By Yen | YM Photography, West Auckland

After photographing weddings across Auckland — from elegant church ceremonies in Northcote to rainy Samoan celebrations in Kumeu to waterfront receptions on the harbour — there are a handful of things I wish every couple knew before their wedding day.


Not because they're making big mistakes. But because weddings move fast, and a little bit of preparation goes a long way toward making sure you end the day with both incredible photos and actual memories you can recall.


Here are my ten most important tips, straight from the other side of the lens.


1. Time Flies Faster Than You Think — Build a Buffer

This is the number one thing I see affect wedding photos, and it's completely avoidable.


Time moves differently on your wedding day. What feels like 20 minutes is actually five. What you thought would take half an hour takes the whole hour. And before you know it, you're rushing between the ceremony and portraits and wondering where the afternoon went.


My rule: every section of your schedule should have at least 30 minutes of buffer time built in. Not because things will go wrong — but because things happen. A button that won't close. Guests who need wrangling. A moment you just want to sit in for a little longer. That buffer is what gives you breathing room when reality doesn't match the spreadsheet.


And honestly? The couples who end their wedding day saying "I couldn't remember anything" are almost always the ones who rushed. I always remind my couples: slow down. Savour every single minute. You'll have all the photos to look back on — but I want you to remember the day too, not just see it in a gallery months later.


2. Give Your Portraits and Bridal Party Photos Enough Time

For couples portraits and bridal party photos specifically, I recommend scheduling at least 1 to 2 hours. Not 30 minutes. Not "we'll squeeze it in."


Here's why: if you have both a photographer and a videographer (which I love — my friend and collaborator Andric Teng and I work weddings together regularly), we sometimes need slightly different setups for the same shot. We work around each other seamlessly, but it does take a little extra time. Add in moving between locations, fixing hair and outfits, gathering everyone together — and 30 minutes disappears before you've even started.


The couples portrait time is also your time. The only moment in the whole day where it's just the two of you, away from guests and schedules and responsibilities. Don't shortchange it. That's usually where the most beautiful, relaxed photos of the day come from.


3. Don't Rush — You Will Regret It

I know everything needs to keep moving. I know there's a schedule and guests and a reception waiting. I get it.


But rushing is the enemy of great photos — and more importantly, it's the enemy of great memories. When couples rush through their day, they often reach the end of it and realise they barely experienced it. The day becomes a blur of logistics rather than a collection of felt moments.


This is why I'm not just a photographer on your wedding day — I'm also a timekeeper. Part of my job is making sure you're on track, flagging when we need to move, and protecting your time so you don't have to think about it. But I can only do that if the schedule has room to breathe in the first place.


Build in the buffer. Trust the process. Slow down.


4. Choose a Getting-Ready Space With Big Windows

This one is a game changer that most couples don't think about until it's too late.


Natural light is everything in getting-ready photos. The soft, even light that comes through large windows is the most flattering light there is — it's how I capture you in the most natural, genuine way. When the getting-ready space has big windows, your photos look like something out of a magazine without any extra effort.


The opposite is also true. Small, dark rooms with artificial overhead lighting are genuinely challenging to work with. I can always use flash and make it work — and flash gives its own beautiful, editorial vibe — but if you have a choice, choose a space with lots of windows.


A bigger space also helps. When there are ten people getting ready in a small hotel room with dresses hanging everywhere and makeup spread across every surface, it becomes very difficult for a photographer to find a clean angle. More space means more options, better photos, and a calmer morning for everyone.


5. Have a Backup Plan for Auckland Weather

We all know what Auckland weather is like. Four seasons in one day is not a joke — it's a Tuesday.


My advice: keep your expectations flexible and have an alternative plan ready. If there's any chance of rain on your wedding day, talk to your venue about indoor options for portraits. Know in advance where you'd move things if the weather turns. This isn't pessimism — it's smart planning that removes stress on the day itself.


Here's the thing about Auckland though: when it's good, it is unbeatable. The light here is extraordinary. The green, the harbour, the sky when it opens up after a shower — there's nowhere I'd rather be shooting. We make the absolute most of it when it's beautiful. And when it's not? We work with what we have, and sometimes the moody overcast shots end up being everyone's favourites.


I've shot weddings in torrential rain (Noa and Carlos at Settler's Manor in Kumeu — one of my most memorable days ever) and in blazing summer sun with not a cloud in sight. Both produced incredible photos. Weather doesn't determine the quality of your photos — preparation and flexibility do.


6. Appoint a Point of Contact on the Day

This one is especially important if you don't have a wedding planner or coordinator.


Your maid of honour or best man should know the schedule by heart. Not a vague overview — the actual running sheet, with times. Because on your wedding day, you should not be the one chasing guests, managing vendors, or watching the clock. You should be present.


Having one person whose job it is to keep things moving — to round up the family for photos, to tell the bridal party when to be ready, to liaise with the venue — makes an enormous difference to how the day flows. It also takes the pressure off you to be in logistics mode when you should be in celebration mode

Brief your point of contact well before the day.

Share the schedule.

Make sure they know what you need from them.

You will thank yourself for it.


7. Do a First Look if You're On the Fence

I know not everyone wants to see each other before the ceremony — and I completely respect that. The walk down the aisle moment is sacred and I would never push couples away from it.


But if you're undecided, here's the honest case for a first look: it gives you a private, unhurried moment with your person before the ceremony begins. No guests watching. No pressure. Just you two, seeing each other, saying whatever comes out.


It also frees up your portrait time significantly. If you've already had your moment together, you can move through the post-ceremony photos with more ease and less emotional overwhelm. And it tends to produce some of the most genuinely emotional photos of the entire day — because it's private, it's real, and nobody is performing for a crowd.


8. Feed Your Photographer (and Yourself)

I say this gently but sincerely: please make sure your vendors are fed, and please make sure you eat something too.


A wedding day is a full day on your feet. You will be standing, walking, dancing, smiling, hugging, and feeling every emotion available to a human being. Your body needs fuel for that. I've seen brides and grooms reach the reception completely depleted because they didn't eat all day — and it shows in the photos.


Pack snacks for the getting-ready morning. Eat something before the ceremony. And when the reception meal happens, actually sit down and eat it.


9. Prepare Your Shoes (and Your Feet)

If you're wearing new heels or dress shoes, please break them in before the wedding. Blisters on your wedding day are not fun — and trust me, I notice when couples are uncomfortable on their feet because it affects how relaxed they are in photos.


I learned this firsthand shooting Emma and Christopher's wedding at Cornwall Park — Emma was in heels on the grass and we had to be thoughtful about how much walking we did. We made it work beautifully, but comfortable feet = more relaxed portraits, full stop.


If you're doing outdoor portraits, consider bringing a second pair of shoes for the grass sections. Your feet and your photographer will both thank you.


10. Savour Your Alone Time During Portraits

When I take you away from your guests for couple portraits, that 1–2 hours is genuinely the only time in your entire wedding day where it's just you two.


No seating charts. No speeches to prepare for. No guests to greet. Just you, your person, and me — and I promise you'll forget I'm even there.


I always play couples their love song during the shoot and tell them: "This is your moment. Imagine I'm not here. Just be in it." And without fail, something shifts. They relax. They laugh. They look at each other the way they actually look at each other when no one's watching.


Those are the photos that end up as your favourites. Not the posed ones — the ones where you forgot to perform and just were.


So when we head off for portraits, leave your phone with the bridal party. Breathe. Be there. The day is moving fast and this is your pocket of stillness inside it. Use it.


One Last Thing

Your wedding day is one of the most significant days of your life — and it goes faster than anyone ever warns you it will. My job is to make sure you have the photos to relive it forever. But more than that, I want you to remember it. To have felt it. To reach the end of the night and think: we were so present for that.


The tips above aren't just about better photos. They're about a better day.


Planning Your Auckland Wedding?

I'm Yen, a documentary wedding photographer based in West Auckland. I specialise in capturing real moments — the in-between ones, the quiet glances, the things that happen when nobody's performing. My packages include travel across Auckland, and I'd love to be part of your day.


YM Photography is a West Auckland-based wedding and couples photographer serving couples across Auckland and New Zealand. Weddings, engagements, portraits and more.