Advice from a Photographers Perspective

The first dance is such a sweet moment in the wedding day. It’s a challenge for shy brides and grooms (since all eyes are on you!), but I think it’s a particularly lovely tradition, one that can yield some fantastic photographs, and one that deserves some thoughtfulness in the planning of your wedding day. Here are a few easy tips to get you started:
1. Choose that just-right song.
Emotion in real life = emotion in your real photographs. The song can be magical or meaningful, sentimental or just plain fun, but definitely choose one that makes you two dance.
2. Consider the lighting and space you’ll use.
Lighting can add drama, but it also shows off your faces. And I know I’m always reminding folks about their grannies, but your grannies will be glad they can see your faces, too. This might mean planning your first dance just before or after sunset if you are planning an outdoor reception. Or it could mean bringing in lighting to accent the dance floor if you’re planning an indoor or late night outdoor reception.
3. Practice!
I don’t necessarily mean you have to take dance lessons, though I have seen—and thoroughly admired!—some spectacular choreographed and rehearsed first dances. Practice could simply mean slow dancing around your living room a few times before the wedding (which you’ll probably love anyway at that point in the planning!).

by: gia canali

ABSOLUTELY in ♥ | wday photography

Thank you Samm Blake for these beautiful & stunning photos. Tough they are simple, they embody the newly weds love and personalities. Two great characteristics of beautiful photography.














...and what a coincidence that these are our wedding colors too.

wed. advice: photography

"Your wedding photographer will probably try to convince you to do two hours+ of portraits before the ceremony. He wants you to be able to go straight to the reception after the ceremony, but he also wants to capture the first moment you see each other in your wedding garb without any pesky wedding guests in the way. What you get is those incredibly stagy "first look" photos, where the bride and groom just end up looking like they're posing.

Come on. You're nervous. You're about to get married. And then you're supposed to turn and look at each other and be all lovestruck and amazed while pretending there's not a camera pointing at you?

You're robbing yourself of the (trust me) incredible moment of seeing each other for the first time at the altar. Or the arch or the stump or whatever. And you're robbing your guests of the joy of seeing you see each other for the first time.

For fuck's sake, please just take a little time to do portraits after the ceremony. They'll come out much better because you will be SMILING YOUR ASS OFF. You'll barely notice the camera. (Trust me.)"

great advice. thanks ESB. i've been seeing all these great wedding pics and yes, they are beautiful but some just don't ring true. they look so perfect that they could be mistaken as a magazine photo shoot). i suppose there is nothing wrong with that, BUT, i personally appreciate the candid, off the wall pics more because they are capable of capturing that exact magical moment.

(i'm sure i'll be guilty of some magazine photo shoot pictures too when i get married, he he)