Tag Archive for: tradition

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4 Reasons You Will Want to Have a ‘First Look’

  • Wedding first look

 

Want to Have a ‘First Look’?

During the wedding planning process, there is always one hot topic that the bride and groom will talk about: the ‘first look’. If you are unfamiliar with the concept, a first look is when a bride and groom meet together privately and see each other before the ceremony begins. This is different from the traditional ways, where the couple will only get to see each other during the ceremony.

While some may say a first look is unnecessary and untraditional, some will also claim that it is a must. Regardless of what you may believe, we sometimes suggest that you consider it as there are some compelling reasons why you may want to have a ‘first look’.

4 Reasons You Will Want to Have a ‘First Look’

  1. Your wedding is held during winter

Typically, if you plan to hold the wedding ceremony late into autumn, during winter, or even early spring, you may want to have a first look done. This is because the sun sets quite early, and if you are holding your ceremony later in the afternoon, there will not be any natural light left for the photo-taking session.

As such, a first look early on ensures that you and everyone else will be able to have photos taken using the light still left before it goes below the horizon.

Photos taken during sunset are of course taken at sunset, after the ceremony, but you need not take as long as you usually would due to having had a photoshoot done before your ceremony.

You may have also considered having an engagement shoot done previously also for the same reasons.

Lightning
  1. The reception follows the wedding immediately

If the reception starts immediately or almost immediately after a wedding, you will want to have a first look session done before the ceremony. Otherwise, you may spend the majority of your time during reception, taking photos rather than enjoying your meal. This is especially true if you also plan to have pictures of friends and family, which reduces even more time for your post-wedding activities. 

On top of that, if you are planning to enjoy plenty of cocktails and other drinks during the reception, you may not look at your best after a few. In other words, you may want to have a ‘first look’ as it will ensure you and your partner can have your photos taken before getting busy with the ceremony!

First look
  1. The location of the wedding is far from the reception venue

Many couples hold their reception on the same or near their wedding venue. However, some may hold their reception far away from the ceremony location. If the latter is your case, then it is smart to want to have a ‘first look’ before the ceremony. This way, you do not have to rush around trying to take pictures right after the wedding to give you and the others more time to reach the venue and prepare for a wonderful night. Plus, a first look ensures you get plenty of photos to add to your album, whereas rushing for pictures taken will only significantly limit how many photos you get!

first look in Kuitpo Forest
  1. You are afraid of the pressure of your emotions at your ceremony

Perhaps the most common reason why people want to have a ‘first look’ is that they are afraid that the nerves leading up to a traditional ‘first look’ as the bride walks up the aisle may be too much to bear causing ugly crying or other such emotional reactions you may not want to display in front of family and friends.

Having a first look allows you to get these nerves and emotions out of the way before the ceremony thereby lessening the chance of not looking your best during the ceremony.

Grooms first look as she walks towards him

If you believe that you will have a rushed photo-taking session due to the tight wedding schedule, then you may want to have a ‘first look’ before the chaos ensues! Sure, the ceremony will be a blast, but you may regret it later when you find out that the resulting photos were not what you expected or that you do not have enough to work with because you didn’t allocate enough time for it.

Save yourself the headache and do a first look if any of the above reasons apply to you, or you simply want to see the love of your life before everyone else!

Sven Studios is a professional wedding photography service that helps couples capture their weddings’ emotional memories to treasure forever. If you are looking for the best wedding photographers in Adelaide or around Australia, get in touch with us today to see how we will capture the best moments of your day!

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The Surprising Origins of the Wedding Bouquet Toss

Origins of the Wedding Bouquet Toss

One of the highlights of a wedding is the bouquet toss. Just like the cake cutting, the first dance, and the best man’s speech, it has become a staple in a wedding programme. The bouquet toss makes for some great wedding photos, but it has an interesting story behind it as well!

Why do weddings have a bouquet toss today?

The origins of the wedding bouquet toss dates back quite a way, and like many wedding traditions tends to hide some of the more ‘sultry’ parts of what a wedding represents.

In Medieval Europe, people considered bridal dresses lucky. Once a ceremony is over, the bride gets to keep the dress and never wears it again. Before this happens, some women who wanted to share in the good luck would chase the bride and try to tear pieces from the dress. By the time the bride manages to get away and join the groom, there would be barely anything left of her attire!

Naturally, weddings that took place in a church, (as most were) tended to view this tradition of deflocking a bride as she exited the church as a little repugnant, so eventually, brides started throwing other things, like her garter and bouquet.

Flowers became a popular item to throw since they represent fertility as well. The recipient of the bouquet is supposed to have romantic good luck from catching the item—they inherit the bride’s fortune in finding someone to wed.

It’s turned out well that the custom developed this way; wedding dresses tend to be expensive, and few women would want to see theirs destroyed. Also, many brides choose to keep their wedding dresses as keepsakes or heirlooms to their children.

Hanging Thorngrove Manor wedding dress

Bouquet tosses in today’s ceremonies

Today, the bouquet toss is a fun moment in the wedding ceremony, it tends to be a distracting end to more tearjerking or sentimental formalities to lead into the party! It involves the bride gathering the single ladies in attendance, who will gather a few paces behind her and try to catch the bouquet she throws. It’s an opportunity for the wedding photographer to take dynamic shots. In some weddings, the single men get in on the fun as well with the garter toss.

Sometimes, the bride requests one of her bridesmaids’ bouquet for the toss so she can preserve the flowers in hers, or have a specially made ‘toss bouquet’ for the occasion. Occasionally, brides might throw one made of artificial flowers, or paper so that everyone can keep their bouquets as mementos. Some bouquets can be heavy too, so throwing one into a drunken mass of people can be a recipie for disaster.

Bouquet toss

Are you ready to throw your bouquet?

If you want to keep this tradition in your programme, make sure you tell your wedding planner or maid of honour. They should inform the MC when to announce bouquet toss, and time it for when people are no longer eating or milling about outside after the meal. Furthermore, it’s vital to keep your wedding photographer aware of the flow of activities so that they can prepare their equipment for each part.

You should also know how to transition the program from the toss into another activity; it will look awkward to move abruptly from the bouquet toss into something else! Since the bridesmaids and single ladies are already front and centre, perhaps you could have them participate in a game, to extend the fun. You could also open the dance floor at this point so everyone can end the evening on a high note.

Bouquet toss

Today, throwing the bouquet is a fun tradition sure to deliver some laughs, especially among the single women. Be sure to incorporate this activity into the ceremony by prepping the DJ, master of ceremonies, and the photographer properly. Finally, make sure you get a photographer who can capture the event and give you something to look back on fondly.

Everything at a wedding has a tradition steeped in history, and the origins of the wedding bouquet toss is no exception. It can be a bit of fun researching this kind of thing if you’ve ever wondered why we do certain things at times like a wedding!

bouquet

Weddings are among the most memorable events in a person’s life, and SvenStudios can help you immortalise yours. We work out of Adelaide, specialising in wedding photography all around Australia! Get on an obligation-free video or in-person meeting to discuss your wedding today!

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The bread and salt wedding tradition

I’ve been to a number of weddings now as a wedding photographer and I’ve seen quite a few different wedding traditions and one I quite like is the bread and salt wedding tradition. If you consider the fact that marriage is the supreme bond of love and affection, and wedding is the ceremony of this holy union. Weddings give you an ultimate chance to proclaim your love to the entire world, perhaps most importantly, to the people that matter to you.

From the day you first met, shared your first kiss or proposed may forever be imprinted in your mind, not a single memory will come close to your wedding day. It is a day to enjoy endless luxury, happiness, enthusiasm, good food, champagne, and never-ending opulence, just to celebrate the one you love.

The epitome of any wedding day is of course the declaration of wedding vows. A proclamation that declares unflattering commitment, admiration, promises, and legally claims one another. This day is truly the day of days for all love birds, and for this reason, should be made meaningful and personal, and people like to do this by incorporating traditional wedding customs such as the bread and salt wedding traditon.

The Bread and Salt Wedding Tradition

The bread and salt wedding tradition is an European tradition usually accredited to Poland, but many countries in Europe follow something similar from Russia through to the UK. It’s basically a welcome greeting ceremony in several Slavic and other European cultures and in Middle Eastern cultures. As a welcome ceremony its a nice way to celebrate the coming together of two families and welcome the bride and groom’s guests to the ceremony.

Ukrainian Bride and Groom sharing the bread and salt wedding tradtion

What Is Meant by The Bread and Salt at A Wedding Reception?

For the bread and salt wedding tradition, the bride and groom meet both sets of parents at the wedding reception. The parents will have a loaf of bread, which will be sprinkled with salt and will also have a goblet of wine. The parents say a toast to the couple so that they have good luck during their marriage. It also symbolizes that the parents hope that their children will never go without and that they have an abundance of what they need. In more detail, this is what is meant by the bread, salt, and wine during the wedding reception:

1. The Bread

In the bread and salt wedding tradition, bread is a symbol that is sweet, and it is given by the parents to the bridal couple. They hope that the couple never has to want for much. It is their hope that they never go hungry and always have enough.

bread-delicious-eat

2. The Salt

Salt usage during the wedding reception is so that the couple understands that life will not always be easy. This part of the tradition conveys that the parents want their children to know that life will have its difficulties at times, but the two must learn how to deal with and handle their struggles. It will make them grow stronger as a couple when they learn how to get through the harder times together.

salt

 

3. The Wine

The wine is there to show that the parents hope that the couple never goes thirsty. It also symbolizes the wish for the couple’s life to be filled with joy and happiness for many years to come. The parents want the best for their children in all ways, and they are showing this through this tradition.

 

Woodstock winery wine bottles

Breaking of The Plate and The Glass

This occurs when the bride and groom each take a piece of the bread and sip of the wine and then throw the plate and the glass to the floor so that they are broken. The parents give each of them a kiss, and then the wedding reception carries on. It is to show the beginning of their life as a couple.

The singing of The Song Sta Lot

In order for the bread and salt wedding tradition to be final, the song Sta Lot is played. It means that the wishes for good luck to the couple last for 100 years. This a huge celebration and people really enjoy it as they watch the bride and groom begin their life together with all of their loved ones close at hand. Having all of their closest friends and family there to witness their vows and traditions for their wedding means so much to the couple.

Where Did This Wedding Tradition Originate?

The roots of the wedding tradition are part of Slavic, European, and Middle Eastern cultures. People love to see this tradition at weddings because they referred to it as sweet and they know that the parents of the bride and groom really want their children to be happy. That is why the symbolization of the bread and salt tradition is so important, and it occurs before the rest of the wedding reception begins.

The Type of Bread, Salt, And Wine to Be Used

In the past, it was a loaf of bread. In modern wedding ceremonies, it can just be a couple of pieces of bread, regular salt, and any kind of wine or champagne that is used for their tradition. They are merely symbols of the meanings behind the tradition, so there are no strict rules when it comes to what is used by the couple for the reception.

Making It A Point to Have This Tradition at The Wedding Reception

A wedding symbolizes the union of two souls and often the continuation of tradition. Although in modern times, this tradition may seem a little odd, having the bread and salt wedding tradition in a modern marriage can mark that day with a time to reflect on old ways that were handed down from generation to generation. They will never forget how much it means for their parents to wish them good luck during those moments of sweetness and tenderness at the wedding reception.

This is to many couples the most important moment of the entire wedding experience. Traditions create a bond that is truly unique and beautiful. And many couples cherishing traditions that stem from their cultural roots can put special imporntance on different things. Embracing the tradition of bread and salt in their weddings is one such way to celebrate the delights associated to their cultural heritage.

 

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Why rain is good luck on your wedding day

What is the old saying about rain on your wedding day? Often the first thing you hear on your wedding day if it starts raining is that it’s ‘good luck’. Followers of my blog will know that I’m an avid fan of researching the origins of such quirks behind wedding traditions, so I did a bit of digging and found out why rain is good luck on your wedding day.


The origin of the superstition about why rain is good luck on your wedding day may stem from the reasons I’ve discovered, or the general fact that saying something like that will somewhat ease the mind of the bride who had their heart set on a beautiful sunny day. I mean most people would plan their wedding expecting great weather, only to be disappointed with rain – kind of like what Alanis Morissette was talking about in her song ‘Ironic’.

Bride and groom under umbrella through vines

Why rain is good luck on your wedding day

So where did the origin of the superstition come from? What does rain on your wedding day mean? The truth is that rain represents a multitude of different things depending on your culture of origin.

Rain represents fertility

One of the obvious merits of rain is the brings of new life into the world. Without rains new grass and plants cannot grow and hence represents fertility. Always a nice thing to be reminded of on your wedding day if you’re planning on starting a family with your newly wed.

Rain represents Unity

It’s not all that common at weddings in Adelaide but, a handfasting ceremony was common at all weddings in years part symbolising the combining of two souls into the union of marriage This also happens to be the origin of the saying ‘to tie the knot’. Rain would cause this ‘knot’ to become wet and hence become difficult to untie, signifying unity.

The handfasting tradtion originated from Europe and celtic roots, as as the Celts hailed from areas in Europe where it was often raining, this stands to reason.

Tying the knot

Rain is Cleansing and Pure

Rain causes the world to become clean and represents purity. using water to cleanse one’s hands if paramount in many of the world’s religions, so rain on your wedding day is supposed to represent a clean and pure start to your lives together. It’s also supposed to represent renewal, in that you will be born again as a couple forever. It’s supposed to wash away all prior bad experiences and memories, leaving only the good for the future.

It’s very similar in the reasoning why brides traditionally wear a white dress.

Before brides wore white dresses to their weddings, the traditional colour was actually pale blue – symbolising the virgin Mary. As pale blue is also the colour often associated with water, one can make the link with rain.

Protecting one another from the rain

Rain on wedding day represents tears

Now this could be interpreted as a good or a bad thing, but rain can represent the last tears the bride is to shed for the rest of her life – hence a good thing. But it would also represent tears that the couple is getting married! Which is a bad thing.. Depends on how you look at it this way 😛 Another origin story of this representation can be allocated to the virgin Mary in christian tradition where she would cry for all the sins in the world, thereby washing them all away.

Lightning

Adaptability and Resilience

Another reason why rain might be considered good luck on your wedding day revolves around the attributes of adaptability and resilience. Just as couples face unexpected challenges and twists throughout their journey together, rain on your wedding day serves as an immediate test of adaptability. Couples who face the sudden change with grace and poise demonstrate resilience and a willingness to work together to face challenges head-on.

Overcoming such unexpected obstacles on one’s wedding day sets a precedent for the marriage ahead. It suggests that the couple can weather any storm together, facing trials and tribulations with love, understanding, and cooperation. In many ways, this adaptability in the face of rain symbolizes the flexibility required in a successful, enduring marriage.

So, instead of viewing rain as a damper on your big day, consider it a blessing in disguise, symbolizing the strength and unity of your bond that will carry you through all of life’s unpredictable moments.

Ten 22 Wedding Photography

Rain on your wedding day meaning?

These superstitions have a range of different origins so it’s hard to pinpoint exactly where and when people started saying why rain is good luck at weddings. But most of the resources I’ve looked at having originated from Hindu custom. But honestly, rain doesn’t originate from India, or Hindu-dominated countries so the sentiment of why rain is good luck at weddings can be as wide and varied as the world itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is rain on your wedding day considered good luck?

Yes! Many cultures see rain as a sign of fertility, unity, and a fresh start. It’s also thought to symbolise adaptability and resilience in your marriage.

2. Is rain considered a blessing on your wedding day?

Definitely. Rain is believed to represent blessings like cleansing, renewal, and even a strong, unbreakable union as it “ties the knot” tighter.

3. How can I prepare for rain on my wedding day?

Be ready with umbrellas, a backup indoor venue, and a positive attitude—it’s all part of the adventure.

4. How can I make the most of the rain on my wedding day?

Embrace it! Rain can create beautiful, unique photo opportunities and bring a romantic, fresh atmosphere to your celebration.