Wedding First Dance Tips by Caffreys Photography, A Houston Wedding Photographer. 
As a continuance to our Tuesday Tips we wanted to talk about the First Dance at your wedding. The First dance can be one of the most romantic moments at the wedding. It can also be one of the most rigid uncomfortable times of the day. Over the next couple of weeks we are going to dive into this wedding tradition and give you some insight on what we see as photographers. Hopefully this will begin to get you to think a little more about this important moment during your dream wedding.
The origins of the first dance go back many MANY years ago when a man would track down a girl and literally take her for his bride. He would then parade her around the settlements campfire essentially announcing to his friends and clansmen that through his “hunting”prowess he had captured his bride and the partying could begin. Over the years the kidnapping of the bride has gone away, thankfully, but the first dance still signifies that the bride and groom are married. Also, similar to the ancient traditions the first dance still kicks off the party.
Currently the first dance is a much tamer tradition compared to the campfire tradition. It is pretty much done after the wedding and during the reception at some point. There are several options on when to have the first dance. One common time is immediately following the dinner if a dinner is served. This is can serve as a kick off to the nights activities as it can lead right into other traditional dances.
Another option, and one that we actually prefer, is to have the first dance as soon as the newlywed couple arrives at the reception and before dinner is served. We like this time for several reasons. First, everyone is usually paying attention to you since you are typically being announced as the newlywed couple by the DJ or the Master of Ceremonies. After dinner people tend to be scattered about the place or milling around at the bar and the focus is not on you anymore. Holding the first dance now is an easy transition as you walk into the reception and go straight to your first dance together. Another reason we like the dance at this time is because the venue is probably looking its best at this moment. Once dinner is served there will be tables that are a mess or in various stages of being cleaned up by the service staff. To be honest we think having dirty tables in the backdrop of this important tradition is not the ideal backdrop for your pictures. Finally, this holds a little more to the original tradition of “kicking off” the feast and party to celebrate your wedding.
Hopefully, this will give you some ideas on when to schedule your first dance. Many times the venue or the DJ will have their own thoughts on when to schedule this dance but ultimately it is your wedding and your choice. Regardless of what you decide, it is best to make sure all of your vendors know when this dance will be happening as each of us will have our own plan to make sure it is perfect for you.
Check back soon as we will talk about the dance itself. Should you take lessons or do something creative?? We have some thoughts on that as well that may ease your mind about the whole “first dance” jitters.
Caffrey’s Photography, A Houston Wedding Photographer
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