Every bride dreads the thought that it might rain on her wedding day. Everyone will tell you it's good luck to have rain on your wedding day, but most brides just think this is a platitude and will keep hoping the clouds will clear and the sun will shine.Photographers love it when it rains! Really! It gives us so many more opportunities to make wedding pictures that stand out.So - first of all I'm going to give you 5 reasons why it's good to have rain on your wedding day.1 The light is fantastic!We photographers use light to make your photos look good. Bright sunny days may make you feel good inside, but when it's cloudy, and there's rain the light can become magical. Early morning and late afternoon are still the best times of day to photograph a wedding, but even earlier in the afternoon on a rainy day the light can make everything look softer and more luminescent. When the sun is shining, most of your photos will be taken in the shade to avoid harsh shadows and bleaching the colour out of everything.2 Umbrellas are cool in photosThey really are. I'm not talking about the gloomy old black things that you see in dim, dark photos of days gone by, but bright colourful umbrellas that pick up the colour theme in your flowers or bridesmaid's dresses.Umbrellas can make an ordinary photo fun. So can colourful gumboots!3 Everyone is not sweatingOk - the men won't be sweating, we girls know that horses sweat, men perspire and ladies "glow". But that sheen that forms on everyone's faces when it's really hot can be hard to handle at a wedding. Especially when your make-up is sliding off your face in the sun.4 Personal space is reducedThis is a good thing, photographers are always trying to get wedding guests and the wedding party to stand closer together so that the photos are more intimate. When everyone has to shelter under umbrellas, personal space is necessarily reduced so everyone stays dry and it makes the photos better. It really does make the whole scene more intimate.5 Canberra rain doesn't last longTo be fair, we do sometimes have days where it never seems to end, but normally in the "wedding season" the rain tends to be more sporadic. When you are taking photos in the rain, everything seems so much fresher, wet concrete and pavers take on a different look and it's a good look. So - what do you need to make your rainy day wedding a success?1 Plan for rainIf you are having a ceremony outdoors you may need to have a back-up such as an alternative venue undercover, or a gazebo.2 Talk to your photographerWe always ask for your colour themes, especially of your flowers and bridesmaid dresses, so we can have umbrellas in a colour that will tie in with those.3 Think about buying some really colourful gumbootsGumboots can be so much fun, in fact it doesn't even have to be raining to plan having a "gumboot" shot in your wedding photos4 Talk to your marriage celebrantThey will be able to suggest a range of options in case you can't think of where to have a last minute back up plan if you are having an outdoor ceremony5 Embrace your day with the rainIt's something you can't change, so there's no point in stressing over it. So long as you are prepared and have a photographer who can think outside the box, you'll still have a wonderful day and some photographs that will be memorable. Rainy day weddings in Canberra
