{Why It’s Worth It}

I’ve noticed lately that the modern bride is committing more to centuries old traditions when it comes to their wedding day. Well, lets face it, weddings are chock-full of traditions starting from the bouquet all the way to the top of the cake and I know first hand how important it is to keep traditions alive. But there is one tradition that I wouldn’t be disappointed if it disappeared all together…the bride and groom not seeing each other before the ceremony. But instead opt to share a private, intimate and romantic First Look.

Let me start by saying first that my clients are never required to do a First Look by any means! I used to feel bad for sharing this option with couples who were against it, because I didn’t want to push anything on them. However, I’ve seen the benefits of a first look over and over again, and so I only share this because I want the BEST for my couples!! It’s totally ok if couples choose not to share a first look! It’s just my preference to do one for many reasons. Here are my favorite ones:

40% MORE PORTRAITS
You’re investing a lot into your wedding photography. With a first look, you’ll receive 40% MORE portraits of the two of you… and those are the images you will decorate your first home with! (Believe me, our house is PACKED full of our portraits!) With a first look, you make the most out of this large investment and get the most for your money.

ENJOY THE SURPRISE FREELY
You actually get to have intimate time on your wedding day with your man. Most brides don’t realize that when you come down the aisle and totally SHOCK him with your gorgeousness… he can’t even tell you how amazing you look. He can’t touch you, embrace you or even SPEAK to you. You have to wait until 30 minutes later when the ceremony is over for him to react and tell you how amazing you look. And after 30 minutes of the ceremony, the reaction isn’t the same as the initial first glance.

EXTEND YOUR DAY BY 3 HOURS
First Looks allow you to extend your wedding day. Normally the wedding day would start when you come down the aisle, then the ceremony would end, you would rush through portraits so that you’re not late for the introductions and then it’s reception time. With a first look, your wedding day is extended by almost 3 hours! What I mean by this is, instead of being rushed for your bridal party portraits after the ceremony…you actually get to enjoy them BEFORE the ceremony and have fun hanging out with your BEST friends on your wedding day. The WHOLE first half of my client’s wedding albums are filled with images just from this time together before the ceremony.

YOUR ONLY ALONE TIME
First Looks allow you to be TOGETHER and alone on your wedding day. When Joe and I saw each other, not only was it intimate, it was our only time to be alone the whole day! We cried and laughed and cried some more… and then that put us in the PERFECT mood for our romantic portraits. Normally portraits are a little rushed after the family formals, and it can be hard to really get back into that “lovey dovey” mode…. especially with family around! When you have just shared your first look, you’re READY to love on each other, and I always capture some super sweet images during those moments!

DIMINISHES NERVES
You get rid of your nerves! I’d say, literally 1/2 of my couples who have decided to do a first look, the grooms were not fans of it at first. However, because they have never experienced their wedding day before, they didn’t know how nerve racking it can be. I have testimonials from so many grooms who initially weren’t a fan of the first look… but afterwards admitted to being SO much more relaxed and ready for the ceremony!

There is a surprising truth to the tradition of not seeing the bride in her dress before the ceremony. In the days of arranged marriages, the couple wasn’t allowed to meet at all before the wedding ceremony. Weddings were almost always a business agreement between two families and for a father to marry his daughter into a wealthy family was a big success. But he also feared that if the groom had met the bride before the wedding and thought she was not attractive enough then the groom would have the opportunity to cancel. Brides even wore veils to conceal themselves until the last possible second when all was too late for backing out. Super romantic huh?

My encouragement to all brides and grooms is to create new, exciting traditions all while keeping the ones that are dear to your heart.

Much Love, Carissa