Should I Have Bridal Portraits Taken?

Happy Wednesday!

Did you know that the tradition of the Bridal Portrait Session is mostly a Southern US trend? We once heard a wedding photographer from D.C. say she had never even heard of it! Crazy! If you’ve grown up in the south, you’re probably pretty familiar with the tradition. A couple of months before the wedding, once the bride’s dress is complete with alterations, she will have her photographer spend and hour or two photographing her by herself. She then chooses her favorite of the portraits to have printed and framed (or these days on canvas or metal) to display at the wedding reception.

As common as it is, typically our brides are about 50/50. Half of them want bridals, half of them don’t. Their reasons for wanting them or not wanting them vary, and we respect their decision either way. We thought we’d share a few reasons that we do recommend having bridal portraits taken.

 

#1- Experience

You’ve waited your whole life to go wedding dress shopping. You may have tried on dozen before you found THE ONE. You and the special ladies who went with you all cried and squealed when you walked out of the dressing room. It’s a big deal! A bridal session gives you an extra chance to get all dolled up in the dress of your dreams. Your wedding day will fly by faster than you can blink an eye, so it’s fun to get a little extra time in your dress.

#2- Practice

Your wedding day is not the day to be trying out your hair-do and makeup for the first time. If it doesn’t work out the way you would like, or it turns out to not look as beautiful in photographs as you were hoping, it’s too late! But when your stylist has the chance to practice the hair and makeup you want, then you see it on yourself in photographs, it will be a breeze on wedding day! Or you may decided to make some changes to perfect the look. It’s a win-win! We also recommend using your wedding day florist for a bridal bouquet. It goes the same as with the hair and makeup. Great practice!

This is also a great opportunity to practice lacing, zipping and walking the dress. Once you’re confident in it, you will be more relaxed and have a much better experience. For example, we photographed Sarah Beth’s bridal session last fall before her December wedding. Her dress had an incredible lace back, which her Maid of Honor helped her with. About 30 minutes into the session Sarah Beth started getting dizzy. The dizziness grew worse with time, although it was in the 70s outside. Once we loosened the laces on her dress, the dizziness slowly went away. Lesson learned! Had Sarah Beth not done a bridal session, that could have happened on her wedding day! Isn’t she beautiful? She made her bouquet, by the way! That girl is so gifted!

 

We hope this has been helpful for you if you’ve been on the fence about a bridal session. Every girl is different, and there is no right or wrong answer. Do what makes you feel beautiful!

Speaking of beautiful, here are a few of our favorites from Stephanie’s bridal session at the gorgeous Marlsgate Plantation!