5 Tips to Getting Drop-Dead Gorgeous Bridal Photographs
by Michael J. Ward
Getting seriously beautiful photographs in your wedding gown is a once in a life-time opportunity. A good photographer will merely capture pictures of your day - kind of like a documentary. An excellent photographer will depict you in all your beauty and provide photographs you'll treasure for the rest of your life.
Want the posh style of the best wedding photographers, but don't have the budget? Below are 5 simple tips to get the most out of any photographer:
- RELAX YOUR SMILE. Big huge cheesy smiles are trade-mark amateur hour photographs. Tight (or big) smiles squint your eyes closed, add wrinkles to your face, and contort your normal facial features. The face at rest will offer a serious pose. The face with a faint smile is perfect to reflect happiness and still capture your sparkling eyes. Having trouble getting a faint smile? Go ahead and give a big cheeser, and then as you relax, your face will hold a slight smile.
- TURN THAT FROWN UPSIDE DOWN. Many brides smile upside down and don't realize it. They might say they never look good in pictures and that's the main reason why. When they smile, the corners of their mouths tilt down, rather than up. The face looks disappointed, upset, and contorted. To correct this problem, look into a mirror and flash your normal cheese smile... then think of something dirty. The corners of your mouth automatically turn upward when you think of something... arousing.
- MOVE YOUR ARMS. Want to drop 15 pounds without ever touching a toe to a gym floor? Move your arms away from your body. Capturing the space between your waist and your arms (even if its tiny) optically shaves off pounds. Easy ways to accomplish this are to put your hands on your waist or for men, put your hands in your pants pockets.
- LOOSE THE ARMY STANCE. The easiest way to get your photographs to look 100% better, even if Uncle Ed is shooting, is to loose the perfect posture. It looks rigid and the images come out looking that way also. The easy fix is to stand with all your weight on one foot. This throws your body into a perfect position to capture your curves and make you look your best with very little effort.
- HAVE FUN. Wedding photography shouldn't feel like you're at the dentist. Make the most of it! Have fun. Talk to each other and laugh. Tell the photographer to take those images too. A good photographer will know the best part of the wedding is capturing the relationships - which doesn't happen in a rigid formal pose. So go have fun!
Hope your wedding day is all you dreamed it would be!
- Michael J. Ward is with Belle's Photography in Abilene, TX, and has been a WedPlan Member since May 2006.
