Having a first look with your future spouse on your wedding day is personally one of my favorite moments for couples throughout their whole wedding day. While the intimate moment you can have together is something that you will never forget, there are plenty of benefits that a first look has for keeping your wedding day great. While some people want to stick with the traditional route and see each other the first time down the aisle, I highly recommend a first look to anyone that is getting married. Here are all of the benefits of doing a first look that you can read to your partner if they are on the fence about it.

Getting your photos done so you can enjoy yourselves

The first, most popular, and main benefit of having a first look is what it can do for your timeline of your day. Having a first look means that you can take all of your couples portraits, wedding party portraits, and even your family portraits before the ceremony even begins. This means that after the ceremony, you’ll probably only need to take some extra family portraits and sunset photos for the rest of the day! This means that all of the “hard work” is done after the ceremony and you and your future spouse can really just soak up the day without any other worries.

You (and your wedding party) can attend cocktail hour!

One of the favorite benefits among couples is that they can enjoy cocktail hour with their family and friends. Typically, cocktail hour is built into the wedding day for the sake of the couple and the wedding party to take all of your photos. If you have your photos done already, this means that you can actually go and talk with your family and friends instead! Many couples really want to make time to say a few words to each of their guests, and the best way to ensure you’ll have time to do that is if you do a first look.

Gets rid of the nerves

Many couples feel nerves leading up to the ceremony as it is the first “real, orchestrated” part of your wedding day. But having a first look, you both can relieve some of that pressure by having that moment separate from the ceremony.

Makes the morning/day less stressful

As a wedding planner, there is definitely a completely different energy from the couple and from the wedding party at weddings that do and don’t have a first look. The ones that have a first look are typically more relaxed yet excited, and the ones that don’t do a first look are typically more nervous yet excited. Still excited, yes, but it helps relieve pressure off of everyone when you have already “started” your day before the ceremony.

Guarantees a lovely, intimate moment to remember together

There will be plenty of opportunities to have moments together if you build it into your timeline, but this moment you have together is like no other. The rush of seeing your soon-to-be after the hustle and bustle of the morning is such an amazing moment that I know you will cherish forever. You can’t have that exact moment if you’re having it during your ceremony that follows a certain “order of business”.

Don’t have to feel nervous about your reaction down the aisle

Many couples feel that if they don’t have a big reaction when seeing each other down the aisle, they would be disappointed. At the same time, some people are nervous that they aren’t going to show enough emotion that is genuine. To combat this, having your first look without all of those people watching your reaction will help make it more genuine and less “staged”. Then, at the aisle you can feel more relief that you had a good reaction already, and really be present in the time down the aisle.

Gives an opportunity to say personalized vows or read letters without a crowd

If you want to do personalized vows but you don’t want to profess your love or say inside jokes in front of all of your family and friends, the first look gives a great opportunity to still have those vows but in a private setting. You videographer will also capture this so your family and friends can hear some of it later too!

I personally did a first look at my wedding and it’s my favorite memory of the day. My husband really was unsure about it at first, but he tells me now that he is really glad we had that time together and got to finish photos so we could have fun with everyone during the cocktail hour. I also was pretty thankful we didn’t have to take photos after the ceremony because my dress’ zipper broke after the ceremony and we had to spend a lot of time fixing that and bustling my dress. If we hadn’t done the first look, we would have had to spend that time frantically fixing the dress and probably wouldn’t have as much time for all of the photos we had without running incredibly late.

If you’re still unsure, I totally understand. You probably had imagined seeing each other down the aisle for most of your lives since you didn’t know this was an option. But now that you’re educated on all of the benefits of a first look, hopefully that will help you make a decision that is right for you! I will encourage all of my couples to do a first look, but it is your wedding after all and you should do whatever makes you happiest!

If you would like more help to plan your wedding, you can reach out to me here. Let me know if you’re planning on doing a first look or not!