Selecting the right wedding photographer is one of the most important decisions you will make while wedding planning. Having a professional who can take candid shots of your day will ensure you have memories that last a lifetime. It also ensures that the couple can relax and enjoy the day rather than focus on directing a photographer throughout the day.

And while some wedding photos are staged and posed to create a special shot, many of the best wedding photos are candid shots of the couple and their guests enjoying the wedding. These photos often become favorites as they can help you remember all the small details of your big day. More importantly, they convey the emotions that everyone is feeling on this special day.

Tips for Candid Wedding Photos

There are several ways to ensure you have candid wedding photos.

Hire someone that specializes in candid wedding photography

While it may be tempting to think that all wedding photographers would document your day similarly, this simply isn’t the case. All photographers have a style, which will be evident in your wedding photos. Candid photography involves catching people ‘in the moment’ they are doing something. Whether it’s guests enjoying themselves or the couple exchanging rings, capturing a candid shot requires the photographer to be at the right place at the right time – and some photographers do this better than others. To get an idea of whether your photographer is good with candid photos, you can ask to see their portfolio, which should include a nice balance of natural, candid shots and traditional, posed wedding photos.

Crowdsource candid wedding photos

Another option would be to let your wedding photographer focus on the traditional shots while your guests get candid photos. Everyone has a camera on their cell phone, and most people are busy snapping plenty of pictures while attending a wedding. In many cases, your guests can snap far more candid photos than a wedding photographer ever could since a photographer can only be in one place at any time – meaning they are missing out on anything happening elsewhere. Inviting your guests to share the candid shots they take throughout your wedding day is one great way to get more diversity in the type of photos you have – and this means you have many more opportunities to capture different emotions. It can also result in a beautiful collection of images that capture the love and story of your wedding day. You can even streamline this process using a free crowdsourcing platform, allowing guests to share photos by scanning a QR code.

Feature instant cameras

Instant cameras were incredibly popular several decades ago and are now experiencing a resurgence. These small cameras can be a cost-effective way to have guests help you document the special day without using their phones. And they can print a copy to take home with them – which makes for an amazing wedding keepsake.

Capturing emotion is one of the hardest challenges photographers face. And weddings often have more emotion than many other events. While there is a degree of skill to capturing candid wedding photos, much of it relies on snapping the photo at exactly the right moment. These tips can increase your chances of having many candid wedding photos!