Our first priority when doing bridal portraits is to make the subject look beautiful. We’ve learned it the hard way from both personal and professional experience. The first thing everyone sees in a picture is what they look like. So we’ll do what it takes to ensure you look perfect in your portraits. But that doesn’t mean that perfect has to be boring! A gorgeous bridal portrait can also be a little dazzling and catch your eye. It can be fun, colorful, interesting and above all, creative. Your bridal portraits can stand apart from the crowd because of how drop-dead beautiful you look on your wedding day. But they can also be unique because of the innovative and imaginative elements your wedding photographers introduce. Like we did in this creative bridal photo we took in Washington DC.
So let’s start by admitting that we might be cheating a little by calling this a bridal portrait. Technically, it’s a candid shot of the bride having her hair and makeup done at the Melrose Georgetown Hotel. But she’s the only person in the frame – and more importantly, we’re the ones who took the picture! – so we’re gonna go ahead and call it a portrait.
Anyway, it was a little warm in the hotel room on that May afternoon. So to keep her client cool and to help her makeup set, the makeup artist would occasionally fan the bride. We immediately noticed the creative possibilities the implement offered. For starters, streaks of color ran across the fan’s plastic webbing. At the same time, the material was largely translucent. This was the perfect combination for creating something cool. If we could capture an image of the bride through the fan, we’d get something colorful and visually interesting. At the same time, you’d be able to see her face, so she would remain the principal subject.
The trick was, of course, to get everything to line up just right. We’ll be the first to admit that this was not the only frame we took of this bride. It took quite a few tries to get both of the bride’s eyes in focus and visible between the fan’s slats. In our opinion, it was well worth the effort!
We’d like to think that the effort we put into this creative bridal portrait is an excellent example of our commitment to getting you standout pictures. We know how to survey the scene at your wedding, find a composition that is going to give you something special and wait for the right moment to take the shot. Getting pictures as unique as your love story matters to you, and we do what it takes to give that to you.
This photo was one of many creative shots we got for this lovely couple before and during their Washington DC wedding. We also created some really cool pictures of the makeup artist using hairspray to fix the bride’s hair in place. An artfully placed flash illuminated the spray droplets, creating an awesome cloud of mist in the air. We later built on that idea by also lighting up a picture of George Washington’s eyes “looking” at the bride from a nearby wall.
After the couple’s wedding ceremony at The Kreeger Museum, the entire celebration moved to The Katzen Arts Center on the American University campus (where the bride and groom met). Partway through the reception, we took them outside to create some very unique and innovative portraits of them posing around the many sculptures decorating the exterior of the building.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Interested in learning more about our services? Please visit our Wedding Photography FAQ page for answers to all your questions! Ready to inquire about our availability on your wedding date? Contact us now to get the conversation started!
Location: Melrose Georgetown Hotel, 2430 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037, United States.
© 2023 Potok's World Photography - Husband & Wife Washington DC Wedding Photographers
