Why The
Bridal Session
Is A Bride’s Secret Weapon to a Perfect Wedding Day
Have you ever looked through family photographs and stumbled upon an antique black and white photograph of your grandmother or great grandmother decked out head-to-toe in their wedding gown? Usually the hair is perfectly coiffed in the style of the times and the make-up colored in, but the bride-to-be glow is unmistakable.
Bridal session photos have come a long way since then but ALL THE FEELINGS still remain. The bridal session portrait is a family heirloom that is to be treasured.
What is Bridal Session Photography?
Today, bridal session wedding photography is as straightforward as it sounds. It’s a photography session that’s all about you, the bride, dressed in your wedding gown and with full wedding day hair and make-up. The doors have been thrown up wide for what was traditionally an “in studio” photography session. Fun, unique locations that match the bride’s personality are now the location of choice.
The bridal session usually lasts around 1.5 hours, but those 1.5 hours mean so much more than just capturing gorgeous photos of you in your wedding gown. It can have a tremendous positive impact on your wedding day.
Why is a Bridal Session important?
I’m a big fan of the bridal session, not just because I love spending as much time as I can capturing the beauty of my Gingersnap brides, but for additional practical reasons. Read below for my top reasons that a bridal session should be included in your wedding photography package.
Dress Rehearsal for Hair & Make-Up. Along with beautiful photos, think of the bridal session as a hair and make-up dress rehearsal for your wedding day. I suggest you book an appointment with your wedding day make-up and hair stylist as a test run. This will help you finalize your wedding day look, and also help your hair and make-up artist stick to the wedding day timeline. They’ve had a practice run, too! I can’t tell you how many brides have made changes to their hair, makeup, or dress after our bridals session!
Learn How To Move In Your Gown. Speaking of practice, your bridal session is also a great time to get familiar with wearing and moving around in your wedding dress. Unless you are changing into a different reception look, you will be in this dress for 7+ hours! You’ll be walking, dancing, sitting, hugging...all the things and you need a little practice getting used to moving in your dress so you can be oh-so-comfortable on your wedding day.
Takes Stress Away from The Wedding Day. The wedding day time-line can fluctuate. We hope that it doesn’t, but if it does, we won’t be freaking out that we’re cutting into “bridal portrait time.” Don’t get me wrong. We can still allot the appropriate amount of time for bridal portraits on your wedding day timeline, however if there is a time crunch, we’ve already captured photos of you in your dress during the bridal session! THIS can be a huge relief when life stuff happens.
Reception Décor. Guests LOVE to see photos of the bridal session right along with pictures of the engagement session. Print these images out and place them in vintage (or modern frames) and use them for individual table centerpieces or welcome table décor.
Practice Being in Front of the Camera. During your bridal session, you and I will work together to create beautiful images. This is a great time to practice being in front of a camera, because, let’s face it...sometimes it can feel awkward. It’s just not something we do everyday! I’ll coach you on how to hold your body for the most flattering profile and you’ll learn to loosen up and be authentic in front of the camera. Your wedding day is ONE & DONE, so it’s better to stamp out any camera shyness prior to the big day, because there are no do-overs. This is also why I recommend an engagement session as well.
Beautiful images that help you have a smooth sailing wedding day? The bridal portrait session really is the bride’s secret weapon to a perfect wedding day. Contact me here to learn more about the Gingersnap bridal session!