One of my favorite questions I get to ask a couple is if they are doing a first look. Its even better when a couple doesn’t know what that is and I get to walk them through the moment. I first have to tell you that I am a traditional girl. If I was to get married again, it’d be very hard not to get a big dress and do it all over again exactly the way I did it the first time… except with pinterest. There has only been one case over the years that I really encouraged a first look and it was with Brittany & Brian who’s photos are below and another December couple back in 2010. The only times its been really encouraged is when a ceremony starts at sundown and we have to take the photos after the ceremony. As natural light photographers, we’re chasing that golden light all day long and if its after the ceremony, it can be a bummer. Our winter couples always do a first look and I’ve never had anyone regret it.

So what is a first look? Well its just that, a first look between a bride & a groom. Its before the ceremony and just between us photographers and the couple. Coty and I typically scope out the venue before the moment and have the perfect spot picked out. Sometimes we’re at a venue where we’ve been before so we already know exactly where we’re going to go. Coty takes the groom to the designated spot and lets me know they are in position and I bring the bride to her groom. I usually do a quick fluff of the dress, tell the bride she looks beautiful and I get into position for the photos and she makes her way to her groom. I seriously love these moments so much I sometimes burst with joy! There is something so genuine about the first time a couple sees each other before the wedding day. Whoever came up with this idea is genius because you cannot get a more genuine reaction for a couple than in the first look! So what is the hesitation in doing these? Well some would say it breaks tradition. We’ve all heard its bad luck to see a bride before the wedding but its apparently good luck for it to rain? Okay so lets ask our 2015 brides if they’ve liked the rain on their wedding day and then we’ll see if thats true! You cannot get more sacred then the act of walking down the aisle, exchanging vows and rings and saying “I do.”. This day and age everyone is breaking tradition and wearing a colored wedding dress, serving food from food trucks and wearing two dresses on the wedding day! So I say break tradition and do a first look. Spend the whole day with the person you love most in this world and soak in the whole day together! So my top reasons for doing a first look?

1. More time in the day.

2. Intimate and genuine moment captured between the bride & groom.

3. Time to relax, have fun and spend more time together.

4. It frees up the couple to enjoy their cocktail hour and mingle with their guests.

5. Guests appreciate the regular one hour cocktail hour rather than a couple hours that are spent taking more photos between the ceremony & reception

6. MORE PHOTOS! I know it has something to do with the timeline being longer and more time in the day to take photos but we always walk away with more photos when a couple do a first look!

Jess & Jason’s first look was one of my favorites last year. Jason was brought to tears when he saw his bride for the first time! 

A few words from Brittany about her first look. “Even though it goes against tradition I always wanted to do a first look for our wedding day. It took a lot of convincing to get Josh on board, as he is very much about tradition. He was afraid that it would take away from the first moment he saw me walk down the aisle. Truth is, the first look was better! We were in a private spot with just our photographers, we got to laugh, cry, and hug. After we saw each other, we were no longer anxious. We were both able to relax and enjoy the rest of the day together. On top of that we had extra time with our photographers which I think is super important. The photos from our first look are some of my favorites, they show so much love and emotion. The rest of the day never felt rushed, and I know if we hadn’t done the first look I would have been stressed. The best part was we still had crazy butterflies when I was walking down the aisle. If you are on the fence about doing a first look, do it! You won’t regret it.”

Because not every couple wants to see their other half before the wedding, some opt for something intimate and unique and its something I like to call “behind the wall moment”. So I totally made that up but when couples describe it, I never know what they’re talking about until they say something along the lines of “behind the wall first look”. So here is Caroline & Andrew. I love how she totally snuck a peek at Andrew! This can be so sweet for the couple who don’t want to see ecahother but want to have a quiet moment together before they become one. A lot of couples pray together, exchange notes or even give each other gifts. We are always up for this intimate moment before the ceremony but its best to give us a heads up so we can find the perfect spot.