So, you’ve decided to schedule a bridal session! This is going to save you so much time on the wedding day. Now you may be wondering how to prepare for a bridal session. The preparation you do for your bridal session is going to be SO beneficial for your wedding day and bring you so much more comfort on your wedding day knowing that you’ve done this part before. There is a lot that goes into a bridal session, so I’ve created this guide to help you prepare.

1. Bring A Bouquet

Florals bring so much to your portraits and elevate the overall result. It brings everything together so beautifully. There is also an art to holding your bouquet that takes a little practice. Don’t worry – I’ll show you! The bridal session is a great way to practice holding it. It can be quite heavy sometimes, so this will give you an idea of what to expect on the wedding day. You can ask your florist about a mock bouquet for your bridal session!

2. Schedule a hair and makeup trial

You should do this whether you are doing a bridal session or not! So often brides will decide they want to do something differently. Some brides just decide they want two different looks. Additionally, if you don’t usually wear a lot of makeup, it can be an adjustment and take some getting used to. Your makeup artist knows that makeup shows up differently on camera.

3. Steam your dress and veil the night before

This just saves time and is one less thing to do when you are getting hair and makeup ready. Regardless of when you do it, we don’t want a wrinkled dress!

4. Bring SOMEONE WITH YOU

It is so much more fun to have a loved one to share this experience with you! Bring a bridesmaid, mom, sister, etc. Plus, there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes of these “effortless” bridal photos. It takes a lot of time to lay your train, fix your veil, etc. Not to mention, it can be hard to get around easily in your dress while carrying everything. We’ll do shots with and without the bouquet the veil so it is so helpful to have someone there to hold all of these things for you and be an extra set of hands.

5. Don’t forget the small details and accessories

Bring your jewelry, veil, the shoes you’ll wear, etc. If your dress has buttons, bring a hook for buttoning those up!

6. Bring the correct undergarments

Your dress may require a certain type of bra, garment tape, etc. Bring that! Also make sure you bring nude colored undergarments for your white dress. You’d be surprised how often brides forget that!

After Your Bridal Session

After your session, revisit what you were happy with. Let your florist and hair/makeup artist(s) know if you’d like to make any changes or if it was everything you dreamed of it being! Clean your dress and make sure you get any debris off the bottom. Go ahead and steam it, and then store it in a safe place until the wedding day!