Wedding Photography Poses - Part One

There are many getting-ready poses that cannot be missed prior to the big event.

Most photographers, even beginners, are aware of the before shots. However, many photographers neglect to create their own "brand" of creativity or poses. One important and traditional shot before a wedding would be the bride and her party getting ready. Pictures of the bride getting ready are absolute classics.

Any good photographer can create the standard photographs of the wedding but how do you put your personal "twist" on things? Could the mother in law perhaps be trying to "strangle" the bride? I know that's a little far-fetched but many clients who have a great sense of humor would love this type of staged comedy.

You'll want shots of the bride getting advice from her beloved family including her mother, grandmother, aunts and girlfriends as well as applying cosmetics and fixing hair, putting on the dress, garter, and jewelry. If the bride is religious you could even have her reading silently from the bible, perhaps a prayer from Psalms. This is also a great pose for the groom before the wedding vs. afterward with the idea in mind that they are individually praying for a blessing on their wedding.

What you'll be allowed to shoot greatly depends on the preferences and ultimate decision of the bride and groom.

You can apply the same "getting ready" shots of the groom and his party of merry men getting ready for the big event. Sometimes it's not possible to get both so whatever you do, don't forget the bride! If the bride and groom are getting ready at different locations it won't be possible to shoot both at the same time. It might be a good idea to remind the bride and groom beforehand so that they can make arrangements for one of the groomsmen to take some cool shots of their getting ready scene.

Remember that tradition maintains you should get more shots of the bride than anyone else including the groom.

You can easily get shots of the men together just before the actual ceremony which constitutes "before shots". And, it's such fun taking the man shots being manly. One never knows what type of pose or action you'll catch in film while the men are hanging out before the wedding.