I’m originally from the UK where first looks aren’t really a thing at all, so when I moved here and people kept asking me if they should do one for their wedding, I had no idea. Thankfully I now know better.

YOU SHOULD ABSOLUTELY AND DEFINITELY DO A FIRST LOOK FOR YOUR WEDDING.

Of all the parts of a wedding day, the first look is now probably my favorite. And yes, I’m including the ceremony in that. Am I crazy? Maybe, the jury is still out on that one. But give me a few points to try and persuade you.

For a lot of weddings, the getting ready part of the day is like a small party in and of itself. There’s usually drink flowing and music going and it’s a very social and upbeat time. The excitement of the day builds as you head towards the ceremony. The nerves usually build also. For that reason I like the first look as a little “breather” time for my couple. Nerves tend to release adrenaline and adrenaline is followed by a crash which brings out emotions. Having your first look lets those emotions come out in a private moment between you and your spouse to be.

Without a first look, the first time you’ll traditionally see each other is as you are walking down the aisle. One of you will be standing at the front by the altar and the other will be walking in. In between the two of you is all of your guests, and guess what they all get to see your other half first, before you do. The reason I highlight this is for another reason: people nowadays don’t always understand the decorum of a wedding and they will get in the way with their bodies and their iPads. Is it fair that they block your view from perhaps your most anticipated view of the day? No. You can avoid this by having a first look.

This one is for the shy folks out there. Weddings are emotional, there’s no two ways about it. I’ve seen people suppress those emotions and end up looking stoic AF. While I know what they’re doing, it can often come across in photos as them looking bored or uninvolved and nobody wants that in their photos. If you have a private first look (and I ALWAYS strive to make first look only involve the couple for this reason) then people are more likely to let those emotions flow because they don’t feel observed. I also usually turn on silent mode on my camera at this time just to blend into the background that little bit more.

Having a first look REALLY helps with the flow of the day. Imagine you’re a guest invited to your wedding: you show up, say hi to some people you know, sit through the ceremony and then….the couple disappears for an hour to do their family & wedding party photos. Wouldn’t it be much more fun if after your ceremony you could go hang out right away with all the people who came to see you? I think so. By having a first look you enable the ability to do all the family and wedding party photos BEFORE the ceremony. Which means you can get straight to mingling (and more importantly eating & drinking) right away!

Have I managed to convince you of how excellent first looks are? I hope I have. At the end of the day, what you do on your wedding day is entirely up to you, I’m just there to document it for you. But I hope you do consider having a first look on your wedding day, I think you’ll end up being glad you did.