Thursday, July 1, 2010

Wed Recap: I see you! (The first look - that almost wasn't)

There are many things debated by brides (and mothers...and grooms) when planning a wedding.  Perhaps one of the most hotly debated topics is whether or not to do a 'First Look' between the bride and groom *before* the ceremony and that infamous walk down the aisle.  I shared our reasoning behind our decision back here.  And I am very glad that we did this.


Like most things at our wedding, I had a vision in my head of how this was going to play out.  The difference between our first look and most other brides is that I did not want to deprive our family (and especially our mothers) of being a part of the moment when we first lay eyes on each other all decked out in wedding attire.  And thankfully, our venue provided a wonderful way for us to still have some sort of intimate moment but still have our family and wedding party members participate.

The maids (with family behind them) hanging on the patio waiting for our first look...


Of course, nothing goes according to plan and like other things on that day, this moment was almost ruined...by none other than Mr Fix It himself.  You will see in today's video that as I come out to begin taking photos with my bridesmaids, I am directing somebody to find our coordinator and the groomsmen and be sure they keep Mr Fix It held back when he arrives until I can hide out of sight.  The grounds were huge and there were many ways to get around the different areas.  But mainly, there is a little parking lot that we had parked in that takes you straight by the reception room and down towards the ceremony and dressing areas.  So I was pretty confident he would get held up there.  WRONG!

Mr Fix It decides to park upstairs and come down through the zoo into the ceremony area bypassing the reception room where all of the coordinators were working and the cocktail area where the guys had gathered.  So instead, while this shot was being taken:


I suddenly hear somebody say "There's John!"  To which I reply "No, it isn't...where?"  Sure enough, I caught a brief glimpse of Mr Fix It carrying his tux marching down a walkway straight to our ceremony area where I was standing all by my lonesome smack dab in the center of the chairs!  I start screaming at him to turn around and go back the other way and then all my bridesmaids start screaming at him to go back and smartly they all run over and surround me like a pack of protective wolves while I drop down into crouch mode on the ground in the center of the ladies. 

Mr Fix It is totally confused and has no idea what or why everyone is yelling at him but he must have suddenly got it because he did go back the other way finally.  The next shot in the video is me chiding the groomsmen for not handling like the only real duty they had on the wedding day - keeping track of Mr Fix It!!!  Unfortunately, no one - not the photographer or videographer - got any shots of footage of this little mishap as it unfolded.  It would have been funny.

Anyway, so as you'll see, I had our family all wait on the patio just outside the bridal cottage at the end of the bridge that leads to the ceremony.  Mr Fix It stood in the center of all the ceremony chairs/aisle with his back to me.  I made my way across the bridge and snuck up on him.

Also, note that in the world of wedding videography, some things are not always totally 'real.' As you'll see in this video, we had our first look (which felt a little awkward sometimes) and then the videographers had us go back and do a second take so they could shoot us from different angles. The second look is actually the one they used on our video trailer and we felt much more relaxed I think. Kind of silly but I loved it :)


This video was created with raw footage courtesy of Video Keepsakes of Beverly Hills


I love the look on Mr Fix It's face and how he looks like he is afraid to touch me in my gown. He just looked petrified. :) I love how our family was cheering in the background and how they screamed things like "Pinch his butt!" and "Save it for the honeymoon!"

And now for the pictures that captured the real moment of our first look:




This was the view from our family's vantage point taken by my cousin Bridesmaid A:


This is the first of many photos and video which include what I call my 'Frile' or 'smown.'  It is this horrible version of a smile and a frown which has some sort of emotion behind it.  It made it's first appearance on this blog in the Moments Before video recap last week and was obvious in yesterday's video interview as well.  :)


He is asking me if I am 'getting close' and says he can hear me

I think somebody said to 'Pinch his butt' which made me laugh!

The REAL first look!

Followed by our first kiss of the day!  Wowza!

I love this shot taken by my cousin BM A


He just kept stepping back and staring at me


I did in fact pinch his butt when I met him the first time :)

Our first look was not tearful as I had thought it might be.  Mr Fix It didn't even really smile the entire time.  The moment was just calm and collected and a little funny.  We got to hug, kiss and tell each other how wonderful we looked without having to stick to the script of a ceremony.  Mr Fix It got to be himself as was made obvious when he looks down my chest trying to see how it's possible that I have more cleavage than normal :)  And then he made his stupid, perverted comments which made the videographers laugh.  I couldn't get upset though because that is totally the man I married.  I just had to laugh.


The one thing I do remember which is not really seen or heard anywhere on the video is that in those moments he stepped back and looked at me and said "You look very, very, very, very, very, very, very pretty."  It was so funny...he said the word 'very' like 8 or 9 times.  It totally stuck out in my head and I have not forgotten it.  It was nothing like I expected it to be, but so totally perfectly us...nerves and all.

TODAY'S WEDDING TIP:  If you want to do a first look, do it!  Regardless of when you see each other on the wedding day, nothing takes away from what you feel the moment you walk down that aisle.  After our first look, during our ceremony, as I walked across the bridge, I glanced at the altar to see Mr Fix It, but then my gaze went straight ahead...all I could see were the guests and I smiled at them.  As I turned the corner to the main 'aisle,' I stopped for a moment holding my dad back.  I know I had a huge smile on my face and wasn't sure if I was fighting back tears or not.  But one thing I fully remember very powerfully was how breathless I felt...so much so, that I raised my shoulders and chest and took a huge breath of air - almost like a heavy sigh.  Then I made the march the rest of the way down the aisle.  From that moment on, my eyes were solidly fixed on Mr Fix It.

Unless otherwise noted, all photos by Robert Mullins Photography

17 comments:

Hannah said...

I decided to do a first look after reading so many blogs that said it was the best thing they did that day! Standing there, just the two of you, reminds you that that day is about your MARRIAGE - not a wedding and all its silly traditions.
I am the hugest fan of the first look and I even love the Scandinavian tradition of brides and grooms walking down the aisle hand and hand - totally equal in their union!

Chocolate Lover said...

You guys are so funny and cute together! I love how laid back you both seem about it all. I think my favorite part of the video though is you walking over the bridge with the camera behind you following your train. So beautiful!

Kim said...

I think your first look was perfect, even though it didn't go according to plan. We will be doing a first look also, since we will need to take photos of us in our western wedding clothes before the Catholic ceremony. After that, we will change into Indian clothes, have the Hindu wedding, and then take more photos in our Indian clothes before I change back into my gown for the reception.

I hope our first look feels "natural" and "us" like yours did, but I'm going to be so nervous it's hard to say how it'll go!

Shannon said...

Your first look seemed very sweet, it's great you got it on video. I definitely thought about doing one but Kristian was very adament that he didn't want to see me until I walked down the aisle and for us it was perfect that way. I think if it had been more private he really would have bawled his eyes out and been all puffy for the ceremony :) Doing it at the ceremony forced him to pull himself together. haha

GM said...

We're definitely doing a first look, and I hope it's as sweet as yours!

Heather said...

I love first look stories and pictures so much, and your are great! Our first look was such a wonderful moment, and I’m so glad we did it, because I would have been much more nervous otherwise. Seeing Stephen really helped me relax. I did feel a little awkward with our photographer and videographer there, plus our wedding party watching us through the tinted windows at the site. But I wouldn’t change it for anything. And though I felt like I might cry before I saw Stephen, once we were together, I couldn’t stop smiling!

Patience said...

Very cute!!

Laura said...

So sweet! This makes me SO excited to see the pictures of our first look. Originally I was totally against it, but I'm SO glad we did it. We (hopefully) got great pictures and David calms my nerves like no one else can, so the day instantly got better after seeing him. You looked so gorgeous!

honey my heart said...

your first look is so sweet! love that you laughed right before you saw him :)

Salt said...

I LOVE the video and all the pictures! Everything about them. Especially his expression.

We didn't really do a first look. The way our ceremony worked, my husband was turned around facing the sea until I got to the top of the aisle with my dad. Then the priest asked him to turn around and I got to see his surprised face as I was walking down. I guess it's just something they do traditionally where I got married.

Miss C said...

Hahaha Mr Fix It is such a guy! I love it!

This has almost convinced me to do a first look.

This is my favourite recap so far for sure :)

Morgan said...

Your first look turned out gorgeous, exactly as planned or not! And your description of you yelling and everyone trying to hide you...classic! You just made me burst out laughing!

Mrs T said...

Your dress looked so amazing as they filmed you walking from behind. Love all the cheers from the crowd and when they started humming the wedding march! What a great moment.

Unknown said...

You look so amazing! I love first looks and so glad we did one too! :) And now we will always remember that special moment we shared before everything began! Your daughter looks so beautiful love her dress! :)

Em said...

Oh my gosh! Good thing Mr. Fix It turned around so quickly. At least it's a funny story? Lol.

You'll see once I get to my recaps that I did something a bit less subtle than just a pinch on the butt. But you'll have to wait for that :) Again, love these pics and the writing in this post. I'm really enjoying your recaps (now that I'm finally all caught up!)

Gaynor {Our Day by Design} said...

I love seeing your video's especially of the first look idea as thats not something that is common at all in the UK; I dont know anyone here who has done one.

I think its really lovely that you let your family and friends see the moment too.

Im glad we didnt do one a I had always wanted the first time we saw each other to be at the top of the aisle; since our processional song was quite long, we got a chance to have a whispered chat!

Terese said...

awww, very sweet!

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