Should you have a first look before your wedding ceremony? Pros and Cons! Tarureka Estate Wedding - Ruby and James

Couples sometimes ask me what my thoughts are and my preference is for having a ‘first look’ and all wedding/bridal party photos prior to the ceremony. Ruby and James had a first look before their ceremony so this is a perfect example of how the day can look doing things in this order!

I personally don’t have a preference because it’s completely up to each couple and their priorities for the day. For our own wedding, we hired a photographer for 4 hours and did the bulk of our photos before our ceremony so that afterwards we could relax and party (talk about some weird priorities considering photography is my job!)

PROS OF DOING A FIRST LOOK

There are some really sweet and intimate moments that can be captured when it’s just the two of you. You might feel nervous and worried you’ll lose your cool in front of all your guests (which is not a bad thing by the way, I love and respect vulnerability), but if this gives you anxiety then it can be a great way to keep the moment just between the two of you.

As I mentioned earlier, you’ll get more time to socialise with your guests after the ceremony. This was really important for our wedding since a lot of guests travelled from afar who I hadn’t seen in a while. Doing photos after your ceremony could mean being away from guests for 30 minutes - 1 hour (I even hear stories of this being longer if there is travel to a particular location).

CONS OF DOING A FIRST LOOK

The main downside for a photographer is the lighting conditions. It will mean doing photos earlier in the day which is often when the sun is at its brightest. BUT if you have a venue with some shaded areas with tree cover and a great photographer this should not be an issue. For Ruby and James’ wedding, we had some clouds in the sky which really helped defuse the bright light at 1pm and I used this driveway which was mainly covered by trees and in the shade.

Once we finished family photos after their ceremony, Ruby and James were able to spend 2 hours with their guests before heading into the reception. Lots of time to mingle, enjoy the canapes and drinks, play some tennis and get some photos with your friends!

Later in the evening Ruby and James were happy to head out for more photos of just the two of them while the light was really nice. They said they appreciated just having this short moment for the two of them after such a full on day.

Why you should or shouldn't have a first look and bridal photos before your wedding ceremony?

Have you heard of doing a first look for your wedding? Rather than the traditional approach of seeing each other down the aisle before having bridal photos, you do all of your photos before the ceremony and have a reveal where you see each other all dressed up for the first time on the day.

There are some pros and cons to doing first looks. I love both options and will always go with whatever the individual couple wants to do. If you’re on the fence here are some really good points to consider before making a decision. All of the photos in this blog post are from weddings with first looks.

Better light after your ceremony

I know some photographers prefer to do bridal photos after the ceremony. This is because the later in the day you do your photos the better the lighting is going to be. Say your ceremony is at 3 pm, which is pretty standard, that would mean your bridal photos would most likely be either 1-2 pm or 4-5 pm. The closer to sunset time the better but it doesn’t mean that doing photos earlier in the day is going to give you bad photos. Talk to your photographer about finding a location with some shade or tree cover, or do what we did and take most of your photos inside a building. If you’re still worried about the lighting in your photos, work into your timeline 15 minutes for sunset photos, this will give you another opportunity for great photos!

Take away the nerves

If you’re not really into old traditions and wanting a more relaxed approach then doing a first look will be perfect for you. Seeing each other sooner will ease any nerves and you’ll have more fun during the ceremony.

Photos first, party later

Personally, for our wedding we did a first look purely because we wanted to do photos for a shorter amount of time so that we could party and be with our guests (ironic that the photographer wants less photos for her own wedding day, right)! Even an hour away from your guests for bridal photos can feel like a long time and can leave couples feeling like they didn’t get to talk to everyone on their wedding day.