Summer wedding season is upon us.  For many filmmakers and photographers, this is our Black Friday – this is when we make bank.  Want to get in on the action?  There are plenty of blogs that will help you buy the best lens and flash, but only this one will tell you what gear you’re liable to forget to pack.

1. Snacks

quakeroats.com

Chances are, you’re only eating one meal today.  If you’re smart, you’ve had breakfast and you’re not hung over.  But lunch?  Forget about it.  Lunchtime generally falls around the time that the bride is getting ready, which pretty much rules that meal out.  You’ll have dinner later tonight, around 8:30 or 9pm, when everyone else is eating.  And you’ll probably grab some cheese and fruit from the corner table at cocktail hour.  But a granola bar, hastily devoured on the trip to the church, can mean the difference between a growling tummy or a quiet one.  And no one wants to hear your stomach during the groom’s vows.

2. Sunscreen

motherearthnews.com

For an outdoor wedding, anyway.  Think about it.  You’re going to be outside, away from shade for hours, probably standing in the same spot.  And, unless it’s a wedding with a specific theme, you probably have to leave your wide brimmed cowboy hat at home.  Bummer.  So protect your skin and make your Mom proud by wearing sunscreen.

3. Bug spray

fightthebitecolorado.com

Goes along with sunscreen.  Because those mosquitoes are definitely going to be biting during the first look, and they’re hungry!

4. Multiplug Outlet Adapters

artisanelectric.net

This is one especially for the video shooters.  Because you need to charge your camera battery, your mic battery, your sound recorder batteries and your phone simultaneously.  And the two free outlets in the reception hall are probably taken up by the DJ and his big honkin’ turntable.

5. Earplugs

dubstep-software.com

Most people won’t wear earplugs to loud events, because they only attend three or four a year.  When you’re shooting that many a month, you definitely want to protect your hearing.  Buy the highest decibel reduction you can, unless you really want to hear the MOB belt out Rolling in the Deep after a couple glasses of champagne.

6. A Good Multitool

gearjunkie.com

Really, this should just live in your camera bag, alongside a roll of gaff tape.  Tighten tripod screws, open packaging, cut loose strings and fend off hungry wildlife.

7. Cash

i.telegraph.co.uk

In small bills.  Pretend you’re a drug lord or a strip club patron.  Weddings frequently involve travel and travel frequently involves tolls.  And toll booths tend not to give change, especially for large bills.  Until you’ve rolled up to a $.75 toll booth with only twenties, you don’t know what true rage is.

8. The Number of a Reliable Cab Company

 5thavenuecinema.org

Because sometimes it’s hard to catch a cab after midnight.  You’re carrying thousands of dollars of equipment; now is not the time to wander the streets of the Bronx, waving at every yellowish car passing by.

What do you always need and never have?  Leave a message in the comments below.