Disconnect to Reconnect
You’ve probably heard this term “unplugged” before, but society has continued to push it towards the far opposite which is saddening. In this blog post, I’ll show you a look into what I see when capturing a wedding ceremony, why allowing the guests to take photos during the ceremony can easily compromise with professional pictures and finally the top 3 ways to avoid this happening. I hope you take this in to consideration with this digital day in age. This is somethings that’s so easily overlooked because most of you brides, this is your first wedding. I hope this educates you on what I as a photographer and many other photographers see on a regular basis.
I’m sure we ALL can admit that we have an issue with social media/technology. If you’ve never thought about having this issue, think about when you’re out with friends or family. Do you have your phone on your person or in hand? Maybe when a silent moment creeps into the room you feel the need to get on your phone and scroll through your feed. Now you are disconnected with those around you, then soon enough you look up to see everyone on their phones. I catch myself doing this too and I totally get it!
THIS is when those special moments or simply talking with someone flies past us, because we are so intent towards being on the media with our faces in our phones. Whether you choose to realize it or not, this is something many of us do and it has become a LARGE issue in my eyes.. It’s so hard to break this habit because most of the time, it’s something we don’t even realize we do or we just simply want to capture the moment and share it with the media. As capturing moments and sharing them with friends & family, I’m 100% pro for… I believe there is a happy medium. If your sole intent is to capture and share (not during a ceremony) then great, but what about all those times you’re scrolling through your phone when you’re around others and not capturing moments? My guess is a LOT, probably more so than actually taking pictures/videos.
Back to the wedding aspect of it, It truly saddens me when this happens during a wedding ceremony which 95% of the time does. This is such a special time for the Bride and Groom yet so many guests are trying to get the best shot which can easily destroy the photographers angle. The couples spend lots of money with professional photographers and if you’re a guest who does this then put your phone away and be present in this lovely moment rather then being busy on your phones.
There are times that are excusable to be on your phones and other times not so excusable. There is so much value when being able to take in a moment without your iphone in the air. The ceremony is one of those times! It never fails that a handful of the guests will pull out their iphones as the bridesmaids make their way down the aisle but then the moment, the moment those doors open and the bride sees are groom, the wave of iphones peak out of the crowds, BLOCKING the photographer or making it extremely difficult to capture this special moment (without a guests arm sticking out of the aisle taking pictures) This is something that I never realized happened too often until becoming a professional photographer. Now I see it time and time again, during every ceremony I’ve photographed.
It’s not that the guest are doing it to be disrespectful because they do mean well but as a photographer who sees this time and time again, it to me gets sadder and sadder. Ultimately it’s a bummer for the Bride and Groom That’s why I believe SO strongly in an unplugged ceremony where there are no iphone disruptions so the guests can be fully present in the special moment and so you as the couple, can get those keeper shots.
How to make this known to Guests
You might be thinking, that’s great but how do I tell them to stay off their phones in a nice way? I have you covered, Here are three simple ways you can avoid guests being on their phones during the ceremony.
#1
Word of mouth before hand
(Click on image to get details)
Most every couple creates a wedding website! This is where you add your gift registry to, the location of the lodging and wedding venue, plus any other things you wish to add. This is where you can put in BOLD that it’ll be an unplugged ceremony, meaning no photos/videos, simply asking to full heartly enjoy the moment rather than being on the phones.
You can also share this info along to friends and family when talking about your wedding ceremony. This will help the word of mouth on this topic to travel to more people!
#2
Create a Sign
(Click on image to get details)
Having a sign that’s easy for guest to read as they are walking from the parking lot to the ceremony location is one of the BEST options. It easy to get the point across when having a written sign somewhere that is visible. If you don’t know what to say on the sign, Pinterest has endless options!
#3
Have the officiant announce it when he announces the guests to be seated
I always say you have to be repetitive if it’s important to you. This is another highly recommended idea on putting it in your guests ear before the ceremony starts. The officiant will already as the guest to be seated a few minutes before the ceremony starts so use this time to your advantage!! You could have your officiant say something along these lines…
Extra tip
below is a sign to also set out for the late arriving guests! This was a sign from our wedding and I’m super glad I had a place for people to wait at if they where late arriving so it wouldn’t disrupt the aisle moment. It worked out perfect!
With this new year upon us my biggest goal is to Disconnect to reconnect. I want to be less of letting social media control me and choose to be more connected to my Husband, family friends and those all around me. If this is you too, I’d love to hear! If you’ve have already implemented a way that is strategic with this issue please let me know in the comments! I need to start applying to my life today!
I hope you found this blog helpful! If you’d like to request a topic please let me know!
If you’re waning more on Wedding Tips Wednesday, click HERE!
Have you ever wondered what all goes into getting those must have shots? Im here to answer those questions HERE
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