Common Wedding Day Problems

We’ve been around long enough to have a pretty good idea of the most common wedding day problems. And? We won’t leave you hanging! We’ve also got solutions.

Of course, there’s no way to prevent every little oops, but you can be prepared when it comes to typical issues. For example, we’ve already written an entire post about things that brides tend to forget on their wedding day. Those items will help in a lot of these circumstances.

And we don’t want you to be so concerned about things going wrong that you get overly anxious or miss all of the beauty on the actual day. But a little awareness of common wedding day problems and some preparation can go a long way.

The Big Wedding Day Problems That Brides Extra Worry About

The Weather

A certain singer wrote a song about this, though she was wrong: rain on your wedding day is not ironic. (If you’ve ever been curious about that, here’s an article that talks about the definition of irony and it gives evidence that Morissette was intentionally not including irony in her song called Ironic in order to be… ironic. HA!)

So if rain on your wedding day isn’t ironic, then what is it? Perhaps just bad luck? Not even that! Rain on your wedding day is considered good luck by many. (Here’s another article about wedding day superstitions.)

Besides being a superstition, guess who thinks rain on your wedding day is great? That’s right! Us! Your friendly Erie wedding photography team. Seriously, we’ll get amazing shots!

Now it might not feel like luck if you’ve planned an outdoor wedding. But that’s why it’s important to have backup plans.

Something Happening to Your Dress

This one… ugh! This common wedding day problem is just so…extra. Who needs it?! You’ve spent how many hours dreaming of this dress and then finding this dress and then having it fitted just right. This dress is very much the center of, well, just about everything other than the two people doing this really important thing.

This is really where that emergency kit can come in handy. If it’s a tear, you’ll have a sewing kit on you and someone among your friends and family will surely know how to handle a small tear. If it’s a stain, you’ll have stain remover.

Big Family Drama

Among common wedding day problems, this is truly serious. None of us want this.

If you know there is drama in the family, spending some time before the day of the wedding to work it out is important. And if anyone is holding on to the drama, just be sure to explain to them that this day is about you and the event and that they need to avoid any and all instigation of and engagement with drama. Be very firm with your boundaries around this.

And take this into consideration (if you must) when you’re working on seating arrangement. Finally, perhaps ask a trusted family member who understands the situation to just keep a bit of an eye on things.

Also? Know that you’re not alone in this. This is not unique. Families can be difficult.

Less Difficult Problems

People start calling because they’ve forgotten details

This one is annoying. You’re trying to get ready or maybe you’re taking some moments to rest, and you start getting calls and texts about things that were clearly written on the invitations. It happens. A lot.

And this is where a wedding website is a freaking life saver. Make sure every little detail is on that site, because most people will check that before bothering you with a call or text. (Notice we said most.)

You wake up with a terrible zit or rash

This is the stuff of humorous nightmares in movies, right? But it’s not bad. Not really. Firstly, makeup can perform miracles. And if you’re not great with makeup, you could have a makeup artist for your day, or very likely, one of your bridesmaids is awesome at makeup. There’s always at least one in a friend group!

But to decrease the chances of this happening, remember to not have any facials or skin treatments at least a week before the wedding and don’t try any new products for about a month before.

Falling Behind Schedule

This is a super common wedding problem, for sure. Trust us. As your photography team, one of the things we promise is that we’ll keep you on schedule. Of course, there are still, sometimes, the occasional magically disappearing couple (it has happened!), but even then, we’re good at tracking people down and getting them back on task. ((ha))

Sometimes, though, it’s the guests who are hard to wrangle. Make sure to put someone in charge of telling people to move along. Make sure it’s that person that you might nickname “General.”

And put more time in between things than you think you’ll need. People tend to underestimate.

Finally, be open to moving things around a bit if something out of your control is going wrong. Perhaps the food isn’t quite ready. Can someone give their speech before you’d planned?

Guests Getting Bored (or offended) During Speeches

Firstly, make sure to put time limits on speeches. Be clear about this with all parties involved.

Secondly, feed your guests, if possible, a little something before any speeches start.

And lastly, maybe put some limits on the topics of speeches. If you know that someone likes to embarrass people with lewd stories and there are kids at your wedding, perhaps another person would be better for that particular speech. Or just have a clear and open discussion about what you want.

Our Constant Reminder

This is your day. Run it the way that feels more comfortable to you and will give you the most joyful memories. And don’t hesitate to ask your photographer and his team for help. No matter what the problem is. Like we said, we’ve probably seen the same problem a dozen times and have some pretty crafty solutions.