should we have a first look?

I think that 'first looks' are a brilliant way of creating a truly intimate and personal experience between the two of you, whilst taking away the pressure and nervousness of being in front of a crowd. Photographing your first look also means that you can spend less time away from your guests after the ceremony. 

Hi !!

First looks are awesome!  They create a special moment thats unique and untraditional.  Also it gives you time for photos prior to your ceromony which then means you get to spend more time with your guests after your ceremony.

A ‘first look’ or ‘pre ceremony’ wedding portrait session is becoming a popular choice for Australian wedding couples.

First made popular in the U.S. because of tight timeline restraints between the ceremony and reception, couples sometimes opt to take their bridal portraits earlier in the day before the ceremony or even on a separate day.

It’s become more common here because a lot of couples want to be able to spend more time mingling with their guests after the ceremony, rather than disappearing for ages to take photos.

For couples who don’t mind breaking with the tradition of not seeing each other before the ceremony, but still want to capture the surprise and happiness of seeing each other for the first time on their wedding day, this is a great option to consider.

It still doesn’t spoil the emotion of the groom seeing his bride walking down the aisle towards him. That moment remains just as powerful, no matter how much time they’ve spent together before the ceremony, because the atmosphere is completely different when all of their friends and family are there witnessing the beginning of the ceremony.

In my experience, often couples are a little bit more relaxed and enjoy the ceremony even more if they’ve already met up beforehand!

One of the most emotional parts of a wedding day is when a groom first lays eyes on his bride as she walks down the aisle towards him. In Australia, we have some traditions that wedding couples follow but the great thing about Australia is that couples can create a wedding that is as unique as they are. Some couples decide to have a ‘first look’ whereby we meet with the bride before their ceremony and then arrange for the groom to approach from behind so that I was present to photograph when they first see each other on their wedding day.

We love it when our couples choose to have a first look! If your schedule allows, it's a really lovely opportunity to have a private moment just the two of you. It means you can go into the ceremony as a team, without pressure or nerves. It also allows you to spend more time with your guests, as your photos are already done and you can go straight into the reception. For more tips, check out our blog post on why we love first looks: http://www.iainandjo.com.au/first-look-photos/

Well, most of the time it depends on if you have the time/space for it. But personally, we love it for photo and video purpose. It's such a great moment to capture. 

As photography can certainly capture emotion, when this is expanded to video, it creates an experience.  The 'first look' is a one-off opportunity to take some fantastic photos and video.  Much like the father of the bride seeing his baby girl all grown up.  Capturing this emotion is certainly a great part of the day.

Is it required?  Not necessarily but worth considering for the above reasons.

Hello! A great question! I've photographed quite a few weddings where the couples have opted for a 'first look'. Some have done so out of the desire to have their bridal portraiture before their ceremony, while others who might have felt overwhelmingly nervous and emotional, or who are more private than others, have opted to 'break the ice' and share that first moment privately away from their guests. From a photographers' perspective; speaking for myself, it has enabled the beautiful opportunity to capture those first special moments undistracted. I love capturing raw emotions so its been a fantastic opportunity for me to capture some wonderful reactions of the couples who've opted for this. But please be rest assured that whomever your photographer is, they will focus on capturing your reactions to eachother regardless of if it's a private first look or during a public entrance; those are the winning shots for all of us ;-) I recommend to just do whatever feels most natural for you.

First looks can be a wonderful thing to do. If you wish for the moment that you first see each other to be a private and highly emotional one, then this can be exactly that. If your photographer does it right, they can build that anticipation for you and with the correct positioning can capture some amazing footage of you seeing each other for the first time. The emotion from your groom will not be diminished when it comes time at the ceremony for you to walk down the aisle towards him.

What a first look also allows you to do is get the creative photos out of the way so after the ceremony you can join your friends and family and celebrate immediately after rather than disappearing for an hour while everyone waits around before the reception. It does fly in the face of tradition (seeing the bride before the ceremony) but it is becoming more commonly done all the time.

There are a few reasons I might recommend a first look and few, if any reasons, why I would'nt. Reasons why you might want a first look can include wishing to spend time with your guests in between the ceremony and reception, or maybe you want to keep the first time you see each other on your wedding day a little more personal. Reasons I might advise against it is if there is absolutley no where to get any decent imagery or it would take a really long time to get the two of you together, which would effect the whole timeline of your day, but for the most part if one of my couples wants to do a first look I will do anything I can to make sure they can and make it as awesome as it can be.