YOU CAN'T SEE THE BRIDE! DON'T DO IT! IT'S BAD LUCK! YOU DON'T WANT TO START OFF ON THE WRONG FOOT!
Woah woah woah, hold on here. What's up with all this superstitious stuff about a groom not being able to see a bride before their wedding ceremony? Well, we're here to not only shed some light on the superstition, but also ENCOURAGE more couples to go the route of a having a First Look.
First of all, let's look at the history of why it's "Bad luck for a groom to see his bride before the ceremony". It actually starts back when most weddings were arranged. Back then, the betrothed were not allowed to see each other AT ALL while the parents of the two handled all of the dealings. Weddings were looked at as business deals between two families more so than a celebration of a couples' love--say a young daughter marrying into a rich family. It's said to be bad luck because the said father of the daughter would be afraid that the man in which she was to marry would find his daughter unattractive and then ruin the deal. In fact, the veil that brides typically wear were originally meant to hide the bride's face to the point where it was too late to back out of the transaction! (Yikes, talk about trust issues.)
Today, things like this just simply aren't the case. Most, if not all, couples know exactly what they are getting into and who they are getting into it with. There aren't anymore nervous fathers who are worried about a wedding not happening on the day of--well, maybe they are, but you get it. And there aren't many grooms being hoodwinked into marrying a woman based on his parents deals and desires. Some will say that it is more exciting when a groom looks down the isle and sees his bride in all of her glory for the first time, but there's another side to it.
Having a first look can be beneficial in a number of ways. For one, it can alleviate some of the anxiety that a couple might have. It is a pretty intimate moment between just the two of them. During this time, couples might exchange gifts like jewelry that they could wear during the ceremony. Another benefit of having a first look is taking away the stresses of your scheduled itinerary.
Usually a first look is almost immediately following a bride getting into her gown. Her hair and makeup are fresh and (hopefully) nothing or very little has caused any stress. It's the perfect time to get the couple together for portraits alone, fully dressed, BEFORE THE CEREMONY. Think about that. If you can get these awesome portrait shots done before the ceremony, it's less time that you have to spend during your Cocktail Hour shooting Formals. Even more, after the couple's first look, the entire wedding party and immediate family can come in and get their "formal" shots done as well! I know what you're thinking: "If we take all of these shots before the wedding, what will we do during the Cocktail Hour?" By knocking out these portraits before hand, there's more room during the Cocktail Hour Formals to include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, special friends who JUST missed the cut on the wedding party, or even additional locations!
It's always all up to the bride and groom how they want to handle their day, but if you can get passed the superstitions and "norms", then you will have so much extra time and less to stress about later in the day.
