There is a bit of a myth in the wedding world that, if you want an amazing confetti photo, you need paper confetti. You don't. You only need to have a quick look through our wedding confetti photo galleries or social media to see some of the incredible photographs couples have achieved using 100% natural petal confetti.

So, what actually is the best confetti for wedding photos? There isn't one magic flower, petal size or colour that suddenly creates the perfect photograph. In our experience, it comes down to choosing a good mixture of petals, creating some contrast and, just as importantly, making sure that everybody knows how to throw it properly.

Do you need paper confetti for good wedding photos?

Paper confetti can look fantastic in photographs, but so can natural petal confetti. More importantly, your first consideration should always be what your wedding venue actually allows.

An increasing number of wedding venues now specify natural petal confetti and don't allow paper confetti at all. There is therefore very little point buying bags and bags of paper confetti because you have been told that it will create the perfect photograph, only to discover that your venue won't actually let you throw it.

So, check your venue's confetti policy first. If biodegradable paper shapes are permitted and you would like to include some, we can add these to our natural petal confetti. They can introduce another shape and texture to the photograph, but they certainly aren't essential for getting a fantastic wedding confetti photo.

Are large or small petals better for wedding confetti photos?

Ask different wedding photographers this question and you will probably get different answers. Some will tell you to use really large petals, while others will recommend much smaller ones. We would actually suggest using a mixture.

One of the things that makes natural petal confetti look so good in photographs is the variation between different flowers. Different shapes, sizes and textures mean that everything doesn't look identical as it falls through the air. If you throw hundreds of exactly the same rose petals, it can still look lovely, of course, but introducing different petals means that there is much more happening within the photograph.

Some petals will fall relatively quickly while others will flutter for longer. Different shapes will catch the light differently, and petals closer to the camera will look quite different from those falling further behind you. All of this helps to create depth and movement within the photograph, which is why we don't think there is one particular petal size that you need to look for.

Why seasonal flowers work so well

One of the things we love about natural petal confetti is that it isn't completely uniform. We use seasonal flowers and work with what is naturally available rather than trying to force particular flowers into our mixes throughout the year.

This means that our confetti naturally changes with the seasons. Earlier in the year we may have more peonies available, roses become particularly plentiful during the summer months, while towards the end of summer we might have lots of sunflowers and dahlias to work with. We work with our flower partners to use the best flowers available for confetti at that particular point in the year, while also continually experimenting with different petals to see which dry, throw and flutter particularly well.

The result is a natural mixture of different petal shapes, sizes and textures, and that variation can look brilliant in wedding photographs. So, rather than becoming too fixated on having one particular flower within your mix, we would generally recommend embracing what is naturally available around the time of your wedding.

What colour confetti looks best in wedding photos?

Again, there isn't one correct answer. If you want completely white wedding confetti, go for it. If you want pink, pink and more pink, that's absolutely fine too! Even within a single-colour confetti mix, we can use different flowers and petal shapes to create plenty of variation.

However, if your wedding photographs are particularly important to you, it is worth thinking about contrast. Different colours can make individual petals much easier to see as they travel through the air, particularly if you have both lighter and darker colours within the same mix.

Think about your surroundings too. If your confetti throw is taking place against a darker building or backdrop, lighter petals can stand out particularly well. If the background is very light, some darker or brighter petals can provide more contrast. Having a mixture of lighter and darker colours can also work particularly well if your photographer produces some black-and-white photographs, as that contrast can remain even when the colour itself is removed.

Ultimately, though, choose something that you actually like. Your wedding confetti doesn't need to be designed entirely around the camera, and we can create bespoke colour mixes that complement your wedding colours while still thinking carefully about the different flowers, shapes and sizes within the finished mix.

Can you add paper hearts and glitter to natural petal confetti?

Absolutely, provided your venue allows them. We offer biodegradable paper shapes as an optional addition to our natural petal confetti, and these can introduce another shape and texture if that is the look you are trying to achieve. We can also add biodegradable glitter, which can catch the light particularly well during the confetti throw and add a little extra shimmer to closer photographs.

Neither is necessary for a great wedding confetti photograph, though. Natural petals work brilliantly on their own, so think of paper shapes and glitter as optional extras rather than something you need to add.

As with everything we use, we're also very careful about what goes into our confetti. We don't want to introduce something that undermines the whole reason that wedding venues are moving towards more environmentally friendly confetti in the first place. We also know that confetti ends up absolutely everywhere during a wedding, including, inevitably, on the hands of small children immediately before those hands go into their mouths!

The best confetti in the world won't help if you throw it badly

Choosing your confetti is only half of the equation. You can have the most beautiful wedding confetti imaginable, but if 100 guests simultaneously launch it directly at your faces, you probably aren't going to get quite the photograph you had in mind.

Instead, confetti needs to be thrown up and over the couple, rather than directly at them. Throwing the petals upwards gives them time and space to separate before fluttering back down around you. This is particularly useful with natural petal confetti because different petals will fall at slightly different speeds, helping to create that cloud of flowers around the couple while also giving your photographer more time to capture it.

Fluff your confetti before throwing it

This is such a simple thing, but it is easily forgotten. Your confetti has probably travelled before your wedding and may have spent time packed into a bag, box or cone before arriving at the venue. Naturally, this can compress the petals slightly.

Before the throw, therefore, gently fluff the confetti and separate the petals to get some air back between them. You want individual petals ready to flutter through the air rather than a compressed handful travelling together as one big lump.

Similarly, if you have given guests personalised cones or individual bags, make sure that they know to take the confetti out before throwing it. It sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised! Ideally, guests want loose confetti in the palm of their hand, ready to throw upwards when they are given the signal.

Get your wedding photographer involved

Your wedding photographer has probably organised more confetti throws than you have. Hopefully, anyway. So, use their experience.

Before everybody starts throwing things at you, make sure that your photographer is happy with where the guests are standing, where you are going to walk and when the confetti should be thrown. They will know the background they want, where the light is coming from and where they need everybody positioned to give themselves the best chance of getting the photograph.

It is also worth putting somebody in charge of the guests. This might be the photographer, somebody from the venue or a confident member of your wedding party. They can quickly explain that everybody needs to get the confetti out of the packaging, fluff it up, hold it in their hand and then throw it up and over the couple when they are told.

You've read this blog, so now you know what to do. The important bit is making sure that all of your guests know too!

So, what is the best confetti for wedding photos?

Our recommendation is relatively simple. Choose good-quality natural petal confetti with a mixture of flower shapes and petal sizes, and think about whether some colour contrast would work particularly well with your wedding and the surroundings where the confetti throw will take place. If your venue permits it and you want to add something extra, you can also consider biodegradable paper shapes or biodegradable glitter.

Then, on the day itself, fluff the petals, get your photographer ready and make sure that your guests throw the confetti upwards rather than directly at you.

Most importantly, don't believe that choosing biodegradable natural petal confetti means compromising on your wedding photographs, because it really doesn't. We have supplied natural petal confetti for thousands of weddings and the photographs that couples send back to us are absolutely incredible.

Have a look through our Ezra's Confetti photo gallery and see for yourself.