Wedding Photos of Getting ready

The following “Getting ready” images were created by documentary wedding photographers from the WPJA, who regularly submit their best candid moments, artistic portraits, details, and scene setters for review by our WPJA competition judges.

WEDDINGS + ELOPEMENTS + ARTISTIC PORTRAITS & DETAILS + ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS

Some of the “Getting ready” marriage photography samples below may have come from the getting ready events, the actual wedding ceremony, the reception after-party, an engagement session with the couple, or possibly be artistic portraits or detail shots.

FINE ART WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY: Our Artistic Guild award winners take a more creative approach to wedding day Portraits and use their innovative skills to capture the Details of each couple’s special day. The Artistic Guild’s Scene Setters are some of the most notable and breathtaking from within the artistic WPJA contest categories. Playing with light and shadow, special effects, and post-production editing, these images embrace the artistic component of wedding photography.

PRE-WEDDING ENGAGEMENT PHOTOGRAPHY: The story of every couple starts long before the wedding day, and the engagement marks one of the most important milestones in their story. Engaged couples often want to celebrate the occasion and announce their upcoming wedding with a photoshoot. Pre-wedding portraits of an engaged couple can be just as moving and compelling as the images taken on the wedding day. Engagement portraits can win a Diamond Award, an exclusive WPJA award whose winner is selected from the best engagement photography in the world.

World's best creative wedding photography from Fujian, China showing hairspray lit during the Bride in makeup

World's most artistic and best wedding couple portraits from Fujian, China with the Groom wearing a tie to the projector

groom projector Fujian silhouette China getting ready tie

World's best and most unconventional wedding photography from Sichuan showing The brides sister is preparing skirts for the bride These three skirts will be worn for the bride at different times on the wedding day

getting ready Sichuan Brides sister Cheng Gu Chengdu dresses wedding dress

World's top and most original wedding photography from Henan showing the red dress at the moment of waiting

China getting ready Waiting Henan wedding photography Henan wedding dress

World's best and most unconventional wedding photography from Osimo, Italy showing The falling powder at the brides home during getting ready makeup time

Osimo getting ready italy bride ITALY wedding photography Italy makeup time

World's best and most unconventional wedding photography from Washington DC showing us in BW that The bride is getting ready

Washington DC getting ready DC wedding photography bw Washington DC wedding bridal DC bride

A first class Tuscany wedding portrait of this Florence bride getting ready

getting ready Tuscany Italy Florence bride shutters Florence Tuscany wedding portrait

World's best creative wedding photography from Chateau des Chézeaux, Indre showing The bride, helped by her friends, is getting ready

Chateau des Chézezaux shadows France Gaelle Caré getting ready sunlight hands

A top Maine wedding photojournalism example from a beautiful Bar Harbor wedding event showing the bridal party getting ready together

Maine bay Kate Crabtree Acadia National Park Mount Desert Island Atlantic Ocean Maine wedding photojournalism

A top documentary wedding photographer from France created this image at the Castelnau of a dog and a woman in curlers

French photographer France wedding image Castelnau France documentary weddings dog woman pets

An Italian documentary wedding photographer at La Brunelde in Fagagna in Udine captured this picture of the Bride getting ready and putting her shoes on

Italy getting ready bride La Brunelde Fagagna IT

A documentary wedding photographer in Bordeaux captured this picture of a Pregnant bride getting ready while family is greeting guests

greeting bride Bordeaux Bordeaux documentary weddings Bordeaux bordeaux wedding photographer family

A Pennsylvania wedding reportage photographer captured this moment in BW showing the Groomsmen working together to figure out their pocket square situation

bw moment Pennsylvania getting ready men PA Weddings groomsmen

A Netherlands wedding photojournalist captured this moment at home getting ready for the bride in her dress

Freek Nagtzaam moment NL photographer getting ready at home Netherlands wedding photojournalist bride

View this comical Netherlands wedding image of a window cleaner at home during the bride getting ready session

comical window cleaner Netherlands wedding image humor at home getting ready bride

A France wedding photojournalist at Domaine de Courtalain captured this moment of the Groom getting ready with some help by the groomsmen putting on his pants

groom getting ready France wedding photojournalist Domaine de Courtalain pants traditions groomsmen

A Flanders wedding reportage photographer captured this moment of the girls getting ready for the ceremony

flanders wedding reportage girls ceremony Flanders Flanders photographer getting ready Sven Soetens

A Occitanie wedding reportage photographer captured this little girl watching what is happening under the shutter

An Occitanie wedding reportage photographer captured this little girl watching what is happening under the shutter

little girl watching Occitanie photographer Ludovic Lieffrig Occitanie flower girl Occitanie wedding reportage

A top Cotswold documentary wedding photographer from the UK created this image of Girls getting ready

UK wedding image getting ready Cotswold Cotswold documentary weddings Jawad Aslam girls Cotswold photographer

A top France wedding photojournalism example from a beautiful Lyon hotel wedding location showcasing the Groom getting ready with family members

getting ready groom Coralie Castillo Lyon hotel wedding Lyon photographer family members Lyon

This Massachusetts wedding photojournalism picture is a first rate example of what candid, nontraditional Brewster wedding photography looks like, as the bride is having a getting ready moment with bridesmaids

MA bride Massachusetts wedding photojournalism bridesmaids Brewster MA Massachusetts Brewster wedding photography

A top wedding photojournalist at Radisson Blu in Bucharest created this image of the Bride and groom dancing in the hotel room before ceremony

hotel room Bucharest wedding photojournalist getting ready before ceremony romance bride and groom

This France wedding photojournalism picture is a top quality example of what candid, nontraditional Metz wedding photography looks like, as the Bride is going down the stairs after getting ready

hanging dress Metz wedding photography Metz France Lucille Gaumard getting ready french bride

A top wedding photojournalist from Italy created this image as the bride puts on the veil at home

gown bride dress at home wedding photojournalist Italy veil Giuseppe Voci

A documentary wedding photographer at the Merrydale Manor captured this picture of the Bride getting in her dress and flower girl looking on

United Kingdom flower girl UK documentary wedding photographer Knutsford bride getting ready Merrydale Manor

A top France wedding photojournalist from Lyon created this image of Kids getting ready for the marriage ceremony

getting ready Lyon wedding image Lyon Children kids France wedding photojournalist

A MN documentary style wedding image showing a moment when Bridesmaids are dancing while getting ready

MN photographer makeup MN documentary wedding image bridesmaids dancing MN

This Bulgaria wedding photojournalism picture is a first rate example of what candid, nontraditional Sofia wedding photography looks like, as the Bride is getting ready and her cat is too

Bulgaria Sofia getting ready cat Bulgaria wedding photojournalism sofia bride Sofia wedding photography

View this stylish Yorkshire wedding detail shot the brides engagement ring and extravagantly beautiful dressing gown, captured during the getting ready stage, which was a featured picture among the best wedding photography in England from the WPJA

Yorkshire wedding photography England beautiful getting ready yorkshire weddings brides engagement ring Yorkshire photography

View this stylish Château Prieuré Marquet wedding image showing the details of the brides shoes on a floral rug, which was a featured picture among the best wedding photography in Saint-Martin-du-Bois, France from the WPJA

flowers carpet floral rug Saint Martin du Bois France wedding image France details

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WPJA contest judges have been recognized by their industry peers, winning top awards as staff picture editors, staff photojournalists, and newsroom mentors while working for these and other leading publications and journalism organizations.