Beach Wedding Bridal Portraits

To me, one of the best parts of beach wedding photography is the bridal portraits. This is when the Photogrpher and Bride are removed from the sometimes hectic atmosphere of the wedding day. Most traditional bridal portraits tend to follow a certain style of formal posing. With beach weddings, the style is often a little less formal – as beach weddings should be. I try and keep an element of formality, but the essence of a beach wedding can really come through with a less formal style.

So whenever I get a chance to shoot portraits on the beach I like to try many different poses as long as the bride is up to it and comfortable. Most brides are open to a photographer’s createive ideas, and working with a relaxed bride always makes my job easier. Then, if the other factors fall into place the shoot goes that much better.

With these shots, the light was just about perfect and the setting was ideal. I hardly used fill flash on these, except for a few that I was working to make the bride really stand off from the background, since the evening sunset provided a wonderful warm glow. I have been wanting to shoot in the sea oats that grow in the dunes on Cape Hatteras in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. I have had ideas swirling around that I finally got to test.

I was very happy with the results after this shoot. Wedding photography can be a little stressful at times and keeping the bride (and photographer) relaxed is important. When you do get one that is at ease, the job goes much smoother.