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Category Archives: Expert Tips

Clients For Life | Vonnie and Boone

2019-11-22_0001.jpgWhile wedding photography documents a crucial part of your life, it shouldn’t be the end-all, be-all of capturing your life. Sure, you want the night that you’re all dolled up documented, but what about the slower moments; days at home with your newborn baby, a stroll through a park with your family, or celebrating a new furry friend?

With the Client for Life feature in our wedding photography packages you become just that, a client for life! A photoshoot, every year, with Preston. Not only do you get a fresh set of images every year, but it’s also a great excuse to visit Preston in Maui during the winter months!

What is so special about wedding photography is that it feels like you join a new family every time around. Being able to reconnect with the same families year after year as they grow and change is such a rewarding part of the job.

Vonnie and Boone used their Client for Life status to capture some super sweet photos with their family at the Walker Art Center’s Sculpture Garden. Click here to see the previous year’s shoot!

Contact us to find out more about becoming a Client For Life!

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While wedding photography documents a crucial part of your life, it shouldn’t be the end-all, be-all of capturing your life. Sure, you want the night that you’re all dolled up documented, but what about the slower moments; days at home with your newborn baby, a stroll through a park with your family, or celebrating a...

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Looking Back at First Looks, and Why You Should Have One!

excited bride during first look
There are a million and one reasons to have a first look. We love them because they make for some of the most emotionally-charged wedding photos.  There are plenty of reasons not to as well, such as tradition or logistics, but we find that your whole day is improved by seeing your soon-to-be-spouse prior to your ceremony. We’re going to lay out some of our reasons that we love for our clients to have a first look on their wedding day!

You get to choose to keep an intimate moment to yourselves, or to not.

Any too-intense emotions that overwhelm you during a first look won’t be as public as they would be if they were to happen when you were walking down the aisle. On the flip side, you can have your wedding party or your family peep in on your first look and share in the moment. Annie and Tyler chose to have their parents on the sidelines during their first look, letting them share in this intimate moment.

groom smiling during first look
Family watching first look between bride and groom

bride Annie wiping away groom Tyler's tears
Any opportunity that we have to make beautiful photos should be taken.

Lighting in churches and similar ceremony sites is normally fairly bad, but with a planned-out first look you can have a gorgeous location, perfect lighting, and impeccable photos of you seeing your spouse for the first time on your wedding day. That’s not a moment that you want to be ruined by dim, yellow church lighting or embarrassment over the fact that you’re bawling in front of everyone you know. See how sweet this outdoor setting is for Brooke and Aaron‘s first look?

First look diptych

Cute first look between Brooke and Aaron

You get to spend more time with the love of your life on the biggest day of your lives.

Having a first look can ease some of the anxiety that comes with waiting to see your significant other. Any stress that can be alleviated on a wedding day should be! Once you’re in the arms of your spouse, the rest of your day feels like nothing. Shoot, you’re ready to face the rest of your lives. This quiet, personal moment between Sally and Daniel is heartwarming and deserves its own place and time!

Groom Daniel smiling at bride Sally

Daniel wiping away a tear after first look
You deserve to show off how good you look to everyone!

Traditionally, a first look takes place between the two parties getting married. However, it’s a fun opportunity to do a first look with a parent, a friend, or your wedding party! Laura chose to surprise her bridal party with her dress, and their reactions were everything!

first look with bridesmaids

bridesmaids circled around bride
Logistically, it just makes sense.

If you see your partner before your ceremony, you have more time to do couples photos, wedding party photos, and family photos before the ceremony even takes place. This can remedy a lot of the stress of trying to get everything done before making it to your reception. And besides, nobody has ever complained about having too many photos of them and their spouse! Your first look can naturally transition into couple photos, with both of you feeling joyful and at ease. Nina and Karen are the perfect example of this!

same sex first look on bridge in duluth

Nina and Karen kissing after first look

There are a million and one reasons to have a first look. We love them because they make for some of the most emotionally-charged wedding photos.  There are plenty of reasons not to as well, such as tradition or logistics, but we find that your whole day is improved by seeing your soon-to-be-spouse prior to...

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Why You Should Have a Trash the Dress Shoot

Wedding dress before trash the dress

There’s some controversy surrounding trash the dress shoots and whether or not they are appropriate, worth it, respectful, etc. And rightfully so! Conceptually, it might feel wrong to get the expensive, cherished dress you wore on your wedding day dirty at all. For anyone who desires to keep their dress as a precious memento (maybe even for your future children to wear), we want to affirm your decision as well. There is real value in keeping something that you made such special memories in (and most likely paid a lot for). We absolutely get it, this shoot is not for you, and that’s okay! On the other side of the spectrum, however, are those of you who feel at a loss for what to do with the dress that you love so much, but know you won’t ever wear again and don’t want to store. For you, we recommend you three different options:

  1. You can donate your dress for someone else to wear, love, and cherish
  2. You could really trash it and let go of it
  3. You could “trash it,” dry clean it, and then store it or donate it! Almost all brides have confirmed that their dress came back looking brand new (dry cleaners are magical)!

What I’m getting at, is that actually “trashing” your dress is not the point. The point is letting go, continuing to capture memories, and embracing the reality that imperfection can sometimes be the most beautiful. Let me explain more…

You have spent months, maybe even years, planning your wedding – you deserve to let loose!
Use a trash the dress shoot as an opportunity to metaphorically wipe away all the stress that goes into making a wedding happen – give yourself closure from the planning process. You did it! You pulled off a gorgeous, meaningful wedding. It was inevitably perfectly imperfect, and trash the dress photos often serve as an artistic expression of that reality.

Your wedding day may have been close to perfect, but marriage won’t be!
Perfection is more than a wedding dress, marriage is more than one beautiful day – marriage will be beautiful but messy. Kind of like a wet, dirty wedding dress. You can surely see where I’m going with this. Use a trash the dress shoot to tangibly let go of the misconception that your marriage must be perfect in the planned way that your wedding was. It can’t be. So make a statement to yourself, your partner, and the world by getting a little bit of dirt on your dress and acknowledging that ultimately, your marriage will look more like your “trashed” dress than your wedding pictures.

You get to wear your dress again, and leave with uniquely stunning photos!
Regardless of what plans you had to do with your dress after, most likely they didn’t include wearing your dress again. A trash the dress shoot is an opportunity to slip that gorgeous gown on one more time. But this time, you don’t have to tiptoe around. You can be playful, carefree, and enjoy the moment without any restrictions. The difference will show in your pictures, I promise.

If as you read this, our reasoning behind why trashing the dress can be powerful, beautiful, and freeing resonates with you – we want to help! We have two different options to help you let go and “trash” your dress. The first, is a traditional trash the dress shoot, designed by you, us, or together (whichever feels more fun to you). The second, is called the Honeymoon Upgrade. Essentially, you pick a honeymoon trip that we have carefully designed, destinations range from the Midwest to Paris to the Jungles of Africa, and on your trip we join you for a day to shoot you and your husband in an exotic location. You don’t need to get your dress dirty at all (we can be careful) or you can climb mountains, jump in the ocean, and lay on the beach in your gorgeous dress. This option will allow you to be freed from the stress of your wedding while capturing the absolute bliss you feel while on your honeymoon – a perfect combination.

Ultimately, we hope that whatever you decide to with your special dress after your wedding day feel appropriate and perfect to you. We’re all different, we all process and feel uniquely, and your decision should reflect no one but yourself. But if you decide that trashing the dress is the right step for you, we want to help! Some of our favorites, Nova & John, took us up on the traditional shoot offer and had a blast (we did, too). If you don’t believe me, look through these photos and see for yourself. 🙂 

John and Nova planning out their painting
Nova holding paint in her wedding dress
Married couple holding their painting in wedding attire
John and Nova laughing while painting
Nova getting paint on her dress
John threatening to paint Nova
The first paint strokes of trashing the dress
Married couple throwing paint on wedding dress
Paint trash the dress
Smiling couple trashing wedding dress
John and Nova kissing while covered in paint
John and Nova pause covered in paint
John picking up his paint covered wife
Nova covered in paint thrown over John's shoulder
Couple wrestling in Minnesota lake
John and Nova kissing in knee deep water
John dipping his wife in the lake
Married couple walking further into lake
Married couple kissing in lake
Splashing water during trash the dress shoot
Nova holding her trashed dress out of the water

There’s some controversy surrounding trash the dress shoots and whether or not they are appropriate, worth it, respectful, etc. And rightfully so! Conceptually, it might feel wrong to get the expensive, cherished dress you wore on your wedding day dirty at all. For anyone who desires to keep their dress as a precious memento (maybe...

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Vendor Spotlight: Kylie Preusse (Mani Mela)

A beautiful angle of Vonnie’s gorgeous braid.

This is the first time we have ever dedicated an entire blog post to someone other than our clients. But during multiple weekends this season we have had the pleasure to work with hair stylist Kylie, from Mani Mela, and we felt like we just had to let the world know how awesome she is. Kylie is all-around incredible at what she does. She is crazy talented at her craft and can create countless unique looks that are catered to her clients desires (look at the variety of styles in the pictures below!) What is really exceptional about Kyle is the speed, attitude, and dependability that accompanies her sheer talent. One of our brides, Vonnie, raved about Kylie because on her wedding day, she styled 10 girls’ hair and did each one flawlessly with grace, joy, and care. For a bride to be able to fully trust that they can depend on their hair stylist, for perfect hair and perfect timing, it truly a gift on their wedding day. Kylie gives that gift to every bride she styles. Kylie, we love your work, we love the way you work, and we love working alongside to help create the perfect day for our lovely couples.






This is the first time we have ever dedicated an entire blog post to someone other than our clients. But during multiple weekends this season we have had the pleasure to work with hair stylist Kylie, from Mani Mela, and we felt like we just had to let the world know how awesome she is....

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One Great Reason to have an Engagement Shoot


An engagement shoot is most generally thought of as a great way for you and your fiancé to celebrate your commitment to one another. But there’s another great purpose it serves… It’s your time to practice!

Any great athlete will tell you how important it is to practice before a game. And any great singer isn’t going to step on stage without having rehearsed a few (hundred) times… So why approach your wedding day any differently?



Plain and simple, your wedding day is YOUR day. It’s your “big game” and it’s your “sold-out show.” Sure, you’ve already planned to practice in some ways; hosting a rehearsal of the ceremony and running through your vows before you say the big, “I do.” But do you know how comfortable you are in front of a camera?


An engagement shoot offers you some time to get acquainted with your wedding photographer, and also with the idea of getting hundreds of pictures taken of you. (Your photographer wants to make sure he doesn’t miss any magical moments on your wedding day, so remember, you will be in front of the camera A LOT.)

Make it a point to have a practice round with your photographer so he can get to know you and your other half a little better. Then, you don’t have to worry about stiffly posing in front of the lens when your big day comes around. You will thank your photographer, and your photographer will thank YOU for the opportunity to get a little more comfortable with each other.

So go ahead and book that engagement shoot already! Because a little practice can go a long way!

 

An engagement shoot is most generally thought of as a great way for you and your fiancé to celebrate your commitment to one another. But there’s another great purpose it serves… It’s your time to practice! Any great athlete will tell you how important it is to practice before a game. And any great singer...

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CONTACT


2409 Lyndale Ave S,
Suite 202
Minneapolis MN, 55405

 

612.242.8655
[email protected]

FOLLOW OUR ADVENTURES ON INSTAGRAM

@brovadoweddings

FOLLOW OUR ADVENTURES

@brovadoweddings

CONTACT


2409 Lyndale Ave S,
Suite 202
Minneapolis MN, 55405

 

612.242.8655
[email protected]