Wondering why wedding dresses look different IRL? Are you shopping for a wedding dress and wondering why the bridal dresses look different in person compared to photos and videos online? If you fall in love with a wedding dress online or on social media, please know that bridal dresses sometimes look different in reality. We don't want any brides to be disappointed when they see the sample dresses in person, and to feel discouraged or like they need to start their search over again from the beginning. We have had many brides shopping with us recently who are surprised at how different wedding dresses look in person when compared to photos and videos.
We always encourage our brides to come to their wedding dress shopping appointments with some inspiration photos, whether that be specific dresses they definitely want to try on, or just some general photos they like the style of. This can help guide your bridal stylist into finding the right dress for you and gives a starting point for your appointment. It can be helpful to pull images from the bridal store’s website and online so that you have specific dresses you want to try on at your appointment. However, many brides are surprised when they see what a wedding dress looks like in person after seeing photos online or in a magazine. This is especially true of wedding dresses with sparkle or glitter details.
As you are shopping for your wedding dress, you will quickly learn that bridal dresses appear differently in person, in photos, online and in social media videos. We’re sharing our expert knowledge to help take away a bit of the shock brides might experience when they begin trying on wedding dresses.
VIDEO: How Do Wedding Dresses With Sparkle Look Different In Person, Photo & Video?
If you are a bride shopping for your wedding dress, you should be prepared ahead of your appointment to know that wedding dresses appear differently in person versus in photos and video. This is especially true of wedding dresses with sparkle or glitter details. Before your next wedding dress appointment, be sure to watch this week's advice video showing some great examples of how wedding dresses with sparkle look different in person, photo and video. You may be surprised to learn that a wedding dress that looks like plain lace in a photo online actually has sparkle beading when you see it in person!
Photo Appearance
We love when brides come prepared to their wedding dress shopping appointments with inspiration photos of dress they love and want to try on. Having a sense of what styles of dresses you are drawn to is a good starting point for your appointment. We often have brides who are surprised when we bring dresses into the fitting room at how much sparkle is on a dress.
Photos are a flat medium so they do not capture details in the same way our eyes process and take in information. Details on a wedding dress like glitter or sparkle beading may not always show up in photos and will certainly look different in person. A lot of times, glitter and sparkle detail is not picked up by the camera so a particular wedding dress may look like flat lace in a photo, but in reality it may have sparkle beading all over the lace pattern. This can be a bit of a shock to brides, especially if they have been visualizing a certain look for their wedding day.
Video Appearance
To add another element to how wedding dresses with sparkle may appear, they will look different in video than compared to in person and even in photos. Video will pick up a bit more of the sparkle and glitter details just because you’ll be moving around some, but it will still not compare to how the dress looks in person.
We always encourage brides to take pictures and even video as they are trying on wedding dresses so they can make the best informed decision about which dress to purchase and wear on wedding day. Just keep in mind that your dress will look different when you are looking in the mirror or looking at photos and video. The appearance of your wedding dress will change from camera to camera as well, as the lens on your cell phone camera will be different from your photographer or videographer’s cameras. Lighting also plays a large role in how your wedding dress will sparkle or shimmer. There may be tools or tricks your photographer or videographer can use to help capture more of the sparkle in your wedding day photos and video, so if this is important to you, be sure to communicate that prior to wedding day.
Manage Expectations
If you are a bride who is shopping for your wedding dress or maybe just beginning to research wedding dress styles and designs, just be prepared that what you see online is not always the same as what you will find in person. It can be a bit of a double-edged swords. We have many brides who come to their appointments with photos and they don’t want a dress to sparkle but they dress they love online does in fact have sparkle. Or the opposite happens too. They are in love with a dress they try on in store but haven’t ever seen a photo of it and then they look at a picture of themselves in the dress and aren’t happy that the sparkle doesn’t translate into the photos.
You will have to try to manage expectations, which is easier to do if you go into your shopping appointments knowing that a certain dress you like online is going to look at least slightly different in person. The same can be true of just wedding dress silhouettes in general. You might love how a certain dress looks on the model in the designer’s photos, but it’s going to look completely different on your own body.
More Helpful Wedding Dress Shopping Advice
We hope you have found this advice helpful when it comes to knowing what to expect your wedding dress will look like in person versus in photos and video. For even more helpful advice when it comes to shopping for your dream wedding dress and finding your bridal style, be sure to check out our past posts:
- Experimenting with Wedding Dress Styles: Tips To Keeping an Open Mind
- How to Choose the Right Size for Your Wedding Dress
- Wedding Dress Shopping Tips & Advice For The Newly Engaged Bride
About Lovella
If you're shopping for your perfect wedding dress, come visit us at Lovella Bridal in Glendale, CA. We carry wedding dresses in all sizes and styles, including plus-size bridal gowns and a full selection of veils and accessories. Lovella Bridal is the premier, luxury bridal wedding dress shopping boutique located in Los Angeles, California. Lovella features couture, feminine, modern and chic bridal gowns in all sizes from the best wedding dress designers. Schedule an appointment to find the wedding dress of your dreams at Lovella Bridal. We can't wait to help you!
About Wedding Fashion Expert
Our wedding dress shopping tips and advice are from Nayri, Lovella's own, in-house wedding fashion expert. Nayri is truly the expert when it comes to bridal fashion and wedding style. As the Wedding Fashion Expert, Nayri is the top bridal fashion stylist and the best-selling author of the book "I'm Getting Married And I Have Nothing To Wear," the ultimate guide to helping brides find their wedding day style and their perfect wedding dress. You can subscribe to her YouTube channel or listen to her podcast for more helpful and practical advice on wedding dress shopping.
