Hello. Hi! I’m Courtney, a wedding and portrait photographer based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. I want to welcome you to my NEW blog series called “Wedding Photographer Plans a Wedding” where I’m going to share the whole wedding planning process with you. You’ll get to read the good, the bad, and my overall experience planning a wedding while also being a wedding photographer. I’m creating this series with the hope that it helps someone else plan their wedding, not feel so alone during the process, and to use it as a digital diary to document everything!

Buckle the heck up and let’s freaking chat. First things first, we waited three weeks before we posted anything on social media and I would highly recommend giving yourself some buffer time! I totally understand being excited and wanting to share, but waiting a little while was such a special time and the right move for us. We told our immediate family and friends within the first couple days, then we stepped back and really got to enjoy the newly engaged phase without feeling as pressured to start planning. Because as soon as you tell people your engaged, the questions will start pouring in:

“When is your wedding?”
“What are your colors?”
“Are you sure you want to do that?”

MOST people are well intended when they ask these questions and are trying to show interest in your big day! 😊 But full transparency, it can be overwhelming to answer those and even think about it when you are just trying to enjoy the first phase of being engaged. Give yourself some grace and the people around you who care by saying “We’re not sure yet, we are just starting the planning process.” People will understand, especially if they have planned a wedding before!

Starting the planning process can be super overwhelming, trust me, I get it! So I would highly recommend (if it is within your budget) to hire a wedding planner! Some of my favorite local (Sioux Falls, SD) options are Serendipitous Events, Jane Rae Events, and Storybook Love Events. If you decide not to do a wedding planner, look into a wedding planning book, spreadsheet, or Canva template. You can purchase a lot of wonderful templates and documents from Etsy! They are so helpful to keep you “on track” during wedding planning and remind you of things that are sometimes forgotten!

Engagement is such a short phase, do your best to enjoy it with your human. Turn some of the decision making into a date night and just have fun with it! Because in the end, “you won’t be any less married!” (Wise words of Scott (my dad!))

Until next blog post,

Courtney