Making the most of your Bridal Prep Photos…
Oooh I can just feel the excitement!
Morning bridal prep is one of my favourite parts of the day. It’s such a special time to document all the excitement leading up to the ceremony and see the anticipation build up with family and friends at home.
Although I like to mostly shoot the morning in a documentary way, there are a few things that can help keep things relaxed and allow you to get the best out of your bridal prep photos.
Follow the light
Get right in it! When having your makeup done, your make up artist will probably suggest you sit near a window with the best natural light and this works great for photos too. A nice neutral space always works best without any yellow fluorescent lights in the room.
If your house has limited space and you have lots of family members and bridesmaids, some brides prefer to book an air bnb or get ready at the venue.
Keeping rooms minimal
Mess is inevitable on a busy wedding morning, but keeping the room minimal and clutter free can also make all the difference to photographs, especially while we move from room to room to document those spur of the moment style photos.
Also wearing whatever you all feel most comfortable in helps, you don’t have to have matching gowns, pjs or tshirts, whatever works for you will always come across best in the photographs.
The big & little details
These photos are always captured on arrival, leaving the rest of the morning to capture the natural flow of what is happening.
Try to hang your dress somewhere spacious with a nice hanger as it’s so lovely to capture the dress in all its glory before you put it on. Getting details shots of the dress hanging and having it in the background of getting ready shots can really help tell the story of your morning.
I always ask beforehand for you to put any sentimental items in one place for me to photograph in some lovely flat-lays for you. These can be shoes, perfume, jewellery, rings and wedding invitations. In years to come these little details will be lovely to look back on and make you smile.
Special moments
Make sure you mention any special requests for photos you would like taken beforehand such as father of the bride reaction or any thank you cards/gifts for your bridal party. These are such special moments to capture of you together before getting dressed.
* Getting into your dress early *
This is my number one tip for eliminating stress on the morning of the wedding. One minute you are eating breakfast and the next minute it’s almost time to leave with everyone half dressed. Experience has shown it to be a bit of a whirlwind around this point so prepping your bridesmaids and Mum to get dressed before you so they can help in getting you into your dress can make a huge difference to timing.
Once your dress is on, you can get some really lovely reaction shots of anyone who wasn’t in the room, when they first see you as a bride. I love this moment!
It is likely that your photographer will need to leave 20/30 minutes before you do to get to the ceremony on time and catch a few photos of the groom and guests arriving whilst also waiting on your arrival. In this case leaving plenty of time for getting ready can mean you can have these reaction pictures with your girls, portraits or group photos captured stress free and you can have a breather in your dress before leaving to tie the knot.
Have Fun & Turn the Music on!
One of my last tips is to get the ipad out and create a spotify playlist for the morning prep, music is such a mood booster and it can create the nicest, chilled atmosphere for everyone getting ready. Get the champagne flowing and enjoy getting pampered for the most special day of your life!
Your wedding day is all about you and we are there to capture the important moments. So have fun… and don’t forget to eat something and pack snacks if you have a long car journey! ;)
If you’d like to get in touch about your wedding photography, please drop me a message here.
Sheen x