7 Must Have Wedding Photo Ideas

First a disclosure: photographers are normally not thrilled when we are presented with a “must have wedding photo” list. Whatever Pinterest would have you believe, giving your photographer pages of photos you want to create is not the way to get the best wedding photos! Instead of staging photos, we recommend thinking about ‘provoking’ authentic moments. Real emotions are always a winner. If you can find a way to include color, movement and leave room for some unpredictable “magic” in there – wowzers – you are going to have amazing photos of your wedding.

We are ALWAYS happy to come up with something special and unique for you and your wedding photography. We love to find ways to showcase your unique style and personality. We’re also happy to go over your wedding photography expectations in detail so we can do the best job for you, and hopefully exceed your expectations. Just please don’t give us a 3-page list of photos to recreate on the day!

Without further ado, here are our top 7 ways to provoke amazing “must have wedding photos.”

Flower Petals

Throwing flower petals is an oldy but a goodie, and it’s become a popular “must-have” wedding photo in recent years. It’s easy to see why – bright colors, movement, happy faces, and some unpredictability! In our cenote ceremonies and Mayan weddings, the flowers are actually blessings showered over the couple.

Our top tip: involve your guests. Moments like these are why we prefer to document weddings with 2 photographers: so we can capture you and your guest’s reactions! Also, it’s not a bad idea to have generous amounts of flowers to throw!

Fave Flower Throwing Photos

Check out a Now Jade Patio Wedding – Pam + Taj
Cenote Wedding – Cherise + Tom
Mayan Vow Renewal – Camille + Jason and their daughters

“At the end of the ceremony, Matt and Polly had an awesome vision for the extra rose petals. Matt took the microphone and facilitated all the guests to collectively shower us with petals. Matt went above and beyond to make his vision work. We are grateful for that.” – Pam + Taj

Have A Unique Unity Ceremony

Unity ceremonies are a great way to have fun and express your personality into your wedding ceremony. They are also a way of introducing symbols and actions to your wedding photography. Unity ceremonies like handfasting or a Celtic oathing stone incorporate culture while playful ideas like a “unity cocktail” are more about your personal, ahem, tastes! There are also unity ceremonies that reference your religion, even if your ceremony is symbolic.

Top Tip: The more silly the unity ceremony, the more fun the reactions will be! If you are having a destination wedding there really are no rules about how your ceremony should be. Be as creative as you want!

Unity Ceremony Ideas

“Unity ceremonies come in all shapes and sizes – candles, sand, locks, crosses and braided cords of rope. They are all lovely and symbolize a very powerful union between two people. However, our motto for our wedding was to do things in a way that felt like ‘us.’” – Heather

Include the Kids

There are a ton of reasons wedding photographers love kids at weddings. Children don’t give 2 hoots about formalities so they often provide a comical juxtaposition to wedding traditions. They are also, let’s face it, pretty cute, and weddings are a great excuse to dress them up as a ring bear, or ring security or just in a dress that’s fun to twirl in! Whether it’s your own kids or nieces, nephews or children of friends we highly recommend allowing kids to be kids on the wedding day!

Our Top Tip: if you are up for rolling the dice and seeing the magic that kids can bring, let parents/guardians know that it’s no biggie if the kids move around during your ceremony, reception, or first dance. So many times we’ve seen a beautiful moment unfolding and kids have been whisked away not to ruin the “perfect moment.” We are all about showcasing and perfection in imperfection – that’s real life after all!

Including Children in Weddings

“Ahh the twins! To be honest, I could not have imagined a better way to say my vows than with one of them in my arms. They are my identity now, and the very reason why we love each other so much. I know some people were nervous when all the kids were starting to fuss about, but those wild spirits are the loves of our life and we wouldn’t have it any other way!” – Sammy

Play a Game

Reception games are a great icebreaker. They help the mood of the wedding switch from formal to fun, and they can provoke some GREAT candid moments! There are a ton of classic games out there like the shoe game. However, our fave is the kissing game! The idea is that the different couple in the wedding group will demonstrate their best kiss, and the couple has to copy them. Much fun ensues!

The first time we saw the kissing game was when Del Sol Co-Founder Sol dreamed up the idea to spice up a wedding reception. We have seen it since as an “official game” during Megan and JoJo’s reception. Both times it was a LOT of fun!

Top Tip: The Kissing game tends to escalate, so think carefully about your running order!

“Before the bride and groom arrived I was looking for some “action!” “The sister of the bride saw my look and asked me: Sol, what do you need?” “A kissing game” I replied! And so we started to chase couples for a kiss! The whole reception was happy, loving, kissing.. laughing!!!” – Sol Tamargo

Get EVERYONE on the dancefloor

We get it – not everyone loves to dance, but some of our fave photos are party pics! Having a photo surrounded by your loved ones having the time of their lives is one of the best destination wedding memories you could ask for. It’s also a great opportunity for your photographer to capture fun, candid photos of you and your guests.

Our Top Tip: Consider having one song, announced by your MC that you request everyone will come up and dance for! If you have friends who are known to get the party going to make that their wedding present to you. And be sure to dance with granny ;)

This Live Aqua Wedding had great dancefloor action with balloons at the end of the night

Wet and Wild

Only for the bold but oh so worth it – just jump in the pool already! A VERY tempting option for summer weddings in Mexico is getting into the water. Impromptu pool parties make for incredible pictures and unforgettable moments – we highly recommend it!

Our Top Tip: Let your photographer know what you have planned, please! They will be happy to help you find a location too if you don’t want to get too wet!

Dora and her stepdaughters found a shallow spot that made for amazing photos. Kristin + Courtney and Erica + Jamie got their whole group in the pool at Grand Velas while Victoria + Derek had an epic splash in the Now Sapphire preferred pool. Janelle + John Paul got their whole bridal party wet at Dreams Sands and Tanya + Travis took one giant leap at Hacienda del Mar.

“I wanted to make sure to do something “out of the norm” and get as much “FUN” into the night as possible. I’m sure our guests thought I was crazy when we got in the pool, (they always do), but as long as the girls were happy and stoked about it then why not?! We loved the unique experience.” – Dora

If all else fails – well – Tequila!

You certainly don’t need to drink to have fun. But having a shot of tequila is a must-have wedding photo if you’re getting married in Mexico! A shot before the wedding is pretty common here. Many more generally follow during the reception. Booze lends itself to drinking games and even Mexican wedding traditions like ‘la víbora de la mar.’

Top Tip: If you don’t drink or if you don’t want to be drunk you can shoot apple juice or water “just for the picture” – don’t forget the post tequila grimace though!

Wedding Day Alcohol

Bonus Must Have Wedding Photos – Dance in the Rain!

Worried about it raining on your wedding day – don’t be! Rain wedding photos are actually a whole trend and very desirable. Not convinced yet? Check out why we think rain on your wedding day is awesome!