Wedding Dresses in Colour:
A photographer’s honest take
White feels like the rule. It is not.
For most of history, brides wore whatever they had, in whatever colour suited them. The white-as-default thing is barely 180 years old, and plenty of people are quietly walking away from it.
If you have never pictured yourself in white, this is for you. Maybe it feels like a fancy dress on you. Maybe you want something that looks like your actual life, not a template. Either way, more couples are choosing wedding dresses in colour, and I am here for it.
Most of what you will find online about this is a sales rail of gowns. What nobody tells you is how colour actually behaves on the day, and in the photos you keep for the next 40 years. So that is what I want to talk about. As an alternative wedding photographer in Bristol, I have shot brides in emerald, plum, blush and red, and I have opinions.
The White Wedding Dress Is a Newer Idea Than You Think
The white wedding dress is not an ancient tradition. It is a trend that stuck.
Before 1840, brides regularly married in red, blue, brown and even black. The Victoria and Albert Museum notes that coloured and patterned fabrics were often the practical choice, because they were cheaper and easier to wear again.
Then Queen Victoria married Prince Albert in a white gown, the photographs travelled, and everyone copied her. That is the whole origin story. A royal fashion moment, not a rule handed down from on high.
So if a coloured wedding dress feels right to you, you are not breaking with tradition. You are rejoining a much older one.
Wedding Dresses in Colour Are Having a Moment
Colour is no longer a fringe choice. It is one of the biggest shifts in bridal right now.
Country and Townhouse named colour as a leading dress trend for 2026, with brides leaning into barely-there blush and warm coffee tones for a bit of depth and individuality.
What I am seeing in real life matches that. Soft, complex shades that move in the light. Champagne. Sage. Dusty blue. And at the bolder end, full jewel tones and the occasional brilliant red.
From Soft Blush to Deep Jewel Tones
There is a colour for every kind of bride, and they each do something different.
Blush and champagne keep things soft and warm. Close enough to traditional that nervous relatives relax, different enough that you still feel like yourself. Green reads calm and grounded, and looks wonderful against foliage and stone. Blue feels quiet and a little unexpected. Red is pure confidence, and it photographs like nothing else.
You do not need a reason beyond liking it. But if colour meaning matters to you, there is a long history of brides choosing their shade on purpose, and that is part of the fun.
What UK Brides Are Choosing in 2026
The mood here is more subtle than shouty.
Most UK brides going for colour are not picking a primary-school red. They are choosing muted, grown-up tones that hold their own without turning the whole day into a theme. Designers point out that the right colour can flatter your skin more kindly than stark white and behave better across changing light. More on that next, because the light part is my whole job.
How Colour Actually Photographs
This is the part that dress shops cannot tell you, and the reason I wanted to write this.
A wedding dress in colour is not a risk on camera. Done well, it can be easier to photograph than pure white, and it gives a gallery a mood that a white dress simply cannot.
Why Colour Can Be Kinder on Camera Than Stark White
Pure white is the trickiest thing I photograph all day.
In bright sun, it blows out and loses its detail, so the lace and the structure you fell in love with can vanish into a pale blob. Skin next to a lot of white can read ruddy or washed out, depending on the light. Colour does not fight the camera in the same way. A blush, a green or a deep berry holds its detail and sits more gently against you.
None of this means white is bad. It means colour is not the gamble people assume it is.
Light, Venue, and a Colour That Holds Up
The right colour depends on where you are standing and what time it is.
Soft tones love gardens, woodland and big windows. Deeper, saturated colours come alive in the evening, under warm light and in darker rooms, which is where having a second photographer on lighting earns its place. George lights every wedding we shoot, so a plum or emerald gown still reads rich and full at 9 pm in a stone barn, rather than muddy.
I saw all of this at Ruby and Ben’s wedding at Arnos Manor. Mariachi, a packed floor, colour everywhere, and the photos move with the same energy the room had. Nothing got toned down to make it easier. We lit it properly and stayed out of the way, which is how I shoot natural, unposed photos in general.
Will a Coloured Dress Still Look Bridal?
Short answer, yes. And it has very little to do with the colour.
You look bridal because of the day around you. The way you stand when you first see your person. The bouquet, the ring, the people crying in the second row. A dress reads as a wedding dress because of all of that, not because it is white.
I worked with a couple who wanted the quirk of their day kept in, not smoothed out, and asked me to let the colours of the day come through honestly. One of them found the camera a little uncomfortable, which is completely normal. None of that got in the way. Their photos still hold the feeling they were after, colour and all. That is usually how it goes.
Your Questions About Wedding Dresses in Colour
A few things couples ask me once they start seriously considering wedding dresses in colour.
What Colours Photograph Best?
Honestly, the one that makes you feel most like yourself.
That said, a few are very camera-friendly. Earthy greens, jewel tones like sapphire and ruby, and soft romantics like blush and champagne all photograph well and age well. Bolder reds and deep blues bring real presence. If you feel amazing in it, that will show, and it does more for a photo than any colour chart.
Can I Still Wear a Veil With a Coloured Dress?
Yes. Veils are not reserved for white gowns.
A veil adds movement and softness to whatever your dress colour, and a tinted one can be lovely too. Blush veil over a deeper gown, or a soft ivory veil to bridge a bold shade, both work beautifully. Wear it because you like it, not because a rulebook said so.
Do Coloured Dresses Work for Older Brides or Second Weddings?
They can be the best choice of all.
Plenty of the most relaxed, self-assured brides I photograph are marrying later or for the second time, and a coloured dress often suits that confidence. Flowing fabrics, softer tones, nothing fussy. It tends to feel more like you and less like a costume from a decade you have outgrown.
What if I Regret Not Going Traditional?
Try both on. Properly, in a mirror, with a moment to just breathe.
Then ask which one feels like you and which one feels like an obligation. Most people know within a few seconds, even if they argue with themselves about it afterwards. Whichever you choose, I will photograph it as if it were always the right call, because it will be.
Where to Find a Colourful Wedding Dress
You will not find many coloured gowns on the high street, but they are out there.
Independent and made-to-order designers are your best bet, and plenty specialise in colour, embroidery and non-traditional shapes. Etsy is full of indie makers if you want something custom or unusual. And if you already own a colour you love, a good seamstress can turn the right occasion dress into a wedding look that is entirely yours.
If you are shopping locally, start with the wedding dress shops in Bristol that carry more than the usual white rails. Try a few on. Wear colour for an afternoon and see how it sits.
This is what Corrie and Mark did, in their own way. Their day at The Mount Without was plant-filled, personal and completely unbothered by tradition, right down to building a terrarium during the ceremony. Nothing about it was forced. It just looked like them.
The Short Version
So, 3 things to take with you about wedding dresses in colour. White was never the rule, just a habit that stuck. Colour is not a risk on camera, and in the right light, it can do more than white ever could. And the gown that photographs best is the one you forget you are wearing, because it already feels like you.
Wear the colour. I will make sure it looks like it was always meant to be there.
Ready to start
Planning your wedding?
Hi, I’m Eszter. I photograph weddings in a calm, natural way so you can stay present with the people you love, without feeling watched or pulled away.
Choosing a wedding dress in colour might feel like a big decision. But what matters more is that the dress feels like you, and that your day has room to breathe around it. When things are calm and unforced, the colour, the light and the people all settle into place on their own.
That is where the photos start to feel like you. My role is simply to be there with you, notice what matters, and document it without interrupting the experience.
Because your wedding is not something to manage. It is something to live.
If you are planning something colourful and real, tell me what you’re planning and the shade you keep coming back to. I would love to hear about it.
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