I love First Looks. One of my favorite parts of the wedding day is when I get to watch the bride and groom see each other for the first time. They usually cry. I cry. So much so that once I had to hide behind a tree because it was downright embarrassing how much I cried. First looks make this moment so emotional and so private.

Normally when I asked my couples if they want to do a first look their first response is “No way! I want him to cry when I walk down the aisle, plus, I’m sorta traditional.” That’s the usual response until we discuss the benefits of doing a first look! Disclaimer: I Never Ever force my couples to do a first look but I know the ones that do have not regretted it one second! I think tradition can really be replaced with REACTION. Every bride wants her groom to cry when he sees her for the first time, or when she walks down the aisle towards him for the first time. In my experience, weddings that had a first look had MORE reaction than those that didn’t! And here’s why I think that happens.

Imagine two scenarios with me:

One. Hair and Make Up ran late, your future husband has been hanging with the guys all morning, joking around, until the coordinator (or me) says it’s time to go to the ceremony. A FLOOD of nerves hits, because guess where every single eyeat that ceremony is looking? His face. I imagine it being pretty equivalent to giving a speech standing on a stage, except, well, happier… So your groom is SO nervous that he can barely focus on what’s about to happen—(You, his absolutely STUNNING bride, walking down the aisle.) All he can think about is his nerves, and how sweaty his palms are, and how he has to wait a good 30-60 minutes to kiss you. I don’t know about you but I’ve never seen Scott and waited an hour to kiss him hello, that’d be torture. So here we stand, sweaty groom, blushing bride, and guess what?! You might even be more nervous than him! I remember one of my first weddings, the bride said she barely remembered the ceremony because she was so nervous! This is NOT how you want to recall your wedding day!

Scenario number 2. You opt to do a first look. Yes, your groom is still JUST as nervous as he would be if he were seeing you at the ceremony for the first time, but now there’s something different. You get to ENJOY each other. You get to calm each other’s nerves, have a silent moment together, cry together, twirl around in your dress, cuddle, kiss, laugh and be PRESENT in each other’s company. Oftentimes, the first look is the ONLY time on the wedding day that couples get to themselves. I’ve asked many past couples so far about their first look experience and all have said it was the absolute best part of their day because they didn’t have any distractions, they simply got to enjoy each other’s company and they were not nervous when the ceremony came around so they therefore got to enjoy the celebration of their marriage with family and friends rather than be a nervous wreck through it all!

Here are some pro’s and con’s of both options:

Option #1 | First Look

Pros:

• The first time you see each other is private and shared just between you two! This is probably the only time all day you’ll get alone time!
• You both will look your freshest! Hair, make-up, the works.
• The nerves of seeing each other for the first time will be gone and then you can simply look forward to and enjoy your ceremony with your family and friends.
• You get so many more portraits! When things run late it’s almost always the bride and groom getting the short end of the straw, getting out time for portraits. This ensures we get a ton!
• You can schedule all wedding party photos before the ceremony, so afterwards all the formal images left to take are family photos and then you’ll be able to head to your reception quickly instead of having your guests wait for a longer period of time.
• You get to go to your cocktail hour! And isn’t that the best food anyway?!
• Your bridal party and family ALSO get to go to cocktail hour instead of taking all the formal pictures. They’ll love you for this.
• This is a great trial run of walking around and moving in your dress before you have to do it in front of everyone at your ceremony!
• Timelines seem to be way less stressful when everything is done before the ceremony!
• Cons:
  • Seeing each other before the ceremony goes against tradition. Option #2 | No First Look
• You do not see each other before the ceremony and the first time you see each other is when the bride is walking down the aisle.
  Pros:
  • You get to keep up with tradition.
  • If you are wanting to have a cocktail hour for guests only that you do not want to attend between the ceremony and reception, taking the bulk of your images after the ceremony will allow your guests to mingle and enjoy drinks while you’re getting your pictures taken.
• Cons:
  • If the ceremony begins late, or family photos run longer than expected, then it’s always the bride and groom photo time that gets cut short.
  • The photo time after the ceremony will take longer so guests will have approximately an hour and a half to two hour break from when the ceremony ends to when the reception begins (this can be a pro or con depending if you want to entertain your guests during this time or not!)

And if you don’t believe me… here’s a few notes from my brides!

“There was just something so intimate about doing the first look… I was completely against it at the beginning of the planning process but after much debate we decided it would be the best thing… Some of the most amazing pictures from my wedding came from the first look spot and if we didn’t do it there is no way we would have had those”- Madison Kruger

“First looks rock. Best thing we ever did . It was a moment for me and him only. It was so special and the only time we had alone together all day!”- Megan Wisner

So, whether or not you’re a traditional bride, or you can’t wait to experience your own special moment, I hope this post was helpful in your decision making process! This is the first of many tips for my bridal series on the blog!