First Look – Some of you may ask what is that? Others may have thought about it but said No way that’s too nontraditional and my parents would totally have a fit if I did one. I’m here to say they may seem nontraditional in your parent’s eyes but it may be that they are just uninformed about what exactly a first look is and what benefits it has for you the couple and the wedding day. First to explain exactly what a first look is – it essentially is a time before the wedding when the bride and groom get to see each other in a private location and spend some alone time together before everything starts. Now to get into the reasons why a first look is a great idea

Alone Time

1. It gives you alone time with each other before everything gets crazy. Think about it… from the time you start doing your hair, makeup, and all things pretty you have people around all over the place. Same thing with the guys you may not have as many people running around as the girls do but most of the time the groomsmen are arriving, changing making sure their “do” is just right and it can get a bit hectic. Having time alone in a private location can be great. You get to see each other, calm your pre-wedding nerves and just spend one-on-one time. This is the only time you will be alone the entire wedding day. Cherish it!

He sees you first

2. He gets to be the first one to see you! When you are at the end of the aisle waiting to walk down and your groom looks down he is looking with the 250 other people. It’s not as special because he is seeing you at the same time everyone else is. He also may be distracted if guests get up or lean over snapping away with their cameras and I-Pads. You as the bride may also not be able to truly savor the moment of seeing your soon-to-be husband for the first time because of the guest distraction and because you are so emotional you can’t see past the teary eyes. Also, you have the man walking you down the aisle to focus on – dear dad.

Less Stress

3. It solves most wedding timeline issues. Do you have a ceremony late in the day? This will cause a time crunch during photo time after the ceremony because you may have limited time when the sun is still out. Doing a first look before the ceremony allows for plenty of time for the most important photos of the day… your bridal portraits. Bridal portraits can take 30-45 minutes. If you do a first look after a few moments of alone time you can start portraits. Most couples don’t add in enough time for portraits of themselves during the wedding day and then get disappointed when they look back because they have a small selection of images to chose from because they didn’t a lot enough time for these. This also allows you to knock out bridal party photos and even some family photos if you wanted to.

Removes the Gap

4. Removing the Gap! – Removing the gap simply means that you can enjoy your guests and your guests can enjoy you when they should… right after you are married. When you think about it doesn’t it seem silly to make your guest wait around for 1 to 4 hours while you are off taking photos?  Being married is a time to celebrate and to spend time with those that came to celebrate your marriage. Most guests don’t care to sit around for a few hours. They have to find something to do or if they are out-of-town guests even worse they have to figure out where they can go.

Happier Bridal Party

5. You make the Bridal Party much happier – Unfortunately even the best bridal party members can only handle so many photos and so much time dedicated to the process of taking photos. If you do a first look it gives you the opportunity to allow your bridal party to hang out until you are done with your portraits. Once you are done a couple of quick photos with them and then they can relax again until ceremony time. This way they don’t have to endure the ceremony, then family photos, then bridal party photos then wait on you to do your bridal portraits then rush to the reception. This can be very exhausting for not only them but for you as well.

Killer Photos

6. You get some awesome photos out of it. To be able to capture the initial emotion of both you and your groom is just undoubtedly my favorite part of the first look.

If you haven’t thought about a first look, it’s definitely something to consider. Even if you have plenty of time and are not going to run out of available light the first two reasons alone are worth it.