Have a super large bridal party?

Lucky you to have so many loved ones – that’s a good problem to have!

Having a large bridal party is a lot of fun but it also has its challenges. Here are some ways to overcome those obstacles.
 

 

BRIDAL PARTY PHOTOS

• The “entire bridal party in a row” shot is a quintessential photo that should be taken at every wedding, but with a large bridal party, this shot has to be taken super wide in order to fit everyone in it, causing everyone’s faces to be pretty small. One easy way to minimize this is to have everyone stand perpendicular to the camera, to get as close together as possible.

 

• An even better way to alleviate this is to stagger the bridal party on a staircase – this causes the people to be distributed vertically rather than horizontally, allowing their faces to fill the frame more.

  

ALCOHOL

• Let’s be honest, weddings are a big celebration, and that usually involves alcohol. I totally encourage having a good time on your wedding day, but I would recommend keeping the drinking to a minimum until after the bridal party photos are finished. It’s already a challenge to arrange & direct a group of 20+ people (and make sure that everyone is listening to instructions, looking at the camera, with their eyes open & smiling at the same time), but that gets even tougher when the subjects are tipsy and inattentive. If you choose to drink before the photos, that’s totally fine, please just ask your bridal party to be respectful & attentive until the photos are done – then they’re completely welcome to party it up!

  

CEREMONY PROCESSIONAL

• With a large bridal party, it could easily take 15+ minutes for everyone to proceed down the aisle separately. If your aisle is wide enough, you could consider asking the bridesmaids & groomsmen to enter in pairs (or triples), with their “walking partner”, to speed things along.

  

RECEPTION ENTRANCES

• Similarly, the reception introductions could take a long time if they enter in pairs. If you’d like to save time, you could ask your DJ to introduce all the bridesmaids as a group and all the groomsmen as a group.

  

BOUQUETS

• As we all know, florals aren’t cheap, and with 8+ bridesmaids, that can quickly add up. Consider choosing a smaller or simpler bouquet for your girls and splurging on your own. They’ll still look gorgeous when they’re all together and an added benefit: they’re lighter for the girls to hold!

 

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Read more helpful wedding planning blog posts here.