http://www.hellobridals.com/

1. Lovely Tonight at
HelloBridals.com

2. OK hive, I promise that this will be the
only depressing post in my recaps.
Promise!
I am a big big big fan of first looks. I
love that they have become popular in
the past few years. For me, they can
be some of my favorite photos that I’ve
seen from other weddings. Having that
“first look” moment between bride and
groom was something I valued highly,
and is precisely why we scheduled over
2 hours of time for the first look and
Hello Bridal party photos, as well as
additional time at our venue before the
ceremony to take family portraits.

3. Lovely Tonight at HelloBridals.com wedding pictures pro pics recap tampa

4. Needless to say, as I rode down the hotel
elevator after putting on my Hello Bridals
dress, I was excited about our first look. Our
photographer was aware that we were doing
a first look, but aside from that I hadn’t been
explicit on the details. In retrospect, I probably
should have laid it out very specifically. On
the wedding day, I was so pumped full of
excitement and energy that I kind of switched
to a “go with the flow” attitude and wasn’t able
to react properly when things weren’t set up in
the way I had hoped.
I’ll lay it out for you. As the elevator doors
opened, I walked into the hotel lobby. I was
concerned about Mr. Buttons’ location; I was
hoping that our 2nd photographer had him set
up and ready for our first look. Instead, this is
what was waiting for me…

5. Lovely Tonight at HelloBridals.com wedding pictures pro pics recap tampa

6. Apparently, Mr. Buttons was taking a “nap,” if you
will. The photographers gestured at me…telling
me to go wake him up with a kiss. Um…that was
absolutely not what I had envisioned as a first
look…there were end tables and chairs blocking all
sides of the couch he was sitting on. I wasn’t able
to get a clear path to my groom. I remember mildly
protesting this idea, saying that there wasn’t
enough space for me. However, I was also on “go
with the flow” mode, so I just did as I was told
without thinking too much. And…as a result, I
present to you our first look…
Hello there, random guy in the background…
Yep. That’s it. In the first photo you can see the big
smile on Mr. Buttons’ face as I woke him up.
However, where are the photos of the groom
taking in how beautiful his bride looks as she twirls
around? Or his reaction when I finally was able to
show him the gown I had selected almost a year
prior for our big day? There are no pictures of me
sneaking up behind him and tapping him on the
shoulder or covering his eyes. All in all it wasn’t
what I had wanted.

7. Lovely Tonight at HelloBridals.com wedding pictures pro pics recap tampa

8. I will not lie to you I am devastated over this.
Perhaps I had made out the first look moment to
be so much more than it really is…but then I see
the awesome first looks from the lovely Mrs.
Quiche, Mrs. Cupcake, Mrs. Frozen Yogurt, Mrs.
Cowboy Boot, Mrs. Hamster, and Mrs. Mouse (the
list continues but I won’t do that to you all) and I
feel a sense of loss. On the day of the wedding I
was not worrying about it; however, after the fact, I
feel like I missed out on a moment of my wedding
day that I had been looking forward to for months.
So, would I love to have the first look that I
imagined during my wedding planning? Yes,
indeed. However, the fact remains that the
portraits Mr. Buttons and I took afterward are
indeed very very lovely. Thankfully, this wasn’t
something that upset me on the wedding day itself.
And although I am sad about it, I’ve moved on.
You win some, you lose some. I’m forging on, and
I have learned my lesson if something is important
to you on the wedding day, don’t feel foolish for
being extremely specific on what you want…it
might be the only way you will get it.

9. Lovely Tonight at HelloBridals.com wedding pictures pro pics recap tampa

10. And with that little piece of wedding advice, I am
moving onwards and upwards with my wedding
recaps…and from here on out, there will be no
more mopey Buttons! Lovely Tonight at
HelloBridals.com wedding pictures pro pics recap
tampa Icon Wink ;)
Was there a detail involved with your wedding day
plans that didn’t turn out like you hoped?
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