Stress will kill your bridal photo. Posing for a bridal portrait and getting the picture you want is easy if you prepare the right way. There is one way to prepare for a portrait many people don’t give time and consideration to: RELAXATION. If you are stressed or nervous it will be evident in your photos. At first this may seem typical, given, and easy, but it’s not. Being relaxed is the best way to get the best bridal photo.You may have come here expecting to see images of specific poses or ideas for background and lighting. But the advice I'm offering is far more valuable. Leave the technical aspects to your photographer. By focusing on what you can do, you are helping your photographer to get lots of great pictures. Here are some ways you can find the relaxing state of mind you need to get the picture you want.
- Stay in your budget: People assume if they spend a lot of money on a photographer they are purchasing some magical skill that will transform their portrait into the next cover of Bridal Magazine, or Glamour (insert any other magazine you aspire to look like). The truth is, you don’t have to spend a lot of money for the right photographer. Thinking about how you’re going to cover the cost will keep you tense and this will come out in your picture.
- Meet a few photographers: Simply looking at a photographer’s portfolio and going over costs is not an interview. After you decide you like a photographer’s style and price, the MAIN thing you need to focus on in the interview is your comfort level with them. Do you feel relaxed with them? Do you feel confident with them? Or, do you feel intimidated by them? What do you feel? Remember to make sure the person you meet is in fact the person taking the photos. If not, request to meet the photographer, or at the very least have them call you.
- Plan to be EARLY to your photo session: Easier said than done! Hair appointments may start late or run over and other x factors will usually trip you up. Plan ahead for these. Use the extra time at the studio, or on-location, to implement the next tip...
- Use Meditation, prayer, massage, or any other RELAXATION technique right before and during the shoot: Even seasoned performers tend to get nervous before they get in front of a camera, so accept the fact that you too will most likely get nervous. Arrive early to give yourself time to pause and BREATH deeply. Find a way to remove (at least temporarily) other daily pressures from your mind. A good photographer will know how to help their client relax, for example they may run through relaxation exercises together with the client.
- Be real: Just be yourself and be fine with it. You are getting married because someone loves you just the way you are and that’s a wonderful thing. One good relaxation technique is to imagine your beloved behind the camera. Don’t go into the shoot wishing you had picked a different dress, or done your hair differently, or wish you had worn more (or less) make-up. Less stress = more beauty.
What’s more… you can use these tips on your wedding day and you’ll have the same great effect. There will be hundreds of pictures taken by all your friends and family and you will surely be perfectly peaceful and beautiful in every one.
