Why We Did a First Look | Real Bride Erin

Why we did a First look.

a guest post by real bride, Erin

When planning our wedding timeline, we were limited in the time that we had our venue. We had to have last call for drinks at 9:45pm. I thought yikes!! Our day is going to be short! We decided to start our ceremony at 4 to give us a bit more but time, especially during cocktail hour. Our next thought was- We’re going to miss Cocktail hour to take pictures! Kate had recommended we do a first look and I started researching what this meant. Bottom line- we get more time to mingle and have fun at OUR wedding!

We did our first look at around 1 PM and it was magical- just us (and our photographers and videographers). We had a few moments before the chaos started to just be alone and take in the moment. It took away a lot of the jitters, nervousness and helped us really enjoy the special moments the rest of the evening.

From my husband, Matt’s point of view- He said the anticipation- he was able to see me before anyone else. He said he liked that we chose a location that was special to just us and we were able to share that moment alone. He loved the 20 minute ride to the venue with just the wedding party! It broke the ice and we were all able to relax. (Photographers note: And they were able to share a cup of coffee in honor of their first date and bringing them full circle). 

We went over to our venue, we were able to see it decorated with no guests. We were able to take some time to greet family members and those that had helped make my whole vision happen. It made for a relaxing day! My uncle commented that he loved that we were just hanging out greeting people and relaxed. He said it was “Kinda like having access to the musician before the concert. Just a note- I was not worried about anyone seeing me- I greeted those I wanted and the remainder went straight to the ceremony site.

If you have an opportunity to do this- I highly recommend it! Work with your photographer and team and see if you can get some epic pictures that start your day off right!