People following this blog will know that I like to try to tell stories with my images and that one of my favourite parts of the day to cover is the preparation time when the bride is getting ready. This week’s image shows the bride’s mum helping her daughter into her dress, which is always an emotional highlight of the day. Something about putting the dress on makes everything so real and imminent, which can be quite a moment after months of planning and anticipation.
Those same people following this blog will know that I am a big fan of keeping out of the way and just letting moments like this happen. The fact that the bride was positioned in the centre of the room was just begging for the use of a wide-angle lens to take in the lines and details of the room she was getting ready in at the church. I didn’t move her to this position, but just let things happen by themselves and reacted accordingly. A lot of photographers would probably get in close to get this shot, but I stayed back with the light source from the window behind me and took in the scene. I knelt down in order to not block the light, but also to minimize the distortion of the room’s leading lines which draw you into the image and frame the bride.
Aside from the geometry of the composition, I also like the fact you can see all the clutter from the preparations lying around the room. It helps tell the story of this moment as well as acting as a counterpoint to the elegant posture of the bride as she looks in the mirror as her mum fastens the back of her dress and she gets ready to walk down that aisle.
