Why You Should Have Bridal Portraits Done

You've picked the groom, the date, the venue, and most important, The Dress! Now its time to choose your photographer and to pick packages. Occasionally, I will have a bride who doesn't want to shoot bridals for various reasons. The ones I hear most often are: "I don't want to have to dress up twice and go through all the hassle" "shooting bridals involves extra expense and I'm on a budget" "I'm not comfortable having my portrait taken" and finally "We'll have plenty of time to do that at the wedding". All of these seem like good reasons right? Well I would like to share a few reasons why I believe it is so important to have a bridal shoot before your wedding day.

"I don't want to have to dress up twice and go through all the hassle"

Why not! You've probably spent more money on this beautiful dress than you ever will spend on any other item of clothing you will purchase again. After your wedding, chances are you will never put it on again. If your dress makes you feel beautiful, feminine and just absolutely wonderful (as it should) why not enjoy that as many times as you can! Is it a hassle.. well that depends on how you look at it. For a bridal shoot you will most likely be getting your hair and nails done. What a better way to relax! Look at it as pampering yourself. You have probably been very busy planning your wedding. Take a minute and relax! Not to mention one of the things that brides change most often after a bridal shoot is their hairstyle. You might now like the way it looks, it may not be comfortable or it may be to difficult to keep up during the several hours that you will be wearing it not only for your ceremony but for pictures and dancing.

You will probably have your mother or someone else that you are close to helping you get dressed, enjoy that special time together and the most important... you will be spending about the same amount of time in your dress on the day of your bridal shoot as you will on your wedding day. You will have an opportunity to make sure it is comfortable (yes your dress should be comfortable) and that any difficulties with your dress are discovered now not on your wedding day. For example, is there a trick to bustling the dress, is it difficult to lace, does it stretch out after an hour of wearing it making it too loose in places? One other important reason for this dress rehearsal is to be sure your shoes are not only bearable but comfortable. Often brides think tell themselves that they can put up with a little discomfort to look beautiful. However you may feel differently after 3 hours in them.

"It costs more to shoot bridals and I'm on a budget"

Most photographers have packages that include bridals. It may cost a little more, but consider the reasons above and you may decide it is worth it to cut somewhere else if possible, so that you can include bridals in your photography package.

"I'm not comfortable having my portrait taken"

All the more reason to have a bridal shoot. This will be private time to get comfortable with your photographer and yourself without an audience. It makes a very big difference on your wedding day. You will get to know your photographer better and his or her style of shooting and you will feel more confident knowing that your whole ensemble works.

"We'll have plenty of time to do that at the wedding" This one is one that really concerns me. I want you to have beautiful portraits of yourself in this beautiful dress. So many things can happen on your wedding day that will cut down the time to take those portraits. Think of all the pictures you have to take that day, not to mention all the parts of the ceremony and reception that will be going on. Its a balancing act between you and your photographer to ensure that you get to enjoy your wedding rather than to spend the whole time taking photos. Your bridal shoot will be much more relaxed. That time belongs to only you. The only thing you will need to attend to is looking good for that bridal shoot. On your wedding day you will know that those special portraits are already done and of course you will have that portrait to display at your reception.

All of the photos from your wedding experience are important, but consider which ones will be the most precious to you, the ones of you and your groom, all of those special "first" moments and sharing them with your loved ones and finally, those of your cake and other details. But remember, this will be the day that you look and feel the most the beautiful in your whole life. Wouldn't you like to have images of that after its all over? Wouldn't you like to be sure that your dress, veil, hair and shoes are as comfortable and perfect as possible. Then you can just be confident with your appearance and enjoy the reason for the day rather than focusing on something that just doesn't look or feel quite right? As your photographer, I want that for you and I hope I have convinced you to reconsider having your bridal shoot!

Lorri Dailey
Dailey's Photography
http://www.daileysphotography.com/

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