Wedding Couple shots BEFORE the Ceremony?

[*Linds*]

My best friend was married in June and they did all of their photos before the ceremony. Granted she did not have a destination wedding, but it worked out really well because it gave them plenty of time and any additional photos they wanted they had some time in between the ceremony and reception to snap them off!

[KRama]

I was also in a wedding where we took pictures before the ceremony. The couple had some really great shots of their private moment seeing each other for the first time that day. I thought about doing the same thing so we can just celebrate with our guests immediately after the ceremony but my FI had a fit when I mentioned it! Turns out he's really looking forward to that moment when he sees me at the end of the aisle. Who knew, the guy is SO not the sentimental type!

[cbell]

I just got married on the 16th and we started the pics at 2:30 up in my room, then went down and did pics of me and the groom, the ceremony started at 4. After the ceremony we did group and family shots and then moved to the beach to do shots with the bridal party. That took about 45 min to an hour and then we let them go to the cocktail hour so we could do some of just me and the groom.

 

If you're planning on doing several different locations allow for more time. I would've like to have more time before the wedding to take some pics of us in the lobby or on the pier and shave off that photography time at the end of the day. We had 5 hours with our photographer, I would've like at least 2 solid hours before the ceremony to take pics.

 

As far as him seeing you before you'll get a good pic of his reaction and he'll still be emotional when he sees you walk down the aisle with the music playing and everyone watching both of you. It also helped with my nerves since it wasn't a huge reveal, by then everyone had already seen us.

[doblauvelt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KRama I was also in a wedding where we took pictures before the ceremony. The couple had some really great shots of their private moment seeing each other for the first time that day. I thought about doing the same thing so we can just celebrate with our guests immediately after the ceremony but my FI had a fit when I mentioned it! Turns out he's really looking forward to that moment when he sees me at the end of the aisle. Who knew, the guy is SO not the sentimental type!

How cute! My FI was the one who brought up seeing each other before the ceremony and I was the one having the fit... he wins though, obviously lol. I just think it would be so nice to have our lil moment and to have it captured on camera is a plus! If it were during the ceremony we'd have to wait until after the ceremony to have that moment... something that will make me antsy!

[trobin01]

I like the idea of having a private moment where you see each other. I think it would make me more comfortable and less stressed after the wedding trying to fit in all our pics. But obviously it is seriously bucking tradition. But that's what a DW is all about!

[caporrone]

just a suggestion - I don't know if you have a tight budget or what not but what about doing the shoot the day after the wedding in the morning?

We hired our photag for 10 hours. the biggest package she offered and we actually split that over 3 days and put them up at our resort as a curtosy. We she shot for 2 hours friday during our cocktail party, all day saturday for the church ceremony at 3 party 7-11 and then we met her the next morning, put our wedding atire back on (which was awesome by the way) and took pictures for a 2 hour shoot all over the resort and trashed the dress at the end. this was totally worth every dollar. our pics were amazing, all the memories captured, and we weren't on a strict time table and totally stressed. shooting the next day just me and marc was super fun, laid back, and we were seriously sooo happy.

This may work for some of you, just a suggestion to look into!

~Courte

[O'Driscoll Photography]

Speaking from my experience as a wedding photographer, I do recommend doing the portraits prior to the ceremony, as this allows my clients to be able to enjoy hanging out with their guests during the cocktail hour, and it also allows them to be able to just relax and spend some quality time together before the nervousness of the ceremony time kicks in.

 

However, some of my clients prefer not to see each other prior to the ceremony, so in that case I do the portraits after the ceremony. It's their day, and so I'm happy to do it this way if they prefer.

 

As Courte mentioned, having a romantic "day after" session/TTD session allows the couple to get some great romantic portraits without being tied down to a tight timetable. And, speaking from experience, having a romantic "day after" session is a ton of fun both for my clients and for me. So, it's really a win-win!

 

Best wishes,

Tod

[barcelo1162010]

A lot of wedding (non-destination) take pictures before the wedding. We are planning on doing our couples and bridal party shots before the ceremony and then getting a few group pictures and family shots afterward. Our ceremony is close to sunset; so we wouldn't have time to do them all afterwards, so made our decision a little easier.

[Barrierunner]

We are not a traditional couple by any means BUT I want to be traditional in that I want to walk down that aisle and see the look on his face when he see's me dressed up like a princess, it is priceless. I think there is plenty of time after the ceremony to do pics and guests won't feel so bad waiting around, they can come along and watch and take a few themselves or go back to their room to freshen up.

[HereFishie]

We have a tight timeframe for our wedding as well and have discussed doing this. I'm not thrilled with it but if I want good light for pics and time with our guests and to enjoy our marimba that we are getting, it's a smart idea. Our ceremony is at 5pm and its 35 min long. The sun will already be on its way down when we're finishing up so this way it will be more relaxed. I'm trying to be chill about some of these non-traditional things we've decided... like getting legal'd before we go!