From the second I finished editing Kira's Bridal Session at the gorgeous Race and Religious venue in New Orleans, Louisiana, I've been convinced that I need to book a bridal session! Here are four reasons from the photographer + recent bride herself on why a bridal session is SO. WORTH. IT.

1. Test it out - Worried about how everything will fit, flow, and feel on your wedding day?! I was too. Booking a bridal session with your photographer is the perfect time to test everything out and get comfortable, making you feel much more confident for your wedding day. If you're like me, I only got to put my wedding dress on a few times before the wedding day and it was only briefly. So, I was extremely nervous how everything would look and work. This is the perfect time to have your hair and makeup trial, to make sure everything will look exactly the way you like it! Another perfect example is from Kira's session here: She put on her wedding shoes and as we were walking around she noticed the lace on the bottom of her dress was snagging and getting caught because of the sparkly rhinestones on her shoes. This gave her the time to make the desired (more comfortable) changes for getting new shoes prior to her big day.

2. Get Comfortable - The comfort level of being in your dress is important, but also feeling comfortable with YOUR photographer is suuuuper important! Doing a bridal session before the wedding allows your photographer to get a feel for your personality, which poses work best for you for the prettiest photos, and you get to be in a relaxed, no-stress zone learning how to react & move in front of the camera while gaining a relationship with me!

3. Location - Getting married indoors, at dark, in a church, or not at the exact place you always dreamed of as a child? While I absolutely adore every single photo from my own wedding last April taken by my incredibly talented photographer, Erich McVey, I have since then found myself wishing I did a bridal session for this simple fact: having photographs of myself in my wedding gown in a wider range of backdrops. When will you ever wear your dress again besides your wedding day? Most likely, never. SO, why not set up a bridal session in a few of your favorite locations so that you have a wide variety of photos to choose from to look at or print out to show your kids one day?! Think: near the water along the beach, under the live oaks draping with Spanish Moss, at sunset among golden light, or at your favorite venue (like this gorgeous one at R&R) that may not have worked out for your actual wedding day. That way, it's a win-win situation!

4. Get creative - While your wedding day is bound to be one of the best and most exciting days of your life, trust me when I say, you will not have all the time in the world to take artful photographs. The actual wedding day flashes by in the blink of an eye, and on top of that you may be full of nerves, stress, or not to mention, tears, on this most wildly emotional day. Bridal portrait sessions are meant for having fun and exploring your imaginative side! Have your maid of honor or best friend join you to tell jokes, make you laugh, and tell you when your pose is feeling stiff. Your photographer will be inspired as well with all of the time, freedom, and new locations. The fun part about it is you get to choose whatever props you want in these photos! Whether it be your grandfather's antique car, your pup, a vintage parasol, or even a colorful velvet backdrop - you get to choose anything you want for these photos! Wear your mother or grandmother's dress for a few photos and surprise them with prints at the wedding. Go crazy. This is the one time where it can be all about YOU!