How to Choose Which Wedding Photos to Print (Without Printing 200 of Them)

Your wedding gallery has arrived.

You have hundreds of photos.

You love approximately 93% of them.

And unless you're planning to wallpaper your entire house with your wedding, which, honestly we respect, you're going to have to narrow things down.

So how do you decide which wedding photos actually deserve a spot on your walls?

Here’s where we’d start.

First: Stop Looking for the “Best” Photo

There probably isn't one.

The photo that technically has the most perfect light or composition isn't necessarily the one you'll want to look at every day.

Instead, ask yourself:

Which photo makes me feel something?

Maybe it's the epic portrait of the two of you.

Or maybe it's the photograph where you're laughing because your new husband just whispered something wildly inappropriate in your ear.

Choose the photograph that feels like you.

Think About Where It's Going

Before choosing a photo, think about where you actually want to put it.

Over the sofa or bed?

This is where you can go BIG.

A wide portrait, beautiful landscape image or dramatic photo of the two of you works beautifully here.

And don't be afraid of a large print.

An 8x10 sounds big until you put it on a giant empty wall and realize you've essentially hung a postage stamp above your sofa.

Bedroom?

This is a great place for something quieter and more intimate.

Think first look, private vows, sunset portraits or one of those photos where you've completely forgotten we're standing there with cameras.

Hallway or gallery wall?

Mix it up.

Portraits. Candids. Details. Family. Black and white.

Your wedding doesn't have to be represented by one perfectly posed photograph.

Don't Forget the People

This is the category couples sometimes overlook.

Print the photograph with your parents.

Print Grandma.

Print your siblings.

Print the photo of your best friends absolutely losing their minds on the dance floor.

Years from now, some of those photographs may mean even more to you than they do today.

Give Yourself Permission to Print the Weird One

Not every framed photograph needs to look like it belongs above a fireplace.

If there's an image that makes both of you laugh every single time you see it?

Print it.

Your home should look like your life, not a wedding magazine.

Think Beyond Your Walls

Not every favourite needs to become wall art.

Some images are perfect for:

Parent gifts.

Desk frames.

Christmas gifts.

Thank-you cards.

Anniversary gifts.

Your phone wallpaper.

And, of course…

Put the Rest in an Album

This is exactly why wedding albums exist.

Your walls might hold five or ten wedding photographs.

Your album gets to tell the whole story.

The nerves.

The ceremony.

The people.

The speeches.

The portraits.

The dance floor.

The moment someone's tie inevitably ended up around their forehead.

You don't have to choose between all those photographs.

You just have to choose where they belong.

→ READ NEXT: Wedding Albums: Are They Actually Worth It?

One Last Cedar & Cove Rule

Print the photographs that make you feel something.

Not necessarily the most Instagrammable ones.

Not the ones you think you're supposed to print.

The ones that immediately take you back.

Because that's the whole point.

And if your gallery just arrived and you're wondering what else you're supposed to do with all those photos…

→ READ: Your Gallery Is Here — Now What?

Brandie + Rhonda

Cedar & Cove Photography