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North Central Wisconsin Senior & Portrait Photographers James & Katie Stokes Located in Medford, Wisconsin // For Grooms    

Category Archives: For Grooms

How to Make Sure Your Wedding Photos Are a Success

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May 14, 2019

/ James Stokes

Not only does everyone want their wedding to be perfect, but they also want their wedding to be captured perfectly. It’s incredibly exciting to receive the photos from your big day back from the photographer, and with any luck, you’ll fall in love with every picture that was taken! Here are a few tips to keep in mind. We’re not perfect and neither are you, so cut yourself some slack and have a little fun. Life is short and our expectations are often unrealistic, but these suggestions might help you stay focus on what matters to allow you to revere each moment of your wedding day. #liferevered 

Practice Self-Care Now

To ensure that you’re feeling amazing when it’s time to take your wedding photos, start implementing small positive changes in your everyday life in the months leading up to the event. Real self-care goes well beyond drinking green juice and buying yourself a new pair of Lululemon leggings— it’s about checking in with yourself, both physically and mentally, and making adjustments to your habits and behavior as needed in order to feel your best.

Take up gentle exercise, like yoga or pilates, to help keep your body and mind in tip-top shape. Find your perfect skincare routine, and stick to it. Make a conscious effort to clean up your diet, and drink tons of water. If you feel as though you could be doing better emotionally, consider speaking with a mental health professional so you’re in an ideal frame of mind when the big day arrives. The more you do for your personal well being before it’s time to get in front of the camera and walk down the aisle, the more healthy and happy you’ll look in your photos!

Prioritize Comfort

For Brides, consider movement when saying yes to your dress. Similarly, consider two shoe options, one for looks and the other for practicality, especially if you’re not able to see them. If you’re feeling adventurous, as many of our couples are, we recommend a dress the bustles well. While you certainly want the dress to look beautiful, you’ll also want to make sure you can realistically sit, stand, walk, and dance in your dress for hours on end without getting too uncomfortable. The more at ease you’re able to make yourself feel while photos are being taken, the more natural the finished product will be.

Grooms, we recommend doing the sweat test. The last thing you want is to feel like a hot mess on your wedding day. Select breathable fabric and layers the prevent you from overheating. Do you hate it when you’re constantly having to tuck in your shirt? Me too! I haven’t tried them, but consider Tucked Trunks or something similar to have worry-free dress attire.  We recommend purchasing your shoes instead of renting which allows you to break in your shoes in advance. I am a big fan of Taft shoes. Side note: We happen to really like kilts. 

Reduce Unnecessary Stress

The last thing you would want is to have wedding pictures taken where stress is visibly etched on your face, making you look miserable and less-than-enthused about your new relationship status. One of the major culprits for this stress can be your financial situation. To rid yourself of this anxiety, it’s important that you make sure you’ve given your budget sufficient attention throughout the wedding planning process. That way, you can be certain that you’ve allocated funds in a manner that ensures that your wedding day stays on budget. If you’re not sure where to allocate your funds, ask people what they remember from the last wedding they attended. What are the things people remember? Spend time and money on these things, however, in the end, it will be your day and your memories are what matter most! 

In the months leading up to the big day, keep a close eye on all of your expenses through wedding planning apps that monitor vendor payments or a mobile banking app that will provide a comprehensive overview of your finances. We personally use Mint for our personal finances. You’ll also want to be sure that you’ve prioritized the items in your budget so the components of your wedding that are most important to you— like great music or beautiful photography— have an appropriate amount of money allocated toward them. When you can be confident in the fact that your wedding money is going exactly where it should be, you’ll find it much easier to smile and relax on the day of your event.

Know Your Desired Aesthetic

Marshfield Wedding Photographer

When researching wedding photographers, some couples already have a clear vision in mind of what they want their photos to look like. If you belong to one of those couples, it can be helpful to seek out a professional who is capable of bringing your vision to life and whose photographic style aligns well with your wishes.

Are you and your partner more of the dark and broody type, staring into each other’s eyes with the intensity of a thousand suns? Or are you more lighthearted and silly, laughing in the sunlight with all of your friends and family? Whatever your preferred style may be, with enough research, you should be able to find a photographer who is able to fulfill your desired aesthetic and leave you with high-quality photos you’ll love for years to come. Katie and I have been capturing weddings for over 10 years (that ages us a bit), but we’re still hip… people still say that right? We shoot weddings for our clients like we would want them shot for ourselves. Our approach and aesthetic are simple and we lean towards classic and clean images that have a timeless feel from two different perspectives. We strive to capture raw emotion and focus on making our couples and their wild and fun friends feel as much like themselves as possible. 

Be Yourself

Your wedding photos are something that you and your spouse will flip through fondly for the rest of your lives, so you should try to find a photographer that will help you take pictures that showcase the true nature of the relationships you have with each other and with your loved ones— the good, the unpredictable, and the funny.

Don’t worry about looking perfect in your pictures— focus instead on having the most fun you can at your wedding and letting the joy you feel at marrying your significant other pour out of you. The professional you’ve hired will take care of the rest! Not only will the photos be artistic and well-composed, but they’ll also capture that joy, excitement, and any other range of emotions you experience over the course of your special day, making them feel all the more real and meaningful to you as your reminisce.  

For Brides, For Grooms, Weddings / Wedding Advice / Comment

7 Awesome Groomsmen Gift Ideas for Your Buddies

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April 25, 2019

/ James Stokes

Artistic Wedding Photographer Smoke Photos Cigars on Wedding Night with Groomsmen Bride

Weddings take a lot of time, energy, and resources to plan and organize. You know this very well as a groom-to-be. Fortunately, you have people who will offer their help and support with preparing the wedding. For you, the groom, it’s your groomsmen who’ve got your back through everything. And it is part of the wedding tradition to gift them with something to show your gratitude.

Giving gifts may not seem enough to express your full appreciation, but it’s a tangible way to say thank you. And you can always return the favor when it’s their time to marry. With that said, here are a few awesome groomsmen gift ideas for your buddies.

 

Grooming Kit

You can’t be the only one looking dapper on your wedding day, so why not gift your groomsmen with a fancy grooming kit? It’s a present your buddies can put into good use for sure. Plus, there are a wide variety of grooming kits to choose from. For the best fellows who like to keep their facial hair neat and majestic, a set of beard grooming kit would be perfect. A shaving set would suit the one who likes to keep themselves without the five o’clock shadow. But if you want to take it up a notch, get your best buds an entire grooming set, complete with barber tools, manicure kit, hygiene products, pomades, oils, and whatnots.

 

Classy Suit Accessories

Why choose between a cool gift and a practical one when you can choose both? A set of classy suit accessories is the perfect mix of cool and practical. Typically, a set consists of a stylish tie with a matching pocket square, a shiny pair of cufflinks, and a sleek tie bar. Customize the set by engraving an initial or an original design on the cuff links or tie bar and choose matching designs for the tie and pocket square so you and your groomsmen are coordinated.

 

Handy Multipurpose Tool

Say thank you to the outdoorsy and DIY-loving groomsmen by giving them a high-quality multipurpose tool. A multipurpose tool, or multi-tool, is like many gifts in one. Most multi-tool has a knife, a bottle opener, a screwdriver, a wrench, and a handful of other tools. A multipurpose tool isn’t only useful to outdoorsy or DIY-loving fellows. It can be an invaluable tool for completing everyday tasks, such as opening a packet of food, popping open a bottle, or cutting a loose thread. During an emergency, a multi-tool might be a lifesaver too.

 

Pop and Stand Cooler

A pop and stand cooler is an essential travel companion on a beach trip, a camping adventure, or a barbeque party in the backyard. It’s lightweight and foldable, so it’s easy to carry when traveling and store after use. Anyone, including your groomsmen, would appreciate receiving one as a gift.

If your buddies love traveling, they can bring the portable cooler wherever they go and enjoy a cold drink or hot food during their trip. Some coolers also double as organizers with pockets for your keys, wallet, and phone.

 

A Box Set

As a bro pleaser, pick out a box set that includes a flask, and a handy knife. Sometimes you just need a little pick-me-up to survive a harrowing day or get through a stressful situation. For some, it’s coffee; others, it’s booze. It’s not all the time that you can find a convenient place to get a fix of your preferred stimulant—exactly why you should give your best buds personalized hip flasks as groomsmen gifts. Throw in a handy knife great for hunting, camping or even for regular use.

Groovy Groomsmen Gifts just so happened to send me one of these boxes, called the Triple Threat. This set is a combination of a cherry wood lined box with Spanish cedar, (that smells incredible too) a back stainless steel flash which comes engraved with your buddies name and the date of your wedding, just in case they were to ever forget the very night they gave the best best man’s speech ever! Thank you for liquid courage for making my job just a little more enjoyable! Thirdly, this groomsmen gift comes with a customized 7.5″ pocketknife. That might be hard to conceal during the ceremony. Depending on your crew, you might want to encourage them to leave this gift neatly tucked away in their watch box until after the wedding, however, this is one sweet looking knife. The handle is made from Pakka wood and includes a belt clip.

All that is missing is a few cigars. You might consider adding a few of those. It always makes for a pretty sweet photo.

 

Groovyman Box Set Gifts for Groomsmen

 

Combat Duffel Bag

Equally awesome and practical, a duffel bag is a great present for your groomsmen. They’re just the right size to store things when going to the gym or traveling for a few days. They’re also less bulky than most backpacks, so they’re ideal as carry-on luggage. Duffel bags are stylish too and easy to coordinate with whatever you’re wearing. With a duffel bag gift, there are a wide variety of colors, materials, and designs to choose from. You can select the style based on the receiver’s lifestyle and preferences. You can also have the duffel bags stitched with your groomsmen’s initials to make the present more personal as well as unique.

 

Classic Pocket Watch

Bring back the nostalgia of a bygone era and gift your groomsmen with classic pocket watches. It’s a unique, stylish, and functional gift. Pocket watches blend classic and contemporary designs, making it a timeless accessory for anyone. Whether your friends are into vintage things or not, they’ll love the pocket watch gift for its Sherlock Holmes look and originality. Engrave each one with their initials so it’s personalized and extra special.

 

Wrapping Up

Your groomsmen deserve the very best. But with all the expenses for the wedding, you might not have a lot to buy everyone something amazing and fancy. Fortunately, there are lots of awesome yet budget-friendly gifts you can give to your groomsmen. From hip flasks to pocket watches, the gifts listed above consider both style and functionality, making them awesome gift ideas to show your gratitude to the guys.

Couples, For Grooms / Grooming, Groomsmen / Comment

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