There are a ton of questions when it comes to wedding hair and makeup. As New York wedding photographers, we love collaborating with beauty teams to ensure your day goes as smoothly as possible. Let’s go over some of the basic info when it comes to hair and makeup on a wedding day.

When Should You Get Your Hair & Makeup Done on the Wedding Day?

On your wedding day, we recommend you have your hair & makeup done first. That way, you can be ready to go for photos even if your wedding party or family members are still having theirs worked on. After all, we can start a first look without your VIPs, but we can’t start it if we’re still waiting for your look to be finished.

Example Wedding Photography Timeline for Makeup on a Wedding Day

2:00PM 2:30PM 2:50PM 3:00PM 3:15PM

Photographers arrive at suite Bride wraps H&MU Bride into dress Head to first look First look

Have Your Team Come to the First Look for Touch-Ups

Check with your hair and makeup team to see if they offer touch-ups. This is great for couples who know they might shed a few tears during the first look, and just want to look their freshest pre-ceremony. Some of the makeup artists we’ve recommended at the bottom of this page have touch-ups as an option on your wedding day!

Get a Hair & Makeup Trial for Your Wedding Look

It’s so important to do a hair & makeup trial ahead of your wedding. That helps you work out the look you’re going for and make sure it’s the one you want. You’d be surprised – when I went into my own trial, I came in with a totally different look in mind than what I ended up with.

Should You Do Your Hair & Makeup Trial on Your New York Engagement Shoot Day?

We’ve had a few couples opt to do this, which is totally fine! With a lot of popular locations, however, you’re going to have a heckin’ early morning if you do your trial same morning. Some less-crowded locations like South Street Seaport or Prospect Park are great spots if you want to have your trial on the same day.

Should You Get Your Hair & Makeup Done for Your Engagement Session?

We’d say approximately 20% of our couples opt for professional hair & makeup for their engagement session. It’s totally up to your and your comfort level. What will make your feel your absolute best in front of the camera? For early morning sessions, artists like our friends Curled & Contoured could be open to an early morning to get you ready for the shoot. That being said, you’ll be up super early for it, so do what makes you most comfortable.

What Happens to Your Makeup If You Start to Cry at Your New York Wedding?!

The easiest solution would be to grab your partner’s pocket square, or to keep tissues in your dress. Using a cloth or tissues instead of your fingers/hands to dry tears not only looks better for photos, but can spare your makeup in the moment. Try and remember not to stick your fingers in your eyes!

Your Wedding Hair & Makeup Will Photograph Differently Than You Think

It can be surprising to see your hair and makeup done, especially if you don’t wear it very often. That being said, you may think it looks a little bit heavy. It’s meant to last all day long, through crying, partying, sweating, and kissing. It will also photograph awesomely and differently than it looks in real life, so you can be sure that it will photograph better than you might think. As New York wedding photographers, we often show couples back-of-camera previews so you can see a thumbnail of what it looks like.