Trash the Dress

Wedding Art Session for After the Wedding

Trash the dress (or in the UK ‘cherish the dress‘) as a concept originated in the USA a few years ago, and has proved to be extremely popular as a fine-art wedding shoot opportunity.

Trash the Dress / Cherish the Dress Shoots

Despite the title “Trash the Dress”, the concept is not necessarily to damage the dress in any way and is more often a simple case of photographing the bride and dress in a more contrasting or compromising environment, such as the image below and above, than that usually enjoyed at a traditional wedding.

Such settings can be sitting or lying on the ground, walking in the sea or river, in wooded areas, up trees or at building sites! At the extreme end, maybe setting the dress on fire or soaking it with paint to create a stunning and memorable image for the album or more often wall-art in the living room at home – obviously these more drastic treatments are carried out with the bride safely out of the dress!

The point is, complete creative freedom and a moment, memory and image to remember and wow your friends and family with!

Trash the Dress Photographer

How many times are you going to wear your dress after the wedding? It is quite an investment and takes a large slice of the wedding budget, so why not make it the star for the day in a one-off photo shoot?

The images can be presented in the main wedding album, in its own small album, as wall art for the home hung in a frame or as a canvas wrap – may be a unique thank you card to send to friends and family.

VisualChaos Studios of Crawley West Sussex has a reputation for creative and innovative wedding imagery and would love to hear from any bride who would like to add this style to the wedding day or at a time after the wedding.

Creative Shoots after the Wedding

Where did the term Trash-the-Dress Come from…..?

There has been much debate as to where the term and the craze “Trash the Dress” came from, however, I believe that it was really a Las Vagas photographer John Michael Cooper who started the ball rolling as he was a very “non-conformist” photographer and who likes “shooting things his own damn way” un-quote!

There is no doubt his early work in this area was bleeding edge, adventurous and creative and I for one support that approach wholeheartedly. It clearly doesn’t need to be shot around the wedding time, a year afterwards on your anniversary is a great time and – of course – the “Dress does not need to be Trashed” . Just have a fun fashion or fine-art shoot in your local wooded area, beach or with the appropriate permissions – Building Site!!!