Photographer’s vital warning after bride tragically died during ‘trash the dress’ photoshoot
A photographer has shared some of the other dangers of a common post-wedding trend after a bride tragically lost her life.
Since wedding dresses are usually so expensive and they are sometimes only worn once, it's easy to understand why people might want to do an extra photo shoot where they get to don their dress without the stress of the big day.
One fairly common idea is the trend of 'trashing the dress', by contrasting the white colours with things such as mud or paint, with some even choosing to jump into a body of water while wearing the outfit.
And it was the latter which sadly led to the death of Maria Pantazopoulos as she aimed to get the perfect shot just months after her wedding day.
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The 30-year-old headed around 75km north of her home in Montreal, Canada to a wooded area with wedding photographer Louis Pagakis, with the new bride hoping to take some pictures in the river.
However, things would go drastically wrong when the weight of the dress pulled her under, and the currents were too strong for her to escape, with Pagakis sadly unable to save her.
He went on to recall Maria's haunting final words as: "I can't anymore. It's too heavy."
He told CTV Montreal at the time: “She had her wedding dress on and she said, ‘take some pictures of me while I swim a little bit in the lake,’ she went in and her dress got heavy, I tried everything I could to save her.
“I jumped in, I was screaming and yelling, we tried our best."
Now, expert photographer Rhiannon D'Averc has shared other warnings about the trend of trashing the dress, especially when it comes to dipping the luxurious attire in some running water.
"As you are pulled along, you will get weaker through trying to fight the current," D'Averc wrote in her 2022 blog post.
"And there are documented cases of people finally becoming so weak that they drowned or lost consciousness."
Of course, there is often also the issue of crashing into sharp rocks or tree roots when you're being swept away by powerful currents, which as D'Averc points out, can lead to issues such as broken bones, cuts and bruises, or even worse if you end up hitting your head.
There's also the issue of the animals living in the water that you decide to do the shoot in, and while you might be smart enough to avoid rivers in Florida that are infested with crocodiles, or double-check to make sure that the biggest ever Great White Shark isn't too close by, there's no guarantee that you're going to be safe from the various animals living below the surface.
D'Averc adds: "Big fish could even knock you over. Leading to trouble like being swept away or held underwater by the weight of the current."
If you're planning to trash your dress in the UK, you'll also have to be wary of the potentially contaminated water, with water-borne illnesses and diseases pretty rife at the moment.
So, the best advice when it comes to your wedding dress is probably to avoid getting it wet at all costs.
James Moorhouse