In Japan it is very common to make a so-called Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ) that shortly introduces the happy couple and shows how they got together. Apparently as many as 71.9% of couples in Japan show Wedding Profile videos in their weddings, and among them 56.9% of the videos are made by the couple themselves. If you're interested in making a Wedding Profile Video for your big day you can check out some tips here:


7 tips for making a great Wedding Profile Video:
1. Focus on making a movie that guests won't get tired of watching
2. At the same time both the bride and groom should have a chance to show the pictures they want
3. Make a movie that contains comments and/or messages
4. ...That are shown at a speed where it's possible to read what is written
5. Even if the video doesn't have a clear development it should stick to its form
6. Give the video variation by using two to three songs
7. Make a video that doesn't disturb the progression of the wedding reception


There are some general guidelines for making a wedding profile video. First of all the video should be well balanced, and is usually divided into 3 parts; the background of the childhood of the groom, the bride and finally a section with the the happy couple together. Adding music is also an important part of the process, and most people choose between 1 to 3 songs for their video.

Part 1 & 2:
From baby to school age: Around 5-10 photos each
School age (from elementary school & up):
Around 10-15 photos each
Recent years: Around 5-10 photos each
Length: Approximately 2:30 min each

Part 3:
30+ photos (depending on your storyline, editing style & length of the song)
Length: Approximately 3 min

Total length of video: Around 6-8 minutes

As mentioned, one important thing to keep in mind is that it would be boring for guests if all the photos contained pictures of the bride/groom only. Adding photos that also include friends and family will make it a more interesting experience for the people that are watching.

My darling Yuma and I recently celebrated our wedding together, and I prepared this very, very simple homemade wedding profile video just using iMovie, the default movie editing program on Mac. Even though the quality might not be super top notch or anything we got a lot of positive feedback from our guests, who seemed to enjoy both the homemade style of the video as well as getting to know more about both our backgrounds and common story. If you have access to a regular video editing program and some time on your hands this type of video could be a great way to spice up your wedding ceremony.!

If you have any questions or comments feel free to drop a note below! Thanks for reading :) -Anette

• All blogposts about wedding
• How to make a Japanese Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ)
• Happy Wedding: Reusing my Mom's Old Wedding Dress
• White Pigeon Wedding Modeling in Kyoto! 
• Modeling for Kyoto Weddings: My Japanese Wedding, or the day I (Almost) Married a Stranger

I got a package from my family in Norway. My mom's old wedding dress. It hasn't been worn for more than 26 years, and is discolored with yellow stains here and there. But it's perfect. I'm so honored that I can get married in the same dress as my mom did when she married my dad♥ 


ノルウェーにいる家族からあるパッケージが届いてきた。中にはママが26年ぐらい前に使ったウェディングドレス。シルクサテンが古く、染みがついている。でもこのドレスで完璧。ママとパパが結婚した時にママが着てたドレスで私も結婚できるなんて、光栄だわ〜〜(*^^*)！

• All blogposts about wedding
• How to make a Japanese Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ)
• Happy Wedding: Reusing my Mom's Old Wedding Dress
• White Pigeon Wedding Modeling in Kyoto! 
• Modeling for Kyoto Weddings: My Japanese Wedding, or the day I (Almost) Married a Stranger

Last year I did some modeling for a company called Kyoto Weddings, which offers its wedding planning services to foreigners who want to get married Japanese style in Kyoto. The photographer, Yuuki Kuwabara, contacted me again about a month ago and asked me if I had any plans to go to Japan in the near future.

• All blogposts about wedding
• How to make a Japanese Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ)
• Happy Wedding: Reusing my Mom's Old Wedding Dress
• White Pigeon Wedding Modeling in Kyoto! 
• Modeling for Kyoto Weddings: My Japanese Wedding, or the day I (Almost) Married a Stranger

I looked deep into his eyes, and he looked back at me. I was beautifully dressed up in a Japanese wedding-kimono with vivid colors, and flowers in my hair. Both of us were smiling broadly, and to a stranger it would seem like we were very much in love.
But I had never seen this guy before in my life..

The whole thing started a couple of weeks ago, when my friend Dan told me that he had a friend looking for somebody who could help him and his company, Kyoto Weddings, with a photo shot. More precisely, they were looking for westerners who could do some modeling for a bridal shot they would use to market the company on their homepage. I thought it sounded like a fun experience, so I didn't wait long with sending an email to the friend, Eric, telling him that I would love to help out. I was over myself with excitement when I got a replay saying that they wanted me to do the job. It was the beginning of April, and this time of the year is famous among both Japanese as well as foreigners for the pretty sakura (cherry blossoms) that are in full bloom in Japan, usually in the month's first couple of weeks. In other words, being a wedding model in Japan in April must be one of the coolest experiences a student in Japan could possibly get.

Photo shoot in a traditional Japanese room

A couple of weeks later I met up at Kyoto Wedding's main office in downtown Kyoto, ready to be styled up. The professional team was ready for action, and before I knew it they had fixed my hair, done my make-up and even dressed me up in the stylish wedding-kimono. I almost felt unrecognizable in the pretty kimono and with the flowers in my hair; I was like a little porcelain doll. I'm still amazed by how fast everything was done.. If I should have fixed all that myself it would surly have taken all day and still not look half as good. After the styling was finished the work of the day started with photos taken in the studio's traditional Japanese room.
After a little while I was joined by my groom-for-the-day; a tall and handsome-looking guy who turned out to be Swedish. Although it was a bit awkward doing romantic photo shootings with a guy I hadn't even met before, it turned out to be quite a funny experience after all. I guess it helped a bit that he was Swedish too, as it felt more comfortable being able to communicate in our own language (Swedish and Norwegian is actually pretty close, so unless you use a very strange dialect the other person will usually have few problems understanding what you are saying). That made the situation more relaxed, and adding that Marcus was a really funny guy he turned out to be a really great match as a one-day groom. Haha..

Me and my Swedish groom-for-the-day

After about an hour of photo-shooting in the studio we were escorted out of the building, where a special wedding limousine was waiting for us. Here you might think that a Japanese wedding limousine is like any other limousine, but there are in fact 3 features that are special to a Japanese bridal car, according to the description from Kyoto Wedding's blog:

Ready for more photographing in the Japanese wedding limousine

From Kyoto Wedding's studio we drove towards an area in Kyoto called Gion (祇園), which among other things is famous for its traditional Japanese streets. This, and other places in the east part of Kyoto, was where we were going to do the photo shooting of the day, and with the cherry blossoms blooming and a light layer of clouds in the sky the setting was perfect for getting good pictures.
Walking down the streets of Gion it seemed like we had become celebrities in just a couple of minutes. We were basically stalked around by a group of people who wanted to take our photos, and this group mainly consisted of Japanese ladies in their 60s. It was quite funny, but embarrassing at the same time, when some of the local ladies asked our crew if we actually had gotten married, and they answered yes. Which resulted in a lot of congratulations from the viewers. If it weren't for the make-up on my face I would have been red as a tomato right then and there..
Also, we weren't the only couple walking around in Gion getting their wedding photos taken that day. There was a Japanese couple there too (probably not a fake wedding like ours), but with us around it didn't seem like they got a lot of attention at all. Which kinda made me feel a bit sorry for them, since they were the ones who actually was celebrating their wedding day.. I guess the people in Gion found it more amusing with foreigners dressed up in kimono than the real Japanese bridal couple..?

On the bridge on the way to the Heian Jingu-shrine

We went around taking photos for a couple of hours before ending the day with a quick lunch back at the studio. It was a bit sad having to leave the pretty kimono behind and going back to my normal "boring" clothes. I had a really fun day being a bridal model for Kyoto Weddings, and this is definitely one of the most memorable experiences I have had during my almost two years in Japan. In the future I'll hopefully have the chance to get married for real, and if the wedding is going to be in Japan then I have no doubt about who I'm going to contact..

Thanks again to Kyoto Weddings for a fantastic day, and not to mention the beautiful pictures!

My groom-for-the-day Marcus and our team from Kyoto Weddings

More info about Kyoto Weddings and their services can be found at their webpage.!

• All blogposts about wedding
• How to make a Japanese Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ)
• Happy Wedding: Reusing my Mom's Old Wedding Dress
• White Pigeon Wedding Modeling in Kyoto! 
• Modeling for Kyoto Weddings: My Japanese Wedding, or the day I (Almost) Married a Stranger

Me and Marcus doing bridal modeling in Gion, Kyoto. Photographer: Yuuki Kuwabata