NEW TREND: Pre-Ceremony Portraits Claremont Club & Spa - Berkeley, California

Are Pre-Ceremony Photos Worth It?

This one is for the nontraditional couples! 🙌 I feel like it's becoming more and more rare for couples to fully not see or talk to each other the day of their ceremony and to have their "first look" to be at the ceremony. More and more couples are opting for a First Look prior to their ceremony. This is super helpful for the anxious couple who doesn't want to show all of their emotions in front of all of their friends and family, those wanting to do a majority of their portraits prior to their ceremony so they can spend more face-to-face time with their guests at their cocktail hour and reception, or for the couple who wants this moment to be something special and private between the two of them.

While I've captured dozens of First Looks, this was the first time I had a couple who wanted to specifically schedule time to take portraits before all of the events of their day started to unfold because the hotel they had booked was such an incredible place! The building has a beautiful history (click here to read about the history), incredible views, and gorgeous grounds so Katy + Mike wanted to take advantage of that and WOW I'm so glad they did!

Both had separate outfits for this part of their day (which is why Katy was ok with Mike seeing her prior to the ceremony because her MUAH artist Marilyn A-List Makeup of Fox & Bell Salon was waiting for her back in her room to finish her hair and make some final changes to her wedding day look) and they looked absolutely stunning! We only set aside 30 minutes of their entire day out for this little bit of special time between the two of them and I am absolutely in love with these images!

I'm looking forward to seeing more couples carve out just a little bit of time pre-festivities to spend just a little bit of time together, taking in the beauty of the surrounding area, the calm before the storm, and pausing in those little moments, together, before all of the blur that is your wedding day.

Scroll down to see some sneak peeks from Katy + Mike's Pre-Ceremony Portrait Session at the Claremont Club & Spa in Berkeley, California!