Have you ever been shopping online, saw a cute top that a girl on your feed was wearing, clicked on the link to purchase it online, and then found that it looks like a completely different color in the product photo? This happens because of a combination of lighting and filters (if the person added any). This is completely normal and something you should expect when it comes to online shopping. But when it comes to your wedding colors, this is something you want to spend a little more time making sure you are happy with. You don’t want any surprises when it comes to your wedding day, and online shopping for your bridesmaid dresses on Afarose is a great way to stay within your wedding budget! Afarose offers over 50 different bridesmaid dress shades to choose from and free swatches when you order any dress to purchase or try on at home.

What is a swatch?? A swatch is a fabric sample to show and represent one of our bridesmaid colors. They can be useful for many different scenarios, but we will focus on one main reason today.

Colors can look different on computer screens vs. in person. This is because of the different resolutions of various computer and phone screens. The colors will even vary in different lighting conditions, so it is best to see the shade with your naked eye. Below you will find Afarose shade Burnt Brick in 4 separate lighting conditions. Keep in mind this is the same shade in all photos, but notice how different it looks in each case! (No editing was done to these photos.)

We want to help you get to know our shades better, so we have provided examples of how they can look in different situations. Your wedding day will most likely see all of these lighting conditions, so it is important that you see your shade in all of its forms. This will help you narrow down, and really fall in love with the shade you pick! Since Afarose offers a spectrum of shades, we will break this down into color categories - starting with Orange! Scroll down to see our orange shades (Peach, Salmon Pink, Papaya, and Burnt Brick) in four different lighting conditions.

1. Direct Light

Most brides will experience this category for at least part of their wedding day. If you’re having an outdoor wedding, summer wedding, or afternoon wedding, then you will definitely be seeing your bridal party in some direct lighting (unless it’s overcast). It is totally normal for direct light to make your wedding colors seem a bit lighter and less saturated than it would look in the shade.

Photography Tip: Plan important photos near golden hour time (1 hour before sunset) or find a shady spot to avoid any intensified or highlighted wrinkles or imperfections caused by direct/harsh light.

2. Outdoor Shade

It’s a bit of an oxymoron, but true colors will really shine bright in the shade. You will find that they look more saturated. Any imperfections will also be more hidden by the shade! A lot of wedding photographers will intentionally find a shady spot to take your bridal party photos so colors, and beautiful faces, really look their best.

3. Indoors and Indoors With Flash

If you’re indoors, it is a high chance that your photographer will try to find a naturally lit area near windows or use flash. Colors indoors with no flash can look a bit flatter in tone than it would outdoors, this is due to less light to bounce off of. You will find the colors with flash look more warm and vibrant, but a bit less true to color.

Click here to shop all bridesmaid dresses and order your own swatches!

If you found this helpful, make sure you follow our Instagram @loveafarose for more useful wedding planning tips and tricks. Sign up for our email list (scroll down to bottom of link) so you’re notified for the next part of this series where we feature our next color - Pinks!