Wedding Portrait Session: Is It Right For You?

Wedding Tips

Feb 2

Once you’ve shared the news of your engagement and have fully enjoyed the moment of being engaged, you’ll most likely begin the wedding planning. Typically, most couples book the two most important things first: their venue and their photographer.

As you begin your search for a wedding photographer, you may come across wedding packages which will usually include an engagement session, a day-after session/post-wedding portrait session or an anniversary session. Each of these sessions has their own purpose and their own timing.

A formal wedding portrait session (commonly known as “bridal portraits”) is dedicated just to the couple (can be individual or both). Formal portraits became a tradition in the South, and were typically photographed in a studio. In modern times, formal portraits reflect the couples’ wishes and can include personalized locations, which can be useful for destination weddings. Formal portraits may have originated in the South, but they are quickly gaining popularity around the nation.

Here are three reasons why a formal portrait session may be right for you!

1. You will save time on the actual wedding day.

Weddings happen very quickly! Before you know it, the day will be over, and you’ll be wondering, Wait, what just happened?! I want you to spend more time dancing and celebrating with your guests! When you do a formal portrait session, not only will we take some awesome portraits of you in a more relaxed environment, but you’ll gain more time to spend with your loved ones on the big day itself. We will still take wedding portraits on the day of, but we won’t be pressed for time, since we would have taken portraits at another time.

2. You can try out your wedding hair + makeup and make last minute changes.

During a formal portrait session, you can see your whole wedding outfit come to life! The hair, makeup, the wedding dress, the bouquet, the shoes— everything. It’s a final preview before the big day. Maybe the hairstyle isn’t working quite like you thought it would, or maybe you want to change the way your makeup is styled. This is the perfect time to work out any kinks with your hair and makeup artists!

3. Let’s be real here- the wedding clothes (dress, jumpsuit, suit, etc) can be costly.

Most people usually just wear them for the big day and that’s it! Afterwards, the wedding clothes get tucked away in the closet (waiting for the next generation), are donated or sold. A formal portrait session gives your clothes a second purpose. If you spent a good amount of money on your wedding clothes, why not take more photos wearing them?

Wedding portrait sessions are a great way to have some pre or post wedding fun! It will calm down pre-wedding jitters, get you pumped up for your wedding day, and there’s nothing like celebrating even more. They make a wonderful addition to your wedding keepsakes.

Remember that these sessions are for you— thus you have the freedom to include anything you like and don’t like!