Bridal photoshoot preparations..

Bridal photoshoots may look simple but they are most certainly not! It takes lots of preparation not to mention investment and a whole lotta luck. Here's how mine went. I had 3 days of leave prior to my photoshoot and as there were so many days to spare we went and had some R&R. It was not until the day before the photoshoot when i started getting an appointment for a manicure and pedicure as well as thinking whether to buy fresh flowers for the shoot or what props i needed.

Luckily i made a call to Sook May who gave me some really good advice and experience about her own photoshoot. Saviour! It was then that i realized that i had so much to do! So as to avoid other brides having the same Noob experience i'm sharing my own photoshoot ordeal/experience here.

1) Pedicure and manicure (necessity or luxury?)

A pedicure is definitely NOT a must. Who will look at your feet? Most of the shots will be of the face and sometimes background anyway so unless you request shots of your feet, no one's gonna notice.In fact a pedicure is nothing more than buffing away dead cuticles and dead skin cells at the sole of your foot and adding a layer of nail polish to it. You can just skip this part entirely. A pedicure is supposed to be a relaxing treat so why not do it when your relaxed and not just before a photoshoot. You have plenty of other things to do.

A manicure on the other hand should be done. And so please keep your nails nice and long so the manicurist can buff and shape the nails neatly and apply polish or whatever nail art you want. Mind you this is just to let your nails look nice and neat and shapely for the shoot. Once again unless you ask for a close up of your hands, no ones gonna even see the tiny flower or crystal on your nail in the photos.

My manicured fake nails.

I made the stupid mistake of clipping my nails just a few days before the shoot due to work commitments. With super short nails, the manicurist can hardly do anything about my nails. So i had to have nail extensions done. They had to glue fake nails once by one.. taking about an hour. And i had to have it taken off the day after my photo shoot cos i cant work with long nails! It's a source of infection.

I had my nails done at Nails Extreme in Taipan, Subang. For newcomers a mani and pedi is only RM58 which is really worth it. But cos my nails were so short, the extensions alone cost me RM60. Together with a french manicure and a pedicure, i ended up paying RM110. Mind you i had absolutely no nail art. The worst thing was, the removal of the nail extensions cost me RM 25 and very unsightly over-buffed and distressed nails.That's what you get for having nails glued on and then taken out 2 days later. All in all though the service there was great and the new members promotion is a steal. But since the shop is so popular you had better make an appointment in advance. It was full house on a weekday morning!

2) Hair colouring

If you had previously coloured your hair, chances are there is probably lots of regrowth now which will show up on the pictures. Don't expect the photographer to photoshop 200 over pics just to change your hair colour! I had half black half brown hair and assumed it will be ok cos they have colour spray stuff wat.. haha so wrong. Sook May advised to please go colour my hair dark brown or something cos she's seen pics with sprayed on colour and it looks very fake. Come to think of it i had purple sprayed on colour in one of my previous photo shoots and it looked like crap but i didn't remember about it till SM mentioned about hair colour. Yup so this is a must. Splurge. But if you have never had a hair dye done before and you look good in black hair then you can save loads here. Better to have a natural hair colour than a weird unnatural colour that you have to pay for.

3) Hair length

Now this will take months of preparation so prepare early to grow your hair long! They can do so much more hairstyles with long hair. You can even do short hairstyles with long hair. Of course they can always add extensions for you if you have short hair but it will only look natural if the colour completely matches.

4) Fresh flowers and props

No need to buy as they have fake flowers that look just as good. Unless you really want to splurge on flowers like tulips, dun even bother buying flowers especially roses.Waste of money. As for props, i know a lot of people like bringing balloons but it just looks cartoonish to me. Bring a dog or an antique car now that would be a good prop. Or if you're lazy like me don't bring anything.

5) Poses

I have a friend who has researched on what poses to do way before her wedding. Which is a really good idea cos chances are your hubby will be really awkward and have no clue about posing.It's gonna be a long day so at the end of the day it would be good to have lots a variety of poses. The photographer can only guide you so much.

6) Shoes

Bring a few you like. But make sure one of them is a significantly high heeled shoe. No ones gonna see your shoes under the long gown but it helps to add height. I say bring the high heels along but wear a pair of comfy shoes cos you might be doing a fair bit of walking depending on where your outdoor location is. Bring shoes that match your gowns.Sometimes the photographer might wanna take a pic of you wearing your shoes or maybe you might have chosen a nice short gown.

7) Facial

Yes, one week before the shoot! Then you have to take care of your diet, drink lots of water have good rest the day before yada yada.. but in the end it all boils down to luck.. and genes. If you're prone to breakouts like me you just have to pray all the effort helps. But don't worry the make-up is so think in can cover up imperfections and if all else fails there is still photoshop!

8) Nude bra

Yes.Makes the outfit fit much better. Most bridal shops sell it and you can also purchase it on your own.

9) Miscellaneous

Eat a hearty breakfast cos it's gonna be a long day. And bring a bottle of water and insect repellent if you're going to anywhere remotely jungle-ish.My photoshoot crew did not even want to stop to eat luch, cos they are used to it already. But we insisted and JH treated them to a nice lunch. Sustenance to last the day!

10) Fake eyelashes

We all know that bridal houses in Malaysia charge for eyelashes and ampules and what not. I'm lucky that my bridal house does not have so many hidden costs. My friend though was pretty unhappy worth her fake lashes cos it was cheap, unnatural and uncomfortable to wear.So bring your own just in case you dislike the ones they give you. In fact bring whatever make-up that you like.

11) Luck

Pray no breakouts, periods,conjunctivitis,fever, running nose etc. I had to pray hard as my auntie was supposed to come on my shooting day. If you have regular periods, you can plan your photoshoot months ahead not to coincide with your menses. You really don't want to feel crampy and grumpy or for the make-up artist to see your wings -_- But if you really are so sway.. it's ok la.. the make up artist i had said she's used to it already.


Yup and it really helps to talk to your gal friends so they can cue you in on what to expect so you don't get a culture shock! Discuss about the hidden costs with the bridal house sales assistants so you don't get pissed off on the day of the shoot. And make sure your hubby is ready for some eye-brow trimming and makeup plus lots of driving! Have a smooth pre-wedding shoot!