You’ve asked and we’ve answered! Welcome to your weekly column ‘Planning Your Happily Ever After’ with wedding consultant Shikima Hinds.

Wedding imperatives are numerous but the top two remain securing the venue and wedding photographer. Our focus today is on wedding photos. Do ensure that you allocate a sizeable portion of your budget to a photographer. Why? They’ll capture beautiful wedding images that you’ll rave about for years to come. But how best to display your photos?

While it’s easy to display your favourite wedding photos in a frame or photo album, let’s consider other options.

Create a photo book or album

Creating a photo book or album is one of the most traditional ways to use your wedding photos. Choose your favourite photos and compile them in a beautiful album that you can keep and share with loved ones. There are many online services that make creating photo albums easy and affordable, so you can create a professional-looking album even if you’re not a design expert. Most wedding photographers offer this as an add-on service to their packages.

Turn your photos into wall art

Your wedding photos are beautiful works of art, so why not display them on your walls? You can choose your favourite photos and have them printed on canvas, metal, or acrylic to create stunning wall art. This is a great way to add a personal touch to your home décor and create a beautiful reminder of your wedding day.

Make a wedding photo collage

A photo collage is a great way to showcase multiple photos at once. You can create a collage of your favourite wedding photos and have it printed and framed for display in your home or office. You can also create a digital collage and use as a screensaver or wallpaper on your computer or phone.

Use your photos in your thank-you cards

Sending thank-you cards to your wedding guests is a thoughtful way to show your appreciation for their love and support. You can use your wedding photos to create custom thank-you cards that will be treasured by your guests. You can even have your favourite photo printed on the front of the card and write your thank-you message inside.

Create a photo calendar

A photo calendar is a great way to use your wedding photos year-round. You can choose your favourite photos and create a custom calendar that you can hang in your home or office. This is a fun and practical way to use your wedding photos and enjoy them every day.

Make a photo puzzle

A photo puzzle is a fun and unique way to use your wedding photos. You can choose your favourite photo and have it turned into a puzzle. Children and puzzle fanatics will love this. This is a great way to keep your wedding memories alive and have fun at the same time.

Use your photos in your wedding album

Your wedding album is a beautiful keepsake that you’ll treasure for years. You can use your wedding photos to create custom pages for your album, or you can add your favourite photos to the pre-designed pages. This is a great way to personalise your wedding album and make it even more special.

Digital displays

If you have smart devices in your home or other digital picture frames, add your photos into the slideshow feature! This is an awesome way to display a variety of photos without committing to putting a frame and some nails into your walls. While nothing beats the beauty and impact of a professional print, digital display makes your memories a part of your everyday life.

Give as gifts

While you’re working on creating some prints use the time to make some gifts! If you’re not going to believe anything else I say, believe this — parents and grandparents go bananas over printed wedding photos as gifts! While most couples getting married now are accustomed to digital media, our parents lived in a world where printed photos were the norm.

Share them with us and get them published

If you’d love other people to see a glimpse of your wedding day and all the hard work you put into it, then you can share with us here at the Jamaica Observer for a Tuesday Style Vows feature!

Important Reminder – Back them up!

First and foremost, you should always make multiple copies of your wedding photos and ensure that they are stored in multiple places. Whether you make a few extra USB copies and put some in a safe deposit box and give the other USBs to trusted family members or whether you use online photo storage sites like Google Drive or Dropbox is up to you, but you should make multiple copies and do it ASAP!

Finally, your wedding photos are a beautiful reminder of your special day, and there are many creative ways to use them long after your wedding day has ended. Whether you create a photo album, turn your photos into wall art, make a wedding photo collage, use your photos in your thank-you cards, create a photo calendar, make a photo puzzle, or use your photos in your wedding album, your wedding memories will be kept alive.