Just Keep Loving: Our First Look

Our first look was one of my absolute favorite moments of our wedding day. Although I have always been #TeamFirstLook from a wedding photographer's perspective, experiencing it myself on my own wedding day solidified this love even more.

In the moments leading up to our first look, I was full of so much excitement with a bit of nerves mixed in. The plan was for Kristina and her husband to place Mr. C in a spot on the clearing so that he was facing away from me while I was walking toward him. I was going to walk toward him from behind the Country Store, grab his hand (the cue the were supposed to look at each other!), and then have that super special and romantic "first look" moment. It actually all went according to plan, except that when I got within ten feet of Mr. C, I started bawling. Like full-out sniffling and tears streaming. Seeing him standing there, waiting for me, was such an emotional moment. As I got closer to him, he could hear me crying, which then really started the waterworks from both of us. I'll spare you the most ugly crying-face photos, cause ya know...the internet is forever.

All photos by the lovely Kristina Ross Photography

When I was close enough, I grabbed his hand, said something along the lines of "Okay, babe! We can look!", and then...magic. Seeing his face light up when he saw me for the first time will forever be such a treasured memory. Too see this man, the one who I'd grown up with, who had carried me through the hardest times, who'd held me at my worst and celebrated with me at my best...standing in front of my as my groom - I had all of the feels. Although the few minutes we spent together felt so, so short, I do remember having quite an audience, and looking over to see our wedding party watching the entire thing unfold. We cried a lot, smiled even more, and were both so full of pure joy - this was our wedding day!

I will forever be a fan of first looks, since this moment was so incredibly special to us. Getting to hug, cry, laugh, and be in each other's presence prior to the ceremony definitely helped calm our nerves and I love that we got to spend more time together before the day got crazy. Before we knew it our first look was over and it was time for wedding party photos!