5 Tips on Where to get ready for your Wedding Day
Choosing where to get ready for your wedding day is such an important part of your wedding planning. When you think about your wedding photography, if you’re having the whole day covered, this will include the wedding preparations, e.g. hair and make-up, photos of the dress, the shoes, jewellery and flowers. Not to mention capturing the atmosphere when you’re getting ready with your wedding party.
It’s important that you prioritise your location and venue to get ready. The last thing you want to do is end up getting ready somewhere cramped, in your bedroom or living room, especially if there isn’t enough space for you and your wedding party. This can mean great or break for your wedding photography!
Here are 5 tips to consider when you’re planning where to get ready for your wedding day
#1 Your Wedding Venue
This is probably the best and first place to explore, if you’re getting married at an actual wedding venue with rooms,. Good wedding venues are usually mindful of wedding preparation space (especially for brides) and tend to have these well lit, beautifully decorated and with ample room for wedding parties to get ready. Finding a space where your dress can be hung in all its glory will be the best thing, and you’ll love the photos.
#2 Size and Space
If you’re getting ready with your wedding party, for example your bridesmaids, maid of honour or maybe a couple of your friends, the chances are you’ll also be having your hair and makeup done at the same time. That’s a lot of people! You’ll also have your photographer and maybe even a videographer moving around inside the space. So when you’re planning where to get ready, be sure to have enough space for you all so that when photos are being taken, the whole space isn’t cluttered and messy. This can really make a hash of your wedding photos.
#3 Natural Light
Light is so important in your space for getting ready. Not only will your hair and makeup artist appreciate it, so will your photographer. To be able to get ready in a naturally lit space will give your wedding photos that really natural, dreamy and beautiful look. And if there are mirrors inside the room, happy days! In ample space with light coming into a nice big window, your photographer can position you to get the best look and feel for your photos. Remember, we won’t usually be bringing large lighting equipment into your prep space so natural light is key.
#4 Location, Location, Location!
If you’re not getting ready at your wedding venue, consideration of the location where you’ll get ready is important. If you are thinking about hiring a location away from your venue, this is your time to get creative. You can now think about how you want your prep space to look, what character you want it to be. You can be picky and choosey if you look at hotels and maybe an Airbnb. When doing so, you’ll want to make sure that what you’re choosing does have the amount of space you want, is nice and light, and that it’s clean and uncluttered. Remember, your wedding day is a time sensitive, deadline centred day, so you’ll need to consider the time it will take you to get from one place to another, ie. from your preparation space to your venue.
#5 Clutter and Cleanliness
Whatever you choose to do, whether it’s your wedding venue, a hotel or Airbnb it’s incredibly important that this space is free of clutter. So this brings us back to the space you have available for you, your wedding party and the belongings you each bring with you. Background clutter can ruin your wedding photos, because once you’re dressed and ready to go, you’ll want to look absolutely amazing in the pre-wedding portraits.
After all the research into where to get ready, here are a few things to think about
Can you see yourself and your wedding party getting ready in that space? Are you able to move around freely without toppling over each other? Does the space feel good, dreamy and part of the wedding?
If the space isn’t at your wedding venue, can you get from A to B quite easily without the worry of transport and traffic?
Can you visualise where you’d have your final pre-wedding portrait, that last nervous photo before you walk down the aisle?
Does the space feel good, clean and relaxing where you can have fun with your wedding party before the big event?
Is there space to hang and display your beautiful dress?
If you’re happy with your answers when you’re looking around, go for it!
Happy wedding planning you beautiful thing!
Dee xx
I hope you’ve found this blog to be useful for you. If you’re looking for your Kent Wedding Photographer and you like what you see on this site, why not get in touch and let’s have a chat about your wedding.
I do have a wedding photography gallery on The Pantiles in Tunbridge Wells. What a wonderful place to come in, have a glass of fizz and talk everything weddings!
Lots of love! xx