What to wear to an indoor wedding shoot

Almost every couple asks the same question on the first call, and almost every answer they have already found online was written for an outdoor shoot in daylight. Indoors, with controlled light, a different set of things matters.

Fabric beats colour

Studio light is directional, which means it reveals texture. A raw silk catches it, a matte synthetic swallows it, and a heavily sequinned piece throws it straight back at the lens. None of these is wrong, but they photograph differently enough that it is worth knowing which one you are wearing.

If you are choosing between two pieces in the same colour, pick the one with more texture. It will hold shape in a photograph where the flatter one goes soft.

Bring the outfit on a hanger

Travelling in a wedding outfit costs you an hour of creases we then have to light around. We have a changing room, a full-length mirror and a steamer, so arrive comfortable and change here.

The six things that matter

• Texture over colour, every time
• One statement piece per person, not three
• Footwear you can stand in for four hours
• Jewellery that matches the metal in the rest of the look
• A backup blouse or shirt in case of a spill
• Anything borrowed, tried on at least once before the day

And three that do not

• Matching your partner exactly — it flattens both of you
• Avoiding white because of the background; we light for it
• Buying something new for the shoot at all

The outfit you already love photographs better than the one you bought last week, because you know how to stand in it.

Send us photographs of your shortlist on the first call. We dress the sets to the outfits rather than the other way round, so the earlier we see them, the better the sets look.