Wedding Images Worth Preserving
(ARA) – A wedding is an important milestone not only for the bride and groom, but for everyone in their immediate and extended families. The ceremony marks a new chapter for people on both sides of the family tree.
Because the day is so significant to so many people -- both current and future generations -- it’s important to record the memories on film. So what kinds of images should you make sure your photographer captures?
A good place to start is by making a list of pairings you want. Here are some suggestions from www.USABride.com.
* Bride and groom full length
* Bride and groom kissing
* The wedding party
* Couple with bride’s parents
* Couple with groom’s parents
* Various of the couple with the bride’s extended family
* Various of the couple with the groom’s extended family
* Groom with best man shaking hands
* Bride’s dance with her father
* Groom’s dance with his mother
* Bride tossing bouquet
* Groom taking off garter
You should also make sure you get plenty of candids, like kids dancing with their parents during the party. The first toast to the bride and groom, the cutting of the cake, the first dance, etc.
People have been capturing these types of images at wedding parties for generations, but very few of us can put our hands on pictures taken during our grandparents’ and great grandparents’ weddings. Why is that? “Because people didn’t do a very good job preserving wedding photographs back then,” says Danata Donnerson of Tru-Vue, a Chicago company that specializes in preservation quality glass for the framing industry. “A lot of people had portraits taken on the big day that never ended up in an album so they got lost. Those who did take the time to put pictures in albums or frame them threw them away years later when they turned yellow. Pictures are one of the most important links people have to their pasts, but if they’re not preserved correctly, they will be lost forever."
Donnerson adds that years of exposure to the afternoon sun, dust and moisture in the air can leave even framed photos brittle and yellow if they’re not preserved behind preservation-quality glass like Tru Vue Museum Glass which has anti-reflective technology with UV blocking properties. The same amount of time spent attached to the pages of an acid-based self-adhesive album can do the same thing.
“I’ve heard a lot of horror stories about wedding photos ruined because they were not properly stored,” says Dana Powell, editor-in-chief of “Brides Noir,” a magazine geared towards today’s upscale bride of color. “One woman I know lost all of her photos when the box they were stored in got wet in a flooded basement. I also know a lot of people who’ve had them turn yellow in albums.”
Donnerson says your most precious photographic memories should be given the same treatment and protection that a piece of fine artwork receives. “It may cost a little more but it’s worth it,” adds Powell. “You won’t want your treasured memories to fade.”
Since it’s not practical to get all of your wedding photos framed, these days a lot of people are using their outtakes and extra portraits to create scrapbooking pages, then getting those framed. People who don’t have the time to do that simply put them in albums; but remember, they too need to be adequately preserved. To properly preserve your photographs, Donnerson recommends you:
* Only use albums that are archival quality, meaning acid free.
* Use storage boxes and envelopes of archival quality.
* Only mount photos to acid-free pages using tape and photo corners that are also acid- free.
* Do not store photos in high temperature or high humidity areas such as attics and basements.
* Have your pictures scanned and put on a CD which will serve as a permanent archive in case anything happens to the originals.
Tru Vue Museum Glass glass is available at most custom framing shops. To find out more about it, log on to www.tru-vue.com.
Courtesy of ARA Content
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