Firstly, congratulations to Anna & Jeremy on their beautiful wedding and thank you for choosing me as your wedding photographer and giving me permission to share some of the photographs I shot on your wedding day.

During this wedding photography blog post, I wanted to talk a little about wedding day "first looks". So, if you are a bride or groom and considering this as an option as part of your wedding day, read on!

First Looks are becoming increasingly popular for couples that really want to dedicate more time for their portraits and all that entails. They are also popular for couples who are not that comfortable "posing" but want really romantic photos. There are a whole host of other reasons, that's just a couple.

Anna and Jeremy decided to do a first look after we had our wedding photography consultation and they realized it could be done in such a way as not to detract from the significance of meeting at the altar in front of friends and family. They wanted candid, romantic, enduring and elegant portrait photos that showed genuine emotion without having to pose in the traditional fashion. Fast forward to their wedding day, I think we captured all that and more.

Now, some couples are concerned that a first look could take something away from the traditional "moment" of their first glimpse of each other as the bride walks down the aisle to meet the groom, but this couple prove that's certainly not the case! In fact, it's very much to the contrary... if done right!

First Looks are a wonderful chance to have that meaningful moment in a very intimate setting so that the couple can share that magic between just the two of them before they do it again with all their loved ones.

So, here's some tips on how to create your very own truly romantic first look moment!

1. Choose a beautiful spot ahead of time that isn't the altar so that moment is as uniquely special in it's own right.

2. Get help from the Maid of Honor and Best Man to make sure it goes smoothly BUT have them leave before you actually see one another. It's important that the moment is as intimate as possible.

3. Make sure other early wedding guests know to keep from interrupting .... again this can be helped by location and assistance of the Maid of Honor etc.

4. Your photographer is best to use a long lens so that the moment is natural and captures the genuine emotion of the moment without being a part of it.

5. Have one person in place but don't tell them the actual moment that their partner is coming. A good photographer has some good tips on how to have this happen.

6. Have the person s"urprising" their partner walk up from a direction that the other person can't see them coming until the moment has arrived.

7. Don't over choreograph the moment. Your wedding day will be filled with enough real emotion, you don't need to "create" it.

I am often asked by couple's why is a first look a good idea. There are multiple reasons but from the perspective of a wedding photographer there are two main reasons. Firstly, it offers a dedicated (and often longer) time to create truly beautiful and intimate portraits very candidly without lots of onlookers and wedding guest paparazzi.

Secondly, the traditional time to create these portraits during a wedding day is post ceremony. This is also a time where there are lots of other things that are occurring like; your wedding guests want to greet and congratulate you, or your caterers wanting to get everyone, including the bride and groom, inside to start the meal on time or cocktail hour. So by doing it before, you can effectively have your cake and eat it! 

Lastly, doing a first look doesn't mean you can't do the traditional post wedding portrait session too! By allocating a few minutes after group photos to do a second mini session, you also get the more traditional ring shots but also the post ceremony "glow" of the bride and groom. In fact, this is something I typically will do.

Contact me today to learn more about how to set the scene, ask about wedding collections or to find out if your wedding date is available.

[email protected] or telephone 909 767 5686