In part 1 of this series, I discussed, briefly, some winter wedding spots in Southern California. What I’d like to do now is briefly discuss some winter wedding favors as well as colors you may use for a winter wedding. You’re probably asking what does this have to do with wedding photography, well, a lot actually. You see, your photographer will be responsible for capturing your wedding day and if you are planning on having a winter wedding then there are some things that make it a unique wedding, like the favors and colors. Your photographer needs to be able to capture these and this is why I am providing some suggestions for them.
If you’re hosting a winter wedding, then you’ll want to seek out winter wedding favors, which by the way, if you’re looking for suppliers online, try this wedding favor site: MyWeddingFavors.com or type the keywords “winter wedding favors” or “Christmas wedding favors.” in to a search engine. You’ll be surprised at the amount of online weddings stores that offer these items. Note: You can try the advertiser on my site to the right side of this page
Some suggested winter favors may include:
- snowflake photo coasters,
- snowflake place card holders,
- hanging picture frames,
- snow globes,
- silver bells,
- and holiday cookies.
By displaying these favors, it provides many great opportunities for your wedding photographer and videographer to capture the elements of the this unique wedding day; so when family and friends look at your albums they will get a sense that you actually had a winter wedding.
Colors
With winter, comes the winter color pallet. While it’s suggested that the bride wear white, the groom may also want to wear a white tuxedo as well to keep within the “snow” feel of winter. Additional winter colors that can be incorporated in to your winter wedding theme are
- gold,
- white,
- soft gray,
- silver,
- light blue,
- red (pinks), or
- green.
These colors can be used through-out your decorations and even as colors for your bridesmaids’ dresses. For additional color ideas, think of nature’s offerings during the season: berries, holly leaves, pine cones, eucalyptus, snow and ice. Use colors from nature to accent your occasion.
In my next post, I’ll talk about winter wedding photography opportunities.
I decided to write a four part series for winter weddings in Southern California. Actually, I have given the topic it’s own category and hope to add to the category on a regular basis. but for now, I’ll write the 4 parts to this series over the week – The general introduction (this post, favors and colors, photography opportunities, and finally a list of tips for your winter wedding. I’ll be adding various other articles and perhaps some key wedding venues that may be of interest to brides seeking a winter wedding location in Southern California.
Winter weddings in Southern California almost sounds like an oxymoron. After all, the mere name, Southern California, conjures up images of sunny warm weather. However, despite popular belief, we do have a winter in Southern California, regardless of the lack of snowfall in the local mountains or sub-freezing temperatures like the east coast. Brides seeking to fulfill their childhood fantasy of a winter wonderland wedding are not left out in the cold in Southern California, especially the past few weeks as we have seen snow fall at low elevations and a drop in temperatures one could associate with winter in Northern California.
Southern California has some of the nations best weather and with its mild winters (average temperature in the mid to upper 60’s in the months of December) it’s no wonder California is host to the majority of U.S. weddings as well as destination weddings with bookings well over 213,000 in 2006 according to The Wedding Report. So while Jack Frost spends most of his time chilling the north and north east, California brides can rest assured that they too can have a piece of the frost for their wedding. To ensure that you capture the most of your winter wedding, Southern California Wedding Photography has put together a suggestion list (over 4 parts) of what you may want to consider when planning your winter wedding.
Winter Wedding Locations – Southern California
While the beach tends to be a popular spot for weddings in California, if you’re seeking a more traditional look and feel for your winter wedding, we suggest a wedding venue that may lend itself to more of a winter theme. By doing so, it provides the backdrop for stunning photographs and video that will remind you of your well planned event. One suggestion may be to get married in a small chapel, especially one in the local San Bernardino mountains, with communities such as Big Bear or Lake Arrowhead (I’ll be doing a few blog posts on Big Bear in a few weeks. First I have to make it up there in all of the current snow). Another suggestion would be the woods. This can provide for a stunning photo or video backdrop because wooded areas and lakes tend to remind people of the north and hence, winter.
You’ll also find that many Bed and Breakfasts, such as the Christmas House in Rancho Cucamonga, offer a themed Christmas wedding environment. Completely decorated with a Christmas tree, ornaments, and the coziness you would find if you where at home. If you’re not opposed to having a “Christmas” wedding, then nothing screams winter louder than a Christmas theme.
But in the end, the location is only part of the overall feel for your winter wedding. You can certainly hold your wedding in a private residence and still capture the charm and warmth of winter. Your wedding favors and colors will determine a big part of your winter wonderland wedding momories. I’ll make note of both favors and colors in part 2 of this series tomorrow.
About the Photo in this post: The main photo in this post was taken at the Christmas House in Rancho Cucamonga. I used a remote Nikon SB800 flash mounted on a tripod off to the left side. The flash had a amber filter over it, this provided for an overall warm feeling to the photo. The camera was mounted on a tripod and set at 2.8 1/30th of a second. The iso was not recorded. The photo depicts a cold, winter environment with its dark clouds, but the warmth of the lighting gives it an overall cozy feel.
I think being a Southern California wedding photographer has its moments. Aside from actually taking photos, a wedding photographer not only has to pay attention to the details, but tends to listen in on a lot of the details. After, some guests, family members, and couples tend to just say the darnedest things at a wedding. And as they say, weddings bring out not only he best in people, but the worse as well.
So, just for fun and entertainment purposes, I have added my first list of wedding liners to my blog. These are actual statements made by guests, couples, and family members at weddings I have photographed. Of course, I’ve omitted names and locations.
- “My step-mom is such a bitch. Just ignore her.” I could remember a bride telling me (the photographer) this. I wasn’t sure what compelled her to tell me, but nevertheless, she felt she needed to get it off her mind.
- “Shit the cake! Don’t tell (brides name). Hurry, dust it off!” Yep, the cake actually fell on to a dirt, gravel sidewalk. needless to say, three bridesmaids stood in front of the cake while the maid of honor picked up the top piece of the cake and tried to set it in its place. I didn’t have a slice of cake that night.
- “Why don’t you shut the F…k up!” While setting up to take the photos of the bridal party, a brides maid turned to the father of the bride and blurted these words out. And let me tell you, she was not joking!
- “Here, help me with the twins.” Often times and while taking the getting ready photos, the bridesmaids and bride will tend to forget I’m in the room with them. So they tend to say what comes to mind. Here, the bride was referring to her breasts as the twins and wanted a bridesmaid to help her with them.
- “My mom is such a bitch, she expects me to go get her a sweater in this dress on my wedding night. What a bitch!” The Bride blurted this statement out to me as she stomped off to her parents car in the parking lot. Needless to say, she was not happy about leaving her wedding reception and getting her mother a sweater.
- “How do I cut the cake, I’ve never done this before.” A bride was asking me the photographer this question. I included the line since I tend to hear this a lot. My comment, I hope you haven’t done this before. But I just thought it and didn’t say anything.
- “Hey, you’re taking too many photos of the step-mom with my daughter. I’m the mom! She shouldn’t be in all the photos.” Lets just say that the bio-mom was having a hard time that day with the fact that the her daughter was calling the step-mom, mom and wanted a lot of photos with her. The bio mom didn’t like that.
- “Why don’t you just shut up and enjoy the damn thing.” I guess this groom was setting the tone for his marriage to his bride when he blurted these words out during their reception. I wonder if they are still married?
- “What do you mean he’s an hour away. The ceremony starts in 10 minutes.” The bride was talking to a groomsman regarding the whereabouts of her future husband. I guess the groom forgot to set his alarm clock…at least that’s what the groomsman claimed.
- “My dad’s an idiot. Look, he’s off drinking again.” Apparently the bride was not too happy when she discovered her dad off drinking again. She was muttering this to a bridesmaid.
- “Where the F…K is my husband?” Apparently the bride could not find her new husband for the first dance. She was pacing all over the reception hall looking for him. He was outside smoking a cigar with his buddies.
- “Look at the racks on those girls.” I was actually standing on the edge of the dance floor when the groom was next to me and made the comment in reference to a bridesmaids breasts. I was actually in shock. After all, didn’t he just get married?
