10 TIPS FOR GETTING THE BEST BRIDAL PREPARATION PICTURES
Bridal preparation holds a special place in my heart as one of my favorite moments to capture during a wedding day. Having all your closest friends gathered together to support you is truly heartwarming. I thrive on capturing the excitement and anticipation and ensuring my brides have stunning photos they’ll cherish forever. It’s an opportune time for both candid shots of everyone enjoying themselves and more posed portraits. I always advise my brides to allocate 30 minutes for photos once they’re ready in their dress, perfect for capturing group shots with the bridal party and parents. With my classic, elegant photography style, rest assured your photos will be nothing short of amazing. Additionally, I offer practical ideas to ensure brides make the most of their photo session. Getting the best bridal preparation pictures is a breeze with my top tips!
1. Planning is Key
A little bit of planning will ensure that you get the best bridal preparation photos! On the morning of the wedding there is so much excitement and a lot going on so we suggest getting everything ready well in advance. Have a think about what pictures you would like captured. We have lots of images from real weddings to help you figure out what pictures are most important to you. If you book me as your wedding photographer then you can mention any special requests for photos you would like. This could be a picture of you receiving a love note from your husband to be or making sure you capture a portrait of you and your mum or just being a fly on the wall and capturing the emotions and the moments as they happen.
2. Buy Matching Dressing Gowns
Amidst the whirlwind of wedding preparations, it’s often the subtle details that add that exquisite touch to the grandeur of your special day. Consider matching dressing gowns for the bridal party – not only do they enhance the allure of your wedding photos, but they also serve as heartfelt tokens of appreciation for your closest friends as enduring mementos of your shared journey. Encouraging everyone to don these elegant robes during bridal preparation not only fosters a sense of camaraderie but also offers practical benefits. Ensuring a seamless transition post-hair and makeup, dressing gowns provide ease and convenience, sparing you the risk of disturbing your flawless appearance.
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3. Get into Your Dress Early
If you can get ready 30 minutes before your photographer needs to leave this allows extra time for pictures prior to the ceremony – and gives you time to breathe in case anything doesn’t go quite to plan! This is also the perfect time to capture your bridesmaids and families reaction to seeing you ready in your dress for the first time! We love to also photograph beautiful portraits of the bride and pictures with the bridesmaids and family. Getting into your dress early ensures you will arrive at the ceremony relaxed and ready to tie the knot! Your photographer can capture photos of the bride and the bridal party getting out of the cars. You can also have a few group photos before heading in to meet the groom.
4. Keep the Room Tidy
While keeping the place tidy may be the furthest thing from your mind, doing so will ensure that you get the very best from your wedding photos. Wedding photographers love clean backgrounds for their shots so they can focus on you! Distractions in the background can ruin a beautiful photograph. It’s so much easier to move a carrier bag out of the way than taking it out in Photoshop afterwards which can become costly and time consuming.
6. Hang Your Dress
Try to hang your dress somewhere nice before you are ready to put it on. That way your photographer can get shots of the bridal preparations with the dress in the background. This really helps to tell the story and gives context to the photos. Your photographer can also get detail shots of your dress hung up. Another top tip is to make sure you un-package the wedding and bridesmaid dresses before your photographer arrives. You can also pop the dresses on beautiful personalised hangers. Don’t forget to take the tags off too! These little touches save your photographer time which they can then spend taking beautiful natural photos.
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7. The Little Details
Detail photos are best captured during the earlier stages of bridal preparation. You wouldn’t want to miss capturing your Dad’s reaction to seeing you in your dress just to get a picture of your shoes! Have the following ready for when your photographer arrives:
• Bridal Shoes
• Jewellery
• Bridesmaid Dresses
• Engagement Ring
• Invitations
• Flowers
8. Consider Your Location
you don’t want to get ready at home or your wedding venue has limited space, then consider booking a separate venue or hotel just for the morning preparations. Mikyla opted to do her wedding preparations at The Ritz Carlton Perth. The rooms are luxurious, bright and spacious.
9. Boys First!
If you would like pictures of the groom getting ready then it’s best for your photographer to go to them first. This way we won’t miss important parts of bridal preparation. As the excitement builds, bouquets arrive and your friends and family see you in your dress for the first time, that’s where you want your photographer to be. Or if possible you can both get ready at your wedding venue as that way your photographer can switch between rooms easily. Alternatively your photographer can meet the guys prior to the ceremony for a few photos. If you would like lots of groom preparation pictures or if the location is far from bridal preparation we really recommend booking a second photographer. This means you can have a dedicated photographer for both preparations. There are other benefits too, more images in the final gallery, images from different angles in the ceremony and more candid photos throughout the day.
10. Book A Hair and Make Up Artist
Treat yourself to professional hair and makeup. This is your chance to feel like a celebrity for the day. Plus the results are going to last a lot longer than if you did them yourself. You can also consider hiring hair and makeup for the whole day – not just the morning. Having your beauty team on hand for touch ups during the wedding makes a huge difference to your photos. Especially useful for windy or rainy wedding days. Another tip is to ask your make up artist to be finished half an hour before you need to leave so you have time for getting on your dress and getting those all important portraits. I cannot recommend Tenille Flintoff more highly for your wedding day make up.
By far the most important thing on your wedding day is to have fun! Get some bubbly flowing, enjoy getting pampered and look forward to the most special day of your life! Natural pictures are by far the best. Just relax and let the morning flow naturally. My style of photography is unobtrusive and gentle. Iencourage all couples to relax and spend their day having an amazing time with their family and friends.
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