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Weddings, like the times, are definitely changing.

Once upon a time, pictures of the bride with her wedding finery and cheesy shots of the couple inside champagne bottles, bubbles, hearts, or flower arches were de rigeur. Wedding guests were used to being pestered by aggressive roving freelance photographers who charged an arm and a leg for hideous photos. Candid photos of the newlyweds and their guests were unheard of, as were things like photo booths and guests snapping photos of their own at the event.

Thank goodness these days, you can have your wedding your way, any way you like. Couples today like to share their story with their guests, and one of the most popular ways to do so is to have non-traditional prenuptial photoshoots.

Pre-nup shots used to be taken only for purposes of publication in newspapers. Stiff and solemn, they were practically indistinguishable—the same rehearsed poses, practiced smiles, and drab background.

Couples marrying these days inject personal touches in the details—colorful locations with a significance to their love story, costumes that reflect shared passions and interests, lively poses and action shots adding life to the photos and making the shoot an experience for the photographer as well. Today’s pre-nup photoshoots will likely elicit shock—quickly followed by envy—from couples who married 10 or more years ago.

What’s with all the creativity? Out-ofthe box photo shoots speak a lot about both the couple and photographer behind the concept. The couple gets to express who they are, both as individuals and as a couple, while the creative team—usually the makeup artist, stylist, and photographer—gets to flout convention and push the creative envelope in tandem with the couple.

They say that a photo paints a thousand words and, thanks to digital technology, lasts practically forever. Thus it’s the most fitting vehicle for a soon-to-wed couple to express themselves; after all, the pre-nup pictures formally mark the couple’s last moments before they step into marriage together.

For this issue, WE asked our well-loved photographers to share with us their best destination pre-nup photoshoots.