Bridal Portrait Sessions, A Southern Tradition

5 Reasons Why You Should Schedule a Bridal Portrait Session

Jessica at the Barn at Half Moon, Jacksonville North Carolina

Bridal Session North Carolina Wedding Photographer Barn at Half Moon Jacksonville

As a former history teacher, I’m going to start off with a little history lesson here on Bridal Portrait Sessions. Bridal portraits originated in Europe as part of the wealthy class. They weren’t always photographs, but were paintings. This was a tradition brought over to the American colonies, especially in the South due to its strong ties to the European upper class Bridal portraits have remained a long-standing tradition in the Southern States, but have gained popularity everywhere.

Why is that?

Well, there are several benefits to scheduling a bridal session before your wedding. Keep scrolling and I will describe them….

1. A Bridal Portrait Session is the perfect practice run for hair, makeup (and your dress!)

One of the greatest benefits of bridal sessions is the chance to try out your wedding day look before your wedding day. Most of our brides always set up a trial for their hair and make up. We say take that a step further and put on your dress, too! This is a great opportunity to see your entire wedding look all put together. We know you have pinned and saved all of this wedding look inspo, so now is your chance to finally see it all come to fruition. Book your bridal session for after your hair and makeup trial. Pro Tip – You can also ask your florist to create a trial version of your bouquet! Seeing it all together can help you decide if you want to make any changes before your wedding day.

2. A separate portrait session can save time on your wedding day.

When you book a bridal session, we can focus totally on capturing you, the bride. On your wedding day, we are focused on capturing you, the groom, the wedding party, the details, family, the guests, etc. Even the best planned wedding day timeline can feel squeezed and it can be difficult to carve out lots of time for bridal portraits. Your bridal session can help create more time on your wedding day to focus the photographer’s attention on all of the other careful details you have planned, as well as creating more portraits with you and your groom. We make it a priority to capture portraits of the bride every wedding day, whether they have had a bridal session or not. BUT, having a bridal portrait session before your wedding day will give your photographer a chance to be more creative and focus on capturing the authentic moments as they happen and not just portraits.

3. These sessions can create special memories with family and friends.

Almost every bridal session has at least one mom, sister, auntie, or best friend who is over the moon to see you all dressed up! Bridal sessions come with their own special opportunities to create memories. These sessions are always full of laughter and happy tears. A big reason I believe these sessions are so special between the bride and her friends and family is because it comes with less pressure than the wedding day, which leads me to the next point…..

4. Bridal Portrait Sessions are much less pressure than the wedding day.

Let’s face it, cameras make lots of people nervous. Putting yourself in front of the camera can make you feel very vulnerable. Now add the expectations of a wedding day and this can be panic-inducing for some people! If this is you – a bridal session can help you shake some of those wedding day nerves. Getting all dressed up for a trial run of your wedding day, having an intimate group of people around to support you, and moving at a slower pace with your photographer can be a very enjoyable experience for even the most camera-shy brides! Practicing different poses, finalizing your wedding style, and seeing how amazing everything looks when you see those final images can be a huge confidence boost and make you even more excited for your wedding day!

5. Bridal Portrait Sessions can create more images for you and allow you to get more creative!

Let’s be honest – your wedding gown, your hair and makeup, your shoes – all of that was an investment. Who says it can only be worn once? A bridal session will give you another opportunity to dress up and look fabulous! From a photographer’s standpoint, I know at a bridal session we don’t have to rush to meet a certain timeline. I know that we can take a moment to help you get comfortable. We can try different poses and ideas. And another pro tip: your bridal session doesn’t have to be in the same location or season as your wedding! Are you having a spring wedding, but love all of the fall colors – you can schedule your session for the fall! If you love your downtown, industrial venue but want to connect with your rustic roots – we can have your bridal session on the farm! Bridal sessions give the bride so much more control to create portraits they will fall in love with!