There is something very special I love to do with brides and grooms, and that is a First Look. This is when, before the ceremony, we steal off to a private, secluded place and allow the couple a first chance to see each other before the ceremony. Now, the traditionalists in you are probably slightly freaking out at the thought of this… but let me explain just why the First Look is a magical, beautiful time during an otherwise emotionally overwhelming and chaotic day.
This is Peter and Ashley. They got married last weekend in the beautiful Temescal Gateway Park in Pacific Palisades, CA. Before their wedding, though, Peter and I took a walk up to a grove of trees at the top of the hill, and we waited for Ashley. She arrived a few minutes later, and I told Peter he had to turn, facing me, while his beautiful bride snuck up behind him. The anticipation was almost too much for him to bear!
And then, there she was… with her arms around him, and all the nerves he had just been feeling melted away….
… and when he turned around, I am not going to lie… there were definitely some tears in his eyes as he first laid eyes on that incredibly beautiful girl who was about to become his wife.
And then, for about 15 minutes, the two of them just held each other close… no one else around, no agenda, no need to be anywhere or do anything… they could just BE together. There were lots of sweet words exchanged between them.
And my most favorite photo of the two of them…
And, finally, it was time to part ways before the ceremony. They shared a few more cherished words between each other, and promised to see each other once again at the wedding altar.
The best part of all of this was that this moment… that most special time when he sees her for the first time… was completely pure, without distraction from an audience, music, people, and so on. And they have it forever captured as a special part of their day. I am so happy and so honored that they chose me to help them remember it forever.
For Peter and Ashley, it was a time to just breathe… to see each other and to know that, no matter what craziness may be taking place throughout the day, nothing else matters in the whole wide world except the two of them. It was a chance to shed any underlying stress from the day and refocus on what was most important – each other. Everything else was just details.
Much, much more from Peter and Ashley’s wedding coming up… ♥
by jessie
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