Header image by Katherine and her Camera

This post goes out to to all of you fabulous wedding photographers who are yet to get published on a top wedding blog. It’s scary stepping out of your comfort zone and reaching out to editors and bloggers. Who knows how many submissions they get?! What if you’re rejected… I mean, even if it’s just because they’re super busy, it’ll hurt to hear a ‘no’…. oh, but what if you get a YES when they see your work? Wouldn’t that be amazing?!

Wedding bloggers are lovely, friendly people. We’re here because we genuinely love (virtually) meeting wedding folks, and helping you to promote what you do. Fact. And getting submissions is what lights our fires! So if I can put myself out here and say please, I’d love to see your styled shoots and real weddings and the lovely things you’ve created recently… you can reply and show me! I really hope you’ll be in touch soon! 

Here’s some top tips to help you confidently submit to wedding blogs

1. Know your wedding blogs!

Every wedding blog has a different audience and a unique aesthetic, just as every wedding photographer has their own style and approach. If your images are edgy and vibrant, they’ll look amazing on Rock n Roll Bride, English Wedding or Boho Weddings. If your photography has an ethereal, romantic fine art style it will fit perfectly with Wedding Sparrow or Magnolia Rouge (or English Wedding!).

Knowing a blog means becoming a reader. Have a quiet half hour with a nice cup of tea and flick through a wedding blog. Read a few posts, look through the menu to see what else is there, and check the content and style of features. Often blogs will have a formula for real weddings (with a Q&A from the couple) or styled shoots (supplier lists; paragraphs written in a particular way and so on.)

Use this information so you know how to grab the blogger’s (and consequently their readers’) attention. Which images will they love? Should you tell a little bit about the wedding? Will a heartwarming story about your couple win them over?

Here’s a very quick guide to some of our favourite UK wedding blogs –

English Wedding – every style of wedding under the sun… with stunning photography a must!

So You’re Getting Married – advice, style tips and classic to modern real weddings

Whimsical Wonderland Weddings – joyful, vibrant and eclectic weddings in every style under the sun

Love My Dress – elegance, authenticity and heartfelt advice for couples

Wedding Sparrow – the original fine art wedding blog

Rock My Wedding – mega blog for modern wedding inspiration and planning

Boho Weddings – worldwide weddings with a bohemian vibe

Bespoke Bride – bright and modern wedding blog with super cute styling

Rock n Roll Bride – alternative weddings and groundbreaking features

Plans and Presents – classic weddings and achievable style

 

2. Know your weddings!

If you already have a wedding in mind which you’d love to see featured on a blog, is its overall style whimsical, bohemian, alternative, fashion-led, country garden or city chic? Each of these themes would fit well on a particular wedding blog – and grab the blog’s readers’ attention. But do you know which ones?

Identifying a wedding style is easy… look at the dress and / or suit. Are they traditional, modern, floaty alternative, colourful? What’s the venue like? How much styling is there… and does it have a vintage, modern, DIY look? Key things like cakes and stationery say a lot about the style of a wedding – as do the flowers (and we LOVE flowers because they make wedding blogs look amazing!) Finally don’t forget to consider your photography style – it can have a huge impact on how a wedding looks when it lands on the desk of a wedding blogger or editor.

3. Be your charming, friendly self!

Contacting wedding bloggers takes a little courtesy: do, please, find out their name before you send your email. If I get a submission addressed to ‘Hey there’ it often goes in the bin. Some wedding photographers will submit to multiple wedding blogs all at once… and that’s so badly thought out, because only one wedding blog will feature the wedding or shoot at a time. (Most have exclusivity clauses. At English Wedding we just don’t want awkward clashes!)

The key thing is to email the blogger personally, explaining why you’ve chosen their blog specifically to submit to. Be positive and happy and excited, but other than that don’t worry about wording your emails… just be friendly and nice and if there’s anything you’re not sure of don’t be shy to ask!

4. Check each blogger’s guidelines for submissions

Find out how your chosen blogger asks for submissions. Follow their guidelines for sending low or high res images, blog links and supplier lists. Every blogger is different, and  what works for one blog won’t apply to another… so don’t have a ‘one way fits all’ approach to submissions!

Top tip: Know the style of weddings which are regularly featured, the images which make the headline spots on blog posts and you’re a step ahead already.

5. Don’t be shy! Never put off a submission!

Remember wedding bloggers are just people sat in our PJs with our laptops, we just love looking at weddings. I know most wedding bloggers are lovely and down to earth. I think of myself more as a typer. Or a slightly crazy girl who has animated conversations with her screen every single day.

Wedding bloggers are normal, and probably a bit shy and genuinely love hearing from you – so don’t be nervous about submitting, commenting or getting in touch. We want to get to know you too!

I get so many emails starting with ‘I’ve wanted to submit something for ages, but...’ and so many times I wish I’d discovered a photographer sooner! You’re an amazing bunch, talented and with a genuine passion for what you do – and I want to help matchmake you with brides and grooms.

6. You’re doing us a favour too, you know!

Wedding blogs wouldn’t exist without the generosity of photographers. All those gorgeous images on the English Wedding Blog home page? They’re by photographers who have so kindly shared their creativity here. The bloggers are the ones who should be grateful when a wedding is featured – you guys are out there making our worlds pretty, and we appreciate it!

7. We might say no – but don’t let that put you off

What’s the worst that can happen after you submit? Sometimes I do have to say no – if a wedding doesn’t have the details my readers are looking for, or if I’m snowed under with submissions, or if it’s July and there’s a Christmas tree in it (send me lots of those in September!) But on other occasions I have a slot free on the blog, or I’m looking out for something different… and I might not reply the same day but I will reply – personally – to every submission. Nicely, and with an explanation and some tips for next time. I might even point you towards this blog post!

8. It’s way more likely we’ll say YES!

Oh, and we’re not always fighting off all the submissions. Sometimes it’s quiet and tumbleweedy… don’t assume your submission is always one of 50 – it could be the only one we get that day – you never know! Time to submit then, don’t you think? 😉

9. Have you been featured before?

Name-drop. If you’ve been featured on a wedding blog before, tell me! (If Lou & Kelly love you, then I’ll want to get to know you too!) Likewise, having a feature on the English Wedding Blog might just help get you noticed by the top blogs worldwide… use blogs as stepping stones if you’re aiming for the likes of Rock My Wedding or Style Me Pretty – and grab those ‘featured on’ badges to help you along the way!

10. Got a styled shoot to share?

When it comes to styled shoots, plan your pitch BEFORE the shoot.

Make a list of 5 blogs you can ‘sell’ your shoot to – and make sure every detail is right for those blogs.

Be ultra selective about the suppliers you collaborate with – because a blogger will look at your shoot as a whole. If the images, floral arrangements, stationery and tablescape are perfect but the dress is the best you could get from a local bridal store, you could miss out on being featured. And if you’re a maker or a venue CHOOSE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER CAREFULLY! You’re looking for someone with plenty of wedding blog features under their belt.

Make life super easy for the wedding blogger. Let them know you’ve got a description of the shoot, and a supplier list with links, all ready to send.

Choose your hero shots and lead every pitch with those images. Use stunning florals, backdrops, massively romantic couple pics or other statement images to wow the blogger with your submission. It’s true you have a matter of seconds to make a first impression, and this applies as much online as it does in real life. So use those all-important seconds to blind us with your beautiful.

https://english-wedding.com/submissions/