The question of whether to get dressed at home, in a hotel or at your wedding venue on your wedding morning is one I get asked often by brides. From a wedding photography perspective this is a great question as the first photo’s you will see when you receive your images will be the ones of you getting ready and they really set the tone for your day (and your wedding album).
I have previously talked about Making The Most Of Your Wedding Morning and my number one tip in that post was: Pick Somewhere Beautiful to Get Dressed
I personally love waking up somewhere beautiful, and why would you not want to do that on one of the most special day’s of your life? For some people this may be a hotel or their wedding venue, but for others, their home is one of their favourite places and they have spend so much love and time making it just perfect. So to help you decide what would be better for you, below I’ve outlined a few things to consider.
LIGHT
When picking where you get dressed, think about the light in the room. I know photographers are always talking about light, but it is hugely important if you want the fine art look. Yes, we can always use a flash… But those bright and dreamy images you keep seeing on wedding blogs and in all the magazines are only achieved when there is lots of gorgeous natural light to work with.
DECOR & CLUTTER
This point is most important if you are considering getting dressed at home. Take a look around and see if the room is cluttered (if you are anything like me, there will be a bit of clutter around – God bless storage space under the stairs!) and make sure you have somewhere to pack it all away into.
If you are renting, you may not have control over too much of the décor in the house. I know this may sound odd, but consider whether you actually like the colour of the walls in the room you plan to get dressed in. I once lived in a house with avocado green walls in the living room and the owner refused to change them… This is an important thing to think about because those walls are going to be in the background of all your photos and will help set the tone for your day (also, dark walls will swallow the light in the room).
SPACE
So how much actual space do you need to have to get dressed in? And how much space is there in the room you want to get dressed in? This is where you need to be realistic about how many people will be joining you in the morning. Generally this list will include; your bridesmaids, flower girls, your mother and possibly mother-in-law, the make up artist, the hair stylist, the videographer and me, your photographer. If you have children, they may even be there with you in the morning too. Will there be enough room for everyone to move around comfortably?
This is a morning where you want to really be able to sit back and enjoy being pampered, spending the last few hours before saying ‘I do’ with your closest girls… You may feel a few nerves, you may shed a few happy tears. So you will really want a little bit of space to move and breathe during this time and not feel like everyone is on top of you.
I hope this little post has been helpful. To book your wedding photography package, contact me.
