What's the best set up for a "first look"?

divamum

So for Wedding #2 (the other friend-who-begged), they want a first look. Sounds good to me! But I have no idea how to set it up for maximum photo-opps. Wondering if there's an "optimum" (eg best angles for shooters, do you bring bride to groom or groom to bride etc etc)

Any thoughts welcome. Thanks in advance!

Matthew Saville

Two photographers, 70-200's, lots of bright shade.

Groom stands still, bride comes up behind him, criss-cross the photographers so that you're not in each other's backgrounds, and coorindate with any video pee's to get them to shoot the same way. If the video guy wants to use a wide angle and glide-cam follow the bride and circle around them, (thus ruining all photos) ...simply insist that the videographer do that later in a re-take.

This wedding I shot recently has a couple good first look photos...

http://www.linandjirsablog.com/associates/summit-house-wedding-paul-jaime/

zoomer

Tell the groom you are going to shoot some portraits of him. Have the bride sneak in from the background and tap him on the shoulder.

divamum

Thanks!

Matt, "bright shade" at the end of November on the east coast is probably pushing it, but maybe we'll get lucky and it won't be cold, grey, a howling gale, or snowing.....

Blurmore

Elevator, balloon light, go pros. lol, no...what Matt said, it takes some practice to stay out of each other's shots. I usually prefer if someone has a WA, just for the variety of it.

Blurmore

Zoomer, I've never actually done that, with the groom not knowing, have you actually been successful at it? I can see it dragging out uncomfortably with brides being brides.

divamum

Thanks Blur!!

divamum

Revisiting this - all ideas welcome! It turns out that my bride this time out is actually pretty anxious about everything, so any further advice to make this work smoothly and happily is welcomed

Matthew Saville

divamum wrote: »

Revisiting this - all ideas welcome! It turns out that my bride this time out is actually pretty anxious about everything, so any further advice to make this work smoothly and happily is welcomed

For bridal anxiety on a wedding day, I prescribe alcohol.

Just kidding, but not necessarily. ;-)


Mostly it just comes down to keeping calm yourself, and acting like you know what the heck you're doing at all times. Honestly my best advice is to just not over-think the first look too much. Too many times it turns into this elaborate ordeal that has to be finely orchestrated, when really all you need to do is find a semi-private area with decent shade and cut 'em loose with each other...

=Matt=

zoomer

Yes that is how I usually do it. Grooms are easy to fool, they never figure it out unless a bystander blabs it. I tell them since we have a minute lets get a couple portraits cause the bride is not ready yet.
Brides have a lot of fun with the sneaking up bit.
Sometimes a couple will have their own first greet already planned....if so...go with the flow.

divamum

They both knew about it - we didn't even TRY to do it as a "surprise", especially since their location of choice was a few blocks away and they wanted to drive rather than walk. The bride was nearly 45 minutes late from the salon, and it's only because I built int a TON of extra time to the schedule that it worked out at all, but overall, we were pretty pleased with the session we had with the two of them

Michael was shooting wide and I was on a telephoto, so we made a great team and got lots of good "reverse shots"




This was actually shortly after the first look per se, but we had a chance to get a BUNCH of nice, relaxed, lifestyle-vibe portraits of them, which is what they wanted. This was actually the easiest and most enjoyable part of the day in the end, I think!