When it comes to choosing a place for your wedding photographs, many couples worry about not having a spot planned for the photos. And sometimes a simple solution is the best one: why not take your pre-wedding photos in a forest, surrounded by the magic that can only be captured in the middle of nature?
After several years of doing outdoor sessions, I know many perfect places to turn into the setting for your pre-wedding.
You do not need to travel hundreds or thousands of kilometres to find the “perfect” spot, not at all. What is more, I firmly believe that the place, in this kind of photograph, is the least of it.
The most important thing for this session we already have in advance, and it is you.
I do not like to approach this kind of session as an ordinary couple session. A pre-wedding, at least the ones I do, sets out to capture your story and the way you live the love you feel for each other.
And this story is exactly about that: about capturing Pablo and Hans’s love in a photo session and turning it into a memory they can always come back to, to live these moments again.
Not just “pretty” photographs to hang at home or to personalise their wedding invitations a little more.
Do you want to see how a small forest became a magical place for a pre-wedding thanks to the magic Pablo and Hans themselves gave off during the shoot?
Why take pre-wedding photographs in a forest?
Pablo and Hans live in Norway, but they came to Spain to celebrate their wedding in Zamora, since Pablo was from there.
When we started talking about choosing the place for the pre-wedding shoot, Pablo and Hans were not very sure where to do it, but they did tell me they were looking for a slightly out-of-the-way spot so they would feel more comfortable for the session.
That is why, if the same happens to you, doing your pre-wedding photo session in a forest becomes an ideal choice. Maybe you are a little shyer and you feel awkward doing the shoot in the city or somewhere people might look out of curiosity.
For me, it is very important that you feel as comfortable as possible from the first moment and, because of that, I knew this forest would be perfect for Hans and Pablo. An intimate, private place in the middle of nature.
As I said above, in this kind of photography I am not looking for a place that is spectacular as a backdrop, because what interests me most is you, and that you feel free to be spontaneous. In short, so that you can be “yourselves”.
The pre-wedding location is only one element in the result, but it is by no means what the photograph is about.
It matters much more to be able to capture that look, that closeness you have built, those unconscious gestures full of affection, those hugs that come naturally, that smile that forms on your face without thinking about posing.
I could explain in more words all that magic I try to reflect in my photographs, but I think that just by seeing the love captured in these photos of Pablo and Hans you can get a good idea of what your pre-wedding shoot should be like.
As you can see, it is natural photography, without artificial poses. A beautiful memory you can create in the middle of nature, outdoors, in a quiet place far from spotlights and stares.
A place where you will be able to feel more relaxed and be more “yourselves”, where there will only be the three of us — although you will soon forget about me, because you will not even notice I am there — and where you will be able to enjoy the experience wrapped in the magic and the sounds that can only be heard and lived in this kind of place.
It is hard to believe a setting like this is available just a few minutes away, isn’t it?
There are other reasons, though, why a place like a small, out-of-the-way forest becomes a unique place for your pre-wedding photos, and they are the possibilities natural light gives me to breathe even more magic, if that is possible, into the moment.
Doing a pre-wedding session with the sunset behind you lets me play with natural light and make the most of it, to photograph you in an ethereal atmosphere like the one you can see here.
The place and the moment cross paths to bring out the love you give off without my having to say anything to you. And there are not enough words to write down everything Pablo and Hans conveyed to me in this session. Do you feel it too?
Pre-wedding photographs: is the photo session worth it?
A few lines ago I insisted on one idea about the pre-wedding shoot: it is not an ordinary couple session.
Many couples, when they book their wedding coverage, wonder whether it is really necessary to include the pre-wedding session.
Maybe you are asking yourselves the same thing and, although on this page I answer that question in more detail, I think it is important to tell you why I believe this shoot is one of the most special services I can offer you at this stage you are living together (apart, of course, from the photographs of your wedding day itself).
This session goes beyond ending up with some beautiful couple photos. A pre-wedding session isn’t something you’re obliged to book with your wedding photography.
But if I offer it as an option, it is because I know very well that this shoot is the best way for us to get to know each other, to grow closer, and for you to feel comfortable when you see me with the camera in my hand on your big day.
I know that many of you get nervous knowing someone is photographing you the whole time, and what I do not want is for you to feel you have to pose to get beautiful photos of your wedding. With the pre-wedding photo session you will see that is not at all the way I work. In fact, even if that day it is only the three of us, you will hardly notice that I am there (yes, even if it is somewhere out of the way, as in Pablo and Hans’s case).
When your wedding day comes and you are surrounded by all your friends and family, you will not have to look for me out of the corner of your eye to see if I am there, or look for me so you can pose.
You will not notice my presence, but with the pre-wedding shoot you will already have seen how I work, the result, and you will be at ease knowing your memories will be in good hands.
In your wedding story, just as in your pre-wedding, the only thing I will ask of you is this: forget about me, and only worry about living the magic of this moment and enjoying the people you love most.
How to book your pre-wedding shoot
If you have reached this final part, it is because Hans and Pablo’s photographs have made you dream of seeing your own story reflected in photographs full of life like these.
In fact, the pre-wedding photographs are only a small preview of the feelings and emotions that were at the heart of their wedding photographs.
If you have decided to do a pre-wedding photo session, I congratulate you, because I know from experience that the more contact we have beforehand, the better the wedding story will turn out.
On a day as important as your wedding, when your emotions are on the surface, you need the peace of mind of having someone you trust to keep the memory of this day that is so unique and special for you.
With the pre-wedding photo session we will have got to know each other better, and you will have left behind the fear of not knowing “what to do” in front of the camera.
You will have seen how I work, the result, and you will have the confidence that, at least, you will not have to worry about the wedding photos or the photographer, so you will have more time to enjoy the wedding.
Your pre-wedding included in your wedding coverage
The price of the pre-wedding shoot is €375 + VAT, with no need to book the wedding coverage. If you only want to book the pre-wedding photo session, you can get in touch with me here.
Even so, given how useful it is and how important it is for building that connection and trust with you, the pre-wedding shoot is included with a discount of €125 if you book me as your wedding photographer, applied across several of the packages I offer.
Will you let me come with you on this journey, to keep all the memories you create for this great chapter of your story?
Photographer of weddings full of life
Photographer
DAVE CASANOVA