About 50% of the people I talk to think I’m nuts when I tell them I love winter weddings. The other 50% give me a puzzled look and then I realize having a winter wedding never even occurred to them.
What’s So Great About a Winter Wedding?
Aside from the fact that the backgrounds during the winter are a great deal more conducive to portrait and group photos because they are automatically more clean and simple, there is a magical quality to a winter wedding photo shoot that you just can’t get during the rest of the year. Many people think autumn would be a good time for wedding photos because of the beautifully colored natural backgrounds, however, all that color tends to distract from the subject matter: the bride and groom. Everyone looking at the photos will be admiring the colors more than the couple.
Winter landscapes are cleaner than any other time of year and have a unique light temperature and quality that gives them that mystical feel and look. Take the photo at the top of this article. The bride used the mystical qualities of a winter setting to enhance her unique taste for her gown and winter wedding robe. All that white background puts the focus on the stunning bride. Her beautiful face and hair are the center of attention. The feel of her surroundings enhances her elf-like theme for the wedding. Especially being in the woods – where it would be appropriate to find such a stunning elf bride. She looks as though she just stepped off the set of Lord of the Rings.
Using Winter Colors in Your Wedding.
Another fun aspect of winter weddings that I love to play with is the use of winter colors. Many winter brides choose to add a dash of red to their bridal gown or bouquet to really make it pop, be unique, and just more fun. Nothing is more stunning than a bride holding a bouquet of red roses against a backdrop of white trees or mountains. Many brides also like being able to use pine boughs and Christmas-like floral arrangements and color schemes to their ceremony. This gives a very magical Christmassy feeling to the entire wedding and all the photos. After all, what is more magical than Christmas? So just a hint of it during a wedding ceremony will have the same loving, caring, warmth to it. In addition, outdoor winter wedding shoots add a natural blue hue to the photos due to the longer light rays during that time of year. If there is snow, the backdrop is a gorgeous blue-white wonder.
Handling the Cold During a Winter Photoshoot.
Of course, the biggest reason the majority of weddings are held during the summer is because of having warm weather. Again, many wedding couples take advantage of the cooler winter temps to add some special flair to their attire or settings. There are so many stunning bridal capes and coats now. And any good photographer will find a way to accommodate the wedding party by giving them the means to warm up between shots. If a bride doesn’t want to wear a coat or cape for some reason, it can be done with just a few weather considerations. Most of the time, the party can warm up in their car in between shots, or a close building. Even though winter wedding photos look like they were taken in some remote, far away location, that is often not the case. Being a Montana wedding photographer, many couples want photos taken in the mountains. This can be a special challenge in the winter just in finding a means to travel to a winter mountain location, and having a vehicle nearby for between-shot warmups is a must.
So don’t let the cooler temperatures deter you from the most magical wedding you could ever imagine. Run with it, and you will not be disappointed once you get warmed up again and see the breathtaking wedding photos.
