Where to get ready – how to choose the perfect ‘before’ venue for your wedding
The ritual of getting ready for your wedding celebration is a time-honoured tradition and an opportunity to create lasting memories with the loved ones you choose to share the day with. Alongside that, it’s a chance to diarise the day with beautiful photography that chronicles the laughter, tears and all those special moments.
To make the most of this precious time, and make sure your photos are amazing, choosing your ‘getting ready’ venue is worth considering carefully.
Things to think about:
Space
Depending on the size of the wedding party there could be quite a crowd coming and going, so you’ll need to make sure your chosen venue won’t be too crowded.
Look for somewhere that has several rooms and more than one area for people to dress, relax and snack throughout the day.
LOTS of light
For great photos, light is a must-have, and the best you can hope for is soft sunlight through lots of large windows. Keep this in mind as you shop for your dressing area.
Great outdoors
Allow yourself the option of relaxing outside. A breath of fresh air will do everyone good on a stressful day, and your photos will benefit from a change of backdrop.
Distance to the wedding venue
The longer the drive, the more chance of mishap or traffic, so getting prepared either onsite or close to the wedding venue is a great idea.
For your photographer, being able to travel between where you are and where the partner is will make logistics a lot easier.
Charm and character
The getting ready venue will feature heavily in your photo diary of the day so try to find somewhere you love that reflects your style and personality. If you feel comfortable in your surroundings, you will enjoy your day much more.
Options galore
There are lots of great options to choose from. Some wedding venues have a bridal suite, or you could rent a villa in a resort.
One of my personal favourites is renting a house through Air BnB. You should be able to find somewhere that ticks all the boxes above and avoids the boxed in, low light that hotel rooms can suffer from.
Whatever your choice, make sure you stock up on the yummy nibbles and champagne to keep everyone going.
