Your wedding rehearsal and dinner are special events, and important parts of your wedding celebrations – let’s capture them in timeless photos!

Have You Been Planning Your Wedding Rehearsal Day And Dinner?

Imagine this: It’s the day before your wedding. You are excitedly getting ready for your wedding rehearsal and dinner this afternoon. The day started with a relaxing spa morning with your bridal party, getting your nails done, doing your hair and makeup together, talking excitedly about wedding day festivities. You put on your grandmother’s necklace and zipped up the gorgeous white rehearsal dress you are almost as excited about as your actual wedding dress.

While there are certainly some logistics that need to be covered today while you do a run-through for your ceremony, you’re feeling so relaxed and happy, because you’ve successfully turned this event into something special and memorable in itself: you hand selected centrepieces and a colour palette, you curated a playlist, you crafted a menu with the chef, there’s a photo op area, and your dad has been dropping hints about the toast he’s going to make all week. Your family is just as excited for this night as you are! 

Photographing Your Rehearsal Dinner

I’m always so impressed by the rehearsal dinner events we’ve seen and been a part of; it’s no wonder that so many of you are thinking about photo coverage of these evenings! I’m delighted to capture the wedding rehearsal and dinner for couples who choose to make this part of their wedding photography package – in fact, we think it’s an integral part of every wedding celebration. 

I recently captured Heather and John’s elegant wedding weekend at Ravine Vineyard Estate Winery, from rehearsal dinner to wedding ceremony and reception. It was the perfect flow of events that resulted in one beautiful love story of their wedding weekend.

I’ll showcase more of their rehearsal day throughout this blog post! 

I’ll also talk about the benefits of having photography at your rehearsal dinner, and how this special night can extend and complement your wedding festivities. 

4 Major Reasons to Have A Photographer at Your Wedding Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner:

Photographing the People at Your Rehearsal Dinner

The really special thing about your rehearsal dinner is the people who will be there – they are your closest inner circle of people, the VIP’s and MVP’s on your wedding list. 

They’re your bridesmaids, your groomsmen and your dearest family members – your closest loved ones. The rehearsal dinner is a beautiful time to capture some personal moments with just them before the big day. It’s not like you won’t get to hang out with them on your wedding day too, but there will be a lot of other amazing people at your wedding looking for your attention (and hey, that’s really fun too, but you’ll be so glad you got these quieter moments with “your people” first). This is your chance to share some special moments with siblings, best friends, close cousins, parents and grandparents before the big day. 

So many clients have said what an important time this was for them to connect with their loved ones and maybe best of all, to set the emotional tone they wanted for the whole wedding weekend. 

The Moments of Your Rehearsal Dinner

There is such a good vibe happening on the day of your rehearsal dinner. The planning is done, everyone is excited, and you’re in the final moments of the countdown! There’s something so magical in that feeling of anticipation before the big day – and that is the feeling we can help you capture in photos. 

Some of the unforgettable moments of the rehearsal day and dinner include: 

• The Rehearsal: Practicing walking down the aisle at your ceremony spot (trust us – rehearsing your ceremony makes it all feel so much more real… it’s really happening! You’re getting married!). Talk about all the feels! 
  
• Welcoming in family from out-of-town (it may have been a while since you’ve seen them, and this is a great chance for a happy reunion photo!) 
  
• More time to talk and connect with your loved ones (the perfect chance to share old memories, inside jokes and hilarious stories before you’re with the larger group at your wedding) 
  
• The Toasts! This is one of my favourite parts of rehearsal dinners. With more time and a smaller group, a lot of couples will have more family and friends share their toasts or speeches at the rehearsal dinner. These have made for some of the most beautiful, intimate toasts we’ve ever heard – your cozy little room will be filled with love, tears and laughter. 

All of these moments are filled with so much emotion, which makes them perfect for photos that you can enjoy again later. Your family will especially love having these photos to cherish of you all spending time together on the eve of an exciting new chapter of your life. 

The Details at Your Rehearsal Dinner

Over the years, I have seen some truly impressive rehearsal dinners. Our couples put so much thought into centrepieces, personal touches, photo walls and creating a gorgeous atmosphere. With all that hard work, thoughtfulness and investment, you are going to want those special details captured in photos! 

And sometimes our couples love the atmosphere of their venue so much that the natural details of the environment there will lend themselves to some stunning photography. Just like at Heather and John’s Rehearsal Dinner at Ravine Vineyard: 

(We love the romance and mood lighting in the air in Ravine’s Barrel Cellar – it was the perfect location for an intimate event like this). 

Rehearsal dinners are another reason to get dressed up and formally celebrate your wedding too. It makes the most of the time you have together! We can capture the details of your wardrobe, from the dress you picked out, a special hair piece or jewelry to any special keepsakes you choose to include in the evening. 

The Opportunity of Your Rehearsal Dinner

And here is the biggest opportunity your wedding rehearsal provides in terms of photography – it gives us all a chance to get more familiar with each other! As a photographer, I love getting to meet your wedding party before the big day so we aren’t strangers to them when we join you during preparations on your wedding morning. Everyone can get to know us and get comfortable in front of the camera this way! 

And I can take some time to scout out the best spots for photos around your venue if you have your wedding ceremony in the same place as your rehearsal. 

Your Deserve To Have It All

There are a lot of benefits to having your rehearsal dinner captured in timeless professional photography. The special moments from this event will be part of your wedding weekend memories and stories for years to come – why not have them documented in your wedding photo collection? 

If you want to learn more about making the rehearsal dinner a part of your wedding photography package, send me a message at our contact page and I’d be happy to answer all your questions!