I feel like this is one of the most controversial topics in the wedding world! Deciding to do a first look at your wedding doesn’t have to be stressful! Actually, it should be the most LEAST stressful event to take place on the big day. It’s full of excitement, privacy, emotion, and is a quiet, sacred moment on the day that you say I Do. I am in no way telling you that you HAVE to have first look to have a great wedding. No way!! But I’ve been in the wedding industry for over five years now, and have seen the beautiful benefits of why having a first look on your wedding day is a great experience and perk to add into your day. So let me walk you through why I truly believe first looks are a great decision!

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#1 The First Look is the only part of the day to have a quiet moment ALONE with your, almost, spouse!

Wedding days are long, super super fun and exciting, but also can be a little crazy once family and friends arrive. The first look is a moment before the guests arrive, just the bride and groom (and photographer ofc!), away from the craziness of getting ready. It’a moment to see each other and just talk, soaking in every ounce of emotion. The day has finally arrived, whether you have been planning it for a year, or just a few short months, everything you have been planning and booking is happening. Why not take a moment to just embrace it with one another? Once the ceremony starts, you’ll be spending the rest of the day having fun with your friends and family, which is amazing right?! But unless you sneak away from everyone, you will never truly be able to just enjoy a moment with each other before the day is all over.

I believe this is the most important point, you need to have that moment with each other, away from all the noise and excitement to just soak it in together. It’s your day! Your BIG DAY! Take a moment to enjoy each other.

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#2 Relieves pressure and nerves!

Okay, hear me out, I know that every man is different. Some don’t mind showing emotion in front of people, but some do. Having a private first look takes the pressure off the groom who fully just wants to express his love for his bride. A private first look allows for words to be shared, emotions to be shared, and a time to embrace. Whereas, at the ceremony, you can quickly share a “you look so beautiful,” but the show must go on.

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#3 It will actually allow you to spend MORE time with your friends and family!

By choosing to share a first look before the ceremony, this actually allows for more time to be spent with your loved ones after the ceremony instead of still worrying about taking pictures. Without sharing a first look, you still have to plan on having family formals, full bridal party, and bride and groom portraits taken after the ceremony. That’s at least an hour and half of picture time spent away from the celebration you’ve been planning for forever and spent $$$ on. By sharing a first look, all portraits besides your formal family portraits are done before the ceremony! Family formals typically only take about 30 minutes, so after that, you are free to party! (And your bridal party will thank you that they are free to hit the bar!)

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#4 You get MORE pictures!

You are investing in photography to capture your entire day, why not make the most of it and stretch it as far as you can! What I mean by this is that with the first look, we’ll have some portrait time before the ceremony as well as after during sunset. Depending on the time of year and when the sun sets, I’ll steal you away from the reception for about 15-20 minutes to capture those glowy, dreamy, romantic portraits as the sun is setting – aka bonus round of portraits that you will absolutely LOVE!

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