In years past, its been traditional for the bride and groom not to get to see each other before the ceremony. But more recently, couples have chosen to break tradition for a “first look” at one another before the excitement and chaos of the big day ensues. Not only will this give you an opportunity to spend some intimate, quality time with your other half, but it also produces extremely adorable photos. Bring your photographer along to be a fly on the wall during the moment. While some may be worried that this will take away from the anticipation of walking down the aisle, brides who have done it assure us that having a first look is well worth it, and it actually makes the grand entrance that much better. With that being said, there are more than a few ways to go about staging the first look.

Blindfold
Put a blindfold on your future spouse so that he or she can’t peek at you until you’re ready. Then you can take some cute pictures and untie it so the two of you can revel in how special this moment truly is. Or, if you choose, you can leave the blindfold on as a bit of a tease before you walk down the aisle. This way, you can be photographed together without him or her actually seeing you in your bridal ensemble. I mean, how cute is this?

Have an audience
If you want, you can get your bridal party involved with the first look moment as well. Have them standing at a distance to watch the whole thing go down. After all, it’s likely they’re just as excited to see how he or she will react when you reveal yourself.

Include parents
Of course you’ll want a first look with your future spouse, but the moment your mom and dad see you all dressed up and ready to walk down the aisle, there’s likely to be some emotions, and those are just as worthy of being caught by your photographer. This will be a photo that you and your parents can look back on for years to come. Many brides forget to capture this moment, but you’ll be glad that you did. Just take it from this breathtaking photo of a dad admiring his stunning daughter-turned-bride. This bride took a more dramatic approach by making her grand entrance down the staircase to her smiling father.

Will you be taking a first look with your future spouse? Share your thoughts with us!