Tips for Getting Ready

Champagne pop on Emily’s wedding morning

The morning of a wedding day is one of my favourite things to capture. Seeing both bride and groom with their closest family and friends, getting ready and having the anticipation build up to seeing each other for the first time on their wedding day is such a beautiful experience for me to be a part of. The below is an exert from part of my client wedding guide, which is given to all of my couples to help navigate their day from a photography perspective!

Here are a few things that will help the time before your ceremony be more meaningful and help the quality of the photos:

INTENTIONAL SPACES

Be intentional when selecting your getting-ready spaces, as they can set the tone for the entire day. Since preparation images contribute significantly to your wedding day narrative, carefully choose the location. Opt for a place with style and character that aligns with your wedding's aesthetic. Look for a space that is well-lit, spacious, and exudes a bright atmosphere. Something like Three Rooms Sydney is a great choice!

Choosing to get ready at your family home adds a personal touch, however if this is your chosen location, ensure that the house or the specific room(s) is neat, bright, spacious and clutter-free. This ensures that the focus of the photographs remains on you, without distractions from other objects in the surroundings. Alternatively, I highly recommend booking a nice apartment or house, there are a lot of great options on AirBNB. Make sure it’s only the people that need to be there present; bride, bridesmaids and parents for example. Otherwise, it can become a bit chaotic. Use one room to store all your bags etc and have another room to get dressed in.

Note: a lot of hotel rooms can have poor lighting and be quite small making it more difficult to capture really beautiful images.

TIDY rooms

Keep spaces clear of clutter as much as you can. Have a designated “tidy area” near a window space where you do your getting ready photos, this will make for much better photos focused on the moment rather than the bright plastic shopping bag in the corner.

GOOD LIGHT

Try and get ready near a window with natural light coming in, make-up artists usually gravitate towards this spot anyway which is why it’s ideal that they have left prior to me arriving. It is much prettier for details and your skin than yellow overhead lighting. Keep indoor lights off during getting ready photos so you don’t get mixed colours in your photos (don’t worry, I’ll switch them off if you forget).

Add a personal touch

Give your bridal party and family gifts, pop a bottle of champagne, get matching pyjamas or spend some time reading a letter from your significant other before you see them for the first time. The morning is a great time to add your personal touch to your wedding day in a calmer and slower paced environment.