A Complete Guide to a Seamless Bridal Portrait Session

Jun 20

It is such a privilege to be a part of the best day of someone’s life. I mean, getting to see the biggest smiles and most genuine laughter in the world is the best thing ever, and getting to hang out with the bride during her portrait session is a huge part of that. Most of the time, this is the first time the bride has had her makeup and hair done, dressed up like this, and had her own photoshoot with a beautiful backdrop, and it’s my job as her photographer to make it special.

There are several things I focus on in bridal portraits to make sure I capture all angles and get everything the bride wants in her shoot.

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Details

I always include several detail shots in my wedding galleries, but here I want to focus on the bride’s details. I typically take several shots in the getting-ready room of the group, but, of course, my main focus is on the bride.

Bride applying makeup in a mirror surrounded with her bridesmaids

Bride putting on earrings looking in a mirror

Bridal curly half-up hairstyle with pearl pins

candid image of a bride applying perfume on a red velvet couch

bride looking in a mirror captured from behind with full dress in frame

I always photograph the bride getting her makeup and hair done and the finished hair style, but there are several more things I photograph if I can: the bride looking in the mirror, putting on her jewelry, opening a gift from her soon-to-be husband, putting on her perfume, or looking out a window. The more natural light you can get, the better, but I know it can be hard to come by in the getting-ready space. You can do without, though: these big, warm lights in the background and the gold and velvet accents make these photos look like a vintage Hollywood dressing room, and I’m living for it!

bride looking in her mirrored welcome sign taken over her shoulder, focus is on the sign

One unique shot I love is something like this one! It incorporates the bride and her dress AND some of the details of the day. It’s such a perfectly unique perspective! Ultimately, it’s up to the bride—whatever is special to her should be photographed. This is a great question to ask when you’re discussing a shot list with a bride: what kinds of details do you want to be photographed? Do you want to have photos of any specific parts of your look? Are there any items you’re bringing and want to have included in some of your portraits? This way, you’ll be sure to satisfy all the bride’s wants and give her so many beautiful memories to look back on.

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Portraits

The portrait session can occur at any point during the day, but there’s usually some kind of time crunch because wedding days are always packed full of schedule items. That’s why you definitely want to discuss a shot list with your bride to make sure you get all the shots she wants. However, if you’re struggling to put together a list, here is a relatively concise list of shots that you absolutely need to get.

Closeup Shots

bridal closeup portrait beside a white board wall with lantern in background

closeup portrait of bride looking down at her white bouquet

closeup portrait of bride looking out a window with her veil over her shoulder

closeup bridal portrait looking over her shoulder

closeup bridal portrait of bride holding veil with focus on her ring

closeup portrait of bride looking over her shoulder taken from the side

For closeup portraits, I always have the bride do some poses with her bouquet (because it’s BEAUTIFUL!) and some without, and I try to do at least a few focused in on her ring. You can do some of these indoors if the lighting is right and some outdoors. If the venue has more than a few good photo locations, it’s always a good idea to find a few different backdrops for these timeless closeups, but the major focus is on the bride.

Middle Distance Shots

bride looking to the side with her bouquet in hand and veil covering part of the frame

bride sitting on a pew with white petals scattered below her looking to the side with bouquet

bride standing by white door and whitewashed brick building holding out her veil

bride looking away with veil obscuring more than half the frame

bridal gown and veil cascading down wooden stairs lighted by windows to the right

Middle distance photos are a great opportunity to highlight the bride’s whole look. This is the place for a flowing veil—shoot through the veil or have the veil as a background or foreground piece. Using the veil rather than just letting it hang over the bride’s shoulder give the portraits a dreamier, cleaner look, making for a timeless wedding album!

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Faraway Shots

These are the absolute showstoppers. This wedding took place at Howe Farms in Tennessee, which has a TON of beautiful photo locations, so I had to get a lot of these shots. This showcases the bride’s long veil or train along with different parts of the venue she wants to highlight. Shots taken at different parts of the venue can also be a nice memory for the bride and groom to look back on after their wedding, since they’ll likely spend the day taking part in their ceremony and reception rather than exploring the venue. All in all, this is the chance to get that veil flowing in the wind (if you don’t have wind, find an assistant) and capture the big picture.

Overall, it’s important to get what the bride wants and take advantage of all the unique locations at the venue. It may be helpful to scout out the venue beforehand by looking at pictures online or on social media. That way, you can make a plan to make the most of your time for bridal portraits. Remember, this is the bride’s wedding day, and she makes the calls, but the photographer is there to offer inspiration so that she can have an album she can’t wait to receive.