The Complete Bridal Prep Guide
Okay. I’ll say it. The groom is just an unfortunate necessity for your wedding - you’ve likely had this day long planned before he was even on the scene (he was probably the last piece of the jigsaw for the day).
As such, we need to remind ourselves who the star of the show is - the bride and her bridesmaids.
Your bridal prep photographs will likely be some of your favourite of the day; they’re normally full of emotions from everyone involved, and help set the scene for the day. As such, this handy guide should give a few helpful pointers on how to get the most from the morning.
The dumping ground.
And no, that’s not a crude reference to a toilet.
Bridal prep tends to get a bit hectic, and before you know it, there are bags and wrappers everywhere.
I’m not one to overly stage all parts of the day, but your bridal prep pictures will look better in an uncluttered room - nothing kills a “having a bit of a moment with a loved one” shot than a load of Tesco’s bags and last night’s pizza box.
Where possible, I recommend allocating a room to be used as the dumping ground, to save scrambling around trying to tidy rooms on the day.
Make time.
This one goes without saying really, but there are some key parts to bridal prep you want to make sure you’ve allocated some time for:
Spending time as a “bridal party” with hair & make up done, but before everyone is in dresses
Having a final few minutes with your dress for the last time before you’re in it
Spending some quality time with loved ones after the “big reveal” before it’s aisle time
Bridal portraits!
Timings can (and usually do) go totally out the window during prep, but try and start the day by building time in for these.
Have the details ready.
I love photographing all the little details during your bridal prep, as I think they really tell the story of your day. Some of the things I'd suggest having readily available:
Stationary (invites, menus, etc)
Earrings, shoes, perfume
Wedding morning gifts & letters (yes, that’s a subtle hint to write each other a wedding morning letter)
Don’t be early.
I can feel registrars and co-ordinators across the land wanting to thrash me as I’m writing this.
I’ve photographed enough weddings to know that nothing good comes from rocking up to your wedding thirty minutes before the ceremony time. You’ll be trying to hide from your guests as they’re still walking in, and your registrars won’t be ready to see you.
For pretty much all weddings, your registrars will be ready for you 15 minutes before the ceremony, and vicars 5-10 minutes before.
I won’t be early either.
“Hair and make up are arriving for 6:30am, so could you arrive for 6:45?” Not. A. Chance.
Realistically, it’s only that last hour of bridal prep where the photography really starts to kick in - before this I’ll generally just be stealing all the pans au chocolat and working out who has the heaviest hangover.
Two hours before leaving for the ceremony is the perfect time for me to arrive - anything earlier than this and you’ll have me photographing you with half a face of foundation on. If you force me to arrive too early, I'll make that the cover of your gallery.
Enjoy it!
The morning isn’t just prep for your wedding day, it is part of your wedding day.
Once you’re out of those doors and it’s ceremony time, the rest of the day isn’t quite so relaxed. You’ll likely be dragged from pillar to post by your guests and family, who will all want to take up as much of your time as they can (yes Aunty Doris, I’m talking about you).
So really do try to relax and enjoy some quality time with your bridal party - it’s likely the only part of the day you’ll be able to with them all.