Will I still look like me in the photographs

The worry we hear most often from brides is not about lasting through the day. It is whether they will recognise themselves in the album. Many have seen photos of brides who looked heavily made up or several shades lighter, and they do not want that. It is a fair worry, and most of it comes down to light and cameras.

Cameras flatten faces. Under flash and bright video lights, the natural shadows around your cheekbones, nose and eyes soften, so a face can look broader and paler than it does in a mirror. Bridal makeup adds a little more definition than you would wear to a dinner, so that your face looks like you in the photographs. In person, up close, this can feel slightly strong; in the pictures, it looks natural.

The colour mismatch problem is different. It happens when foundation is chosen under yellow indoor lights, or when a powder with a lot of white pigment reflects the camera flash. We match your base in daylight by a window, on your jaw and neck, and avoid products that cause flashback.

The trial is where all of this gets tested. We finish your full look and take photos of you in daylight, indoors with a flash, and on video, and you see them before you leave. Bring a friend whose opinion you trust. If something feels like too much, we change it there and then. Our aim is simple: when your grandmother looks at the album in twenty years, she should see you, well rested, on a very good day.