A rainy wedding day; the one nightmare scenario you spent your engagement pushing to the back of your mind.

It has you so wracked with fear that when someone asks you, “what if it rains?” You snap your head around and scream “it won’t!!” Instead of checking the Farmers Almanac and making offerings to the rain gods, let’s confront your fear head on!

Here is what you need to know for planning a rain-proof wedding day!

1. Plan ahead.

Have a plausible backup plan for portraits and anything else scheduled to happen outside from Day 1. Having a solid backup plan already in place means not scrambling like a nut the week of your wedding. If your venue is outdoors, they’ll require you to have a rain day plan. Or, If you’re just hoping for outdoor pictures, coordinate with your photographer ahead of time an indoor alternative option.

On Faye’s wedding day, we took advantage of the big porch at David’s Country Inn to do portraits while rain fell outside!

2. Don’t freak out.

And don’t trust the weatherman! Trust me on this one folks. The weather reporting in this country is controlled by the milk, battery, and umbrella cartel. You can’t trust anything you hear when it comes to weather. I can’t tell you how many weddings I’ve done where the weather prediction was torrential rain a week out, 5 days, 2 days out, even the day of, and the rain never came! So, if you’re seeing rain in the forecast, take a deep breath and check again in a few days.

I was preparing for a total rainy wedding day washout the whole week before Lisa & Dan’s wedding. As usual, the day before the event, the forecast changed completely!

 

3. Allow some time flexibility.

I think I’ve only shot one wedding where it rained all day, non-stop. Take a look at the forecast the day before and see where you might be able to squeeze in some portraits between the rain drops!

It was raining buckets the morning of Kelly & Scott’s wedding and forecasted to rain all day! Even though we planned to do portraits at another location, we took advantage of a break in the rain to do portraits outside the church right after the ceremony. 

4. Have an alternative hair plan.

Your silky waterfall curls may look good on Pinterest, but trust. If you have a rainy wedding day with 100% humidity you might end up with a limp, frizzy mess. Talk to your hair people; you might even be able to do a loose updo that you can shake out later at the reception.

5. Embrace the elements.

If the bride and groom are up to dance around in the rain, I’m always ready to join in with or without an umbrella. On rainy wedding days I always bring my 10 clear dome umbrellas so we’re ready for whatever comes our way.

Hannah and Jose braved the rain in umbrellas for a first look in the park!

6. Take advantage of the rainy wedding day guarantee.

So, this only goes for those of you who invite Petal & Glass to shoot your wedding, but, I always offer my washout wedding brides a complimentary wedding photo shoot on another day. So again, no need to stress!