockton contacted me a couple of months ago to arrange a secret engagement photography session. Although he and his lovely fiance, Caitie, both now live out of state, he had planned on proposing to her in Marblehead, Massachusetts, where she’s from. Stockton wanted to capture the moment and asked if I would be able to photograph it all happening.

Between Stockton and Caitie’s mother, we were able to pull everything together to surprise Caitie. On the day after Thanksgiving, November 27, I met them at Fort Sewall, where Stockton had laid out rose petals and a lighted pathway.

I took a sequence of shots as the proposal was happening to make sure they had every aspect of their moment to remember. From getting down on one knee…

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

To the ring…

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

And finally the moment she said, “Yes!”

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

When they were ready, we also took a few formal shots of them–such a beautiful couple!

Louise Michaud Photographer, Salem MA Wedding Photography, Boston Wedding Photography

As you can see, it was a wonderful moment to photograph! Thank you, Stockton, for asking me to be a part of it, and good luck to you and Caitie.

New Engagement Photography Packages Available

Are you recently engaged and planning your engagement photo shoot? Louise Michaud Photographer has all new Engagement Photography Packages available for 2016. Our packages have been developed to suit a variety of needs while providing you with lasting memories of a special moment. New for 2016, each package includes a high-quality Facebook cover photo that has been cropped perfectly to fit desktop and mobile versions of your Facebook page!

Here’s a little sneak peek from a recent engagement session. Despite some high winds, it was a beautiful day and we had so much fun out by the water. Mike and Elise were great to photograph, as you can see below.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Engagement PhotographyMike proposed to Elise at the picnic tables you see toward the left of the image, so this spot is very special to the both of them.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Engagement Photography

I just love the way the light silhouette’s the couple in this one.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Engagement Photography

Louise Michaud Photographer, Engagement Photography

Mike was a little late, so I took the opportunity to take a few shots of Elise as she waited for him. This one is one of my favorites.

Louise Michaud Photographer, Engagement Photography

We hope you enjoyed this little “behind the scenes” look. I’ll be shooting Mike and Elise’s upcoming wedding on New Year’s Eve, so keep an eye out for a follow-up post!

For more information about our Engagement and Wedding Photography Packages, including pricing, contact us today at 978-594-1728 or louise@louisemichaud.com.