The Ultimate Wedding Decor and Lighting Guide for Indian Weddings

Here are some things every bride and groom should know to truly sparkle on their special day. Hiring the best wedding photographer you could afford is a great first step to great wedding photos. Not many couples realize how they can make immense difference to their wedding photos by being aware of these practical points concerning wedding decor and lighting.

Practical tips for wedding decor and lighting:

Photography is all about the light, so should be your wedding decor and lighting

Photography literally means ‘drawing with light’ in greek. This is a no brainer now that light is of paramount importance here. A photographer decides the amount of lights presence or absence to make a photograph. No matter how advanced the cameras or the post production softwares have become, the quality of light present at the scene is of the greatest importance . Most often than not the couple only cares decides the decor theme/colours/larger elements of decor at the venue and the decision for lighting is left to the wedding planner or decorator.

Get the best out of your wedding photographer by working with him. How you light your wedding is going to be the difference between good and great photos.

We understand that there are a zillion things to worry about during a wedding. It can be hectic to be involve in each and every decision. However, the contention of this article is to sensitize the couples the importance of this subject and to convince them why this is one of the most important decisions they should be involved in. Personally, I am of the opinion that you may forget the menu on your wedding after a few years, but the photographs are the only things that would remain with you forever. So, I urge you to please read on.

Be mindful of Red Green and Blues

The camera and photographers are not a fan of blue/purple/red light. Why you ask? The digital camera has a sensor that splits light in three channels of Red Blue and Green. The relative luminosity/intensity of these colours are then stored digitally.

Therefore, if you have these primary intense colour on any subject, there is no information recorded in the other channels. This give editing-nightmares at the post processing stage. Even worse, if the half of the subject is lit by any of these primary colour and other half by a different light, there will be an ugly patch on skin. That means all the money you invested in make-up, selecting that expensive lavish wedding dress, and decor goes down the drain.

Tip # 1: Please avoid using the LED lights to give colour to your wedding decor and lighting the main area.

The only way to salvage such images is by converting them to black & white. But you wouldn’t want all the wedding photos in monochrome when the wedding was so colourful. Would you?

When it comes to wedding decor and lighting – Old is Gold

The cliched phrase here makes both literary and technical sense. The golden warm yellow light of good old incandescent tungsten filament bulbs/small rice lights is the best.

This light mimics the sunlight the best. Even the fluorescent yellow tube lights or power saving CFLs do not come close to them (unless the colour-balanced ones are used). The incandescent tungsten filament produces wide enough spectrum of light that gives workable spectrum for the camera to record images well. There is a deeper science behind how lights produced by different elements has only certain portion of full spectrum.
It is a scientific fact that warm yellow light works well to elevate our sense of happiness and wellbeing.

Imagine which will feel happier and more welcoming: a hall full of candles or a hall lit by white/bluish fluorescent tube-lights?

Tip # 2 : Make use of warm incandescent light.

This being said, recommendation here is to have real light as much as you wish. Use frills of small rice-lights to create mood, a larger trail of small bulbs to fill dark spaces, and bigger ones to light the area. But what if you had in mind a coloured theme for your wedding? I say, use fabrics, flowers, and a bit of coloured light tastefully to achieve the theme you have in mind. It will make your wedding planner/decorator work harder, yes. But, aren’t you investing money so you can remember it this way? And, photos are what you will remember this after 25 years, wouldn’t you? We, the wedding photographers will ensure that you get the best possible images.

Beauty is in simplicity

I love the magical designs florist and decorators make. Some of them are exquisite! My two cents here as a wedding photographer are to keep the stage background as simple as possible. Since, more often than not, the stage is reasonably small.

The distance between the backdrop full of patterns and flowers is not enough for us to blur out the background and separate you from the complex pattern behind you in the frame, the overall composition is compromised on certain levels. It will look weird if a bunch of flower is sticking out of your head in most of the photos or that wooden filler there on stage is sticking out in all photos.

Tip # 3: Keep the stage backdrop simple, of appropriate colour as compared with your wedding attires, and sufficiently far back from where you will be.

The color contrast between your wedding dress and the stage backdrop is also to be paid attention to. If the backdrop and your wedding attire are nearly the same color/shade the photos will not look as great as you expect them to be. The prominent colors present in a frame, contrast, separation of the subject from background, and the lighting make a photo look pleasing to eye (of course the composition and the moment when shutter clicks is what the photographer will take care of).

In essence, the wedding decor and lighting you choose and how you match it with your personal style can make a generous impact on not only the photographs but also to the ambiance of the wedding. As weddings are celebrations with your closest ones, ensure your choices make for an evening that is lit with not only lights but also smiles!