What's the point of a "first look"

Total new fad lol just like bridal reveal parties, gender reveal parties, themes, etc lol but whatever floats everyones boats. do what makes you happy.

@Jay Farrell

Almost every time you post, I am surprised at your "expert" opinion. None of it seems to be budget conscious or overall design based. You just have strong personal opinions on the non-hosting choices, which as a vendor is not in the best interest of building your brand. I truly am baffled by why you choose to pay to be able to post in this vein.

It's not like having a first look adds anything to the workload of a wedding photographer; instead it is the opposite. Having a first look is the best allocation of time with a photographer basing price off of hours. I do not know of a single professional photographer in real life who opposes first look shoots.

ETA

If you are not paying WW how does that work? You are actively advertising your business through your posting name. If you are not actually paying to post as a vendor, I am more offended at WW for preventing other businesses from not promoting themselves. You being exempt from paying to post actually discredits this website's claims of neutral reviews and non-promotion of vendors.

I dont like the idea it use to be bad luck..but to each its own

@kirackle, yes, that's my opinion. My expert opinion, as this is what I do, and do well. Not sure why you are targeting me, when you have nothing to back up your statement. Oh, and I haven't paid to be on WW in 3 years.

Now then. I don't oppose first looks, as you suggest. Nor do I push them. Some photographers are almost adamant about doing them to fit their idea of the timeline of for their own portfolio. I leave it up to the couple, as it's a very personal choice, and almost belief. My approach to wedding photography is a bit different, as my style hinges on organic moments and very few posed groups. So, it creates no work, or saves no work for me. Whether the couple does some photos together before or after, they still aren't missing all the cocktail hour and never miss any dinner.

I don't attract the Pinterest bride, or those who like to go heavy on the more styled and orchestrated shots. That's deliberate, very deliberate. The couple who wants their story told with minimal hands on direction, and they can forget about it from there....those are my couples. Thanks for your concern. Maybe you should better understand where each vendor here is coming from before you assume we're out for our own agendas and don't care about the couple. Just as not every vendor is for you, not every couple is for us.

It was great for the timeline. In my opinion, the one hour during cocktail hour was no where close to enough time to get ALL bride and groom shots plus family shots. Doing a first look allowed for a ton of extra time for photos before the ceremony.

First of all, I love Future Mrs. B's photo. That's one that will initiate conversations for 200 years. Yep, I'm sure of that, lol.

OP, if you don't want to do one, don't. I come from a generation that believed the first look should happen in the church. Guess what? The number of church weddings, since the day I was married three decades ago, had dropped significantly.

After giving this considerable thought, I've come to the conclusion that where he/she, he/he, she/she sees each other for the first time on their wedding day is immaterial. It's the moment that counts. It's the reaction, the emotion, and the impact that matters -- not if it's 40 minutes before the ceremony or three minutes after it starts.

What you need to do is spend some time contemplating. Some couples don't want to share that first look with anyone else, but they'll abide a photographer. Some couples want to meet eyes with all of their guests surrounding them -- and they'll also abide a photographer.

There is no wrong, no right, and no mistake. You need to consider how you want that moment to be framed -- the two of, technically alone? Then do a private first look. Do you want it to be a awe inspiring moment surrounded by a public frame? Then do it at the ceremony.

Speak to your future spouse. Take some time, and revisit the issue a few days after your initial conversation. You'll figure out what's right for the both of you.

I love either.

I was totally against first look! Now I'm planning a brunch wedding and reception we're definitely doing first look! First look also help ease the stress bride/groom are feeling

I want to do one so we can knock out a bunch of pictures before the ceremony and possibly make the cocktail hour or at least not be rushed for family pictures during cocktail hour. I don't really care about getting a picture of the first look itself. I probably will get a picture of it but not really looking forward to that, neither one of us are very emotional so I kind of doubt there will be a great candid moment there. I just want the extra picture time. Added bonus that I think it will help calm some of the nerves before walking down the aisle.

My FH refuses to see me until I'm walking down the aisle. He's traditional like that. Fortunately, our ceremony and reception site are 2 minute trolley ride so we are hoping to take pictures quickly.

There was a post exactly like this like 4 days ago.

I'm doing it so I don't miss my cocktail hour. My venue features a brick oven in the patio and they make individual gourmet pizza as part of the appetizers. I'm sure not missing that lol.

I agree with PP. We're doing a first look so we don't miss our cocktail hour, but also because it'll calm our nerves to see each other and spend some time together before everything really gets started.

We're not overly emotional nor at all afraid of being the center of attention. In fact, we're fond of it.

We do want to maximize time with our guests, though. It's only a few hours and there will people who literally traveled thousands of miles to be there, so we'd rather spend our time with them that our photographer. (Whom we love, BTW. But she's only from 30 miles away.)

No, it's not for everyone. I see the appeal of first seeing each other at opposite ends of the aisle. But it does have MANY points in its favor, and isn't Pinterest pin of the day.

@kirackle not sure why you're targeting @Jay with your comments, but the OP had a choice to allow vendors to comment... perhaps seeking the opinion of professionals?

I'd rather the honest opinion of professionals with experience. And FWIW, Jay's opinions are clearly communicated, well thought out, and spot on.

Can't say the same for yours.

Late October bride here! First look planned for practical reasons. Ceremony and reception at same location with a cocktail hour between. Not a whole lot of time for pictures. My FH was not on board with first look at first but after conferring with our photographer, we decided to do it to maximize our time, utilize our photog and save some stress. We are escaping to Starbucks,just the two of us between ceremony and reception since we won't be under picture stress. First look: It's just practical for some couples.

A lot of couples do this to have a moment alone together before all the crazyness to enjoy eachother. Also gets a lot of pictures out of the way so you can get back to reception!

I enjoyed this quote "Yes, we did, and it was kind of awkward! My groom didn't really know what to do, and he felt weird having all that attention and expectation on him. People expected him to cry or something, but he didn't. He just said, "Oh you look beautiful!" And we moved on with our lives."

Who's bent out of shape about it?

We are doing it because we want to go to cocktail hour, and it seems like this is the best way to get all of our pictures but not miss out on time with our guests.

The "first look" literally refers to the first time the groom sees the bride in her full wedding glory. Traditionally this moment was captured when she walked through church doors, and it was considered bad luck for the groom to see the bride befote that.

Now that etiquette has shifted to hosting your guests and not making them wait hours while you take pictures after the ceremony, a lot of people decide to see each other before the ceremony and do pictures prior to gusts arriving. The "first look" is just the first moment from the images, but most people do the first look and photos for practical reasons (time constraints, etc.) NOT because they are really going for a "first look" photo. That specific photo is just trying to recreate what used to happen when the church doors opened, since now he won't be blown away by how she looks at the ceremony since he already saw her beforehand.

We're doing a first look because 1) I want pictures taken while my hair and makeup are fresh, 2) we want pictures done during the golden hour, which is about an hour and a half before our ceremony, and 3) we want to join guests in the reception asap.