Should we do a first look?
The question most brides agonize over while planning their big day—should I do a first look with my groom?!
If you ask me as a wedding photographer? ABSOLUTELY. Did I do one for my wedding? Nope. Let me explain.
My husband and I got married in 2016. While it doesn’t seem like it was that long ago, first looks were just becoming a thing. We chose not to do one because we wanted the first time we saw each other to be at the altar. We also had a more “traditional” wedding, and wanted our first kiss on our wedding day to be right after we were announced husband and wife. So trust me, I totally understand why you would NOT want to do a first look.
With that being said, I am here to give you a few reasons why you SHOULD do a first look (and why not doing a first look is the only thing I semi-regret about my wedding day):
A more relaxed timeline: doing a first look allows us to get a lot of the photos out of the way that you would ordinarily do during cocktail hour. We can get some bride and groom portraits and all of the bridal party portraits done prior to the ceremony! I am very passionate about slipping out of your reception for us to snag some sunset portraits too, though - you can read more about that here.
More time with your hubby: who wouldn’t want to spend extra time with your hubby? It is supposed to be the best day of your life, after all. You get to spend all morning with your girls, but I know you want to maximize the amount of time you spend with your favorite guy on your special day.
You won’t feel rushed: you definitely don’t want to feel like everyone is waiting on you to get to the reception and sometimes when you’re doing family, bridal party, and bride and groom portraits after the ceremony, it feels like everyone is waiting around for you to be done. If photos are important to you (and I hope they are!) you should do a first look to allow you to get to the party as soon as possible!
Get your nerves out: seeing your hubby prior to your ceremony gets the nerves out and allows you to be present and aware of what’s happening during your ceremony instead of thinking “wow, he’s so hot” the whole time (lol)
Let the emotions flow: you and your hubby are more likely to be emotional and let the tears flow if it is just the two of you than you would be in front of your entire guest list (and I know most brides wants their groom to shed a few tears over how beautiful they are)
There you have it! And please always know I am supportive of whatever you want to do…it is your big day after all and I want it to be exactly like you have been envisioning it since you were a little girl!