Unplugged – A Growing trend
An unplugged wedding has become quite a growing trend lately in bridal wedding forums. Those not in the know, may wonder what that exactly means. As part of our ongoing Wedding Guide series of articles, we delve deeper into Unplugged weddings and their benefits.
An unplugged wedding is one where the Bride and Groom request that all guests leave their cameras at home and keep their mobile phones in their pockets and purses. This is usually requested particularly for the formal part of the day, the actual wedding ceremony.
So is this a good idea?
You bet it is! An unplugged wedding is a great way to ensure that guests are actively involved and connected to your wedding ceremony and not distracted with trying to get that blurry, hail mary shot of the bride walking down the aisle.
As a professional Brisbane wedding photographer for over 15 years, I have seen the amount of cameras and iphones at wedding ceremonies explode! It used to be only one or two uncles with new cameras that used to roam around getting shots (and missing moments themselves).
Unplugged – Connect your guests to the occasion
These days though, with everyone having a camera in their phone, it is not uncommon to look up while the bride is walking down the aisle and seeing 20+ people with their phones up in front of their faces. That is 20+ people who are missing out on actually experiencing that great moment and connecting emotionally with your wedding day.
An unplugged wedding fixes that big issue. By taking away the cameras you are enabling your guests to enjoy fully your wedding ceremony. The unplugged wedding ceremonies I have photographed have been amazing. Everyone enjoying each moment, more tears and laughter and a much more memorable occasion.
Unplugged – A social media solution
Another issue that I find with phones and cameras at weddings is the visual clutter that they cause. Most couples go to great lengths and expense to have a beautifully styled and decorated ceremony space. But this quickly can be ruined in the wedding photos they receive if cameras, phones and tripods are filling the frame of their special moments. The worst offenders are those massive iPads that some Aunties insist on using during key moments of the ceremony.
As a professional photographer I try my best to simplify and reduce the clutter in an image, but some things can’t be avoided. So if you truly want your ceremony images to be the best they can be, I highly recommend requesting guests leave all of their photo gear at home.
Perhaps the most irksome consequences for brides in the digital/social media age, is losing control of what pictures of themselves get posted to social media. Bad, non-flattering camera angles, terrible expressions,even caught mid-mouthful of food.. I have seen it all from people posting other peoples weddings on social media. Nobody wants that.
You want your wedding day to be remembered by yourself and your guests as a beautiful and romantic occasion. I have even had brides absolutely terrified of seeing their professional wedding photos for the first time because the pictures their ‘friends’ took were that bad.
Unplugged – How to spread the word
So by having an unplugged wedding, you gain that control back over your wedding day and the images from it. Your friends and family will see the gorgeous professionally photographed you in that perfect light with the perfect expression.
A professional photographer uses their years of experience and skills to capture everything from your big day. And when the time comes to share these images with your friends and family, the emotional impact of these great images is amazing. Looking through your gallery of wedding images will be like reliving the day all over again.
Unplugged – Let your vendors know
I also recommend letting your celebrant know about your decision to have an unplugged wedding. They can cater their pre-service announcement to remind your guests about your unplugged decision.
A cool Unplugged wedding sign or board on display as your guests enter the ceremony venue can also remind them of your unplugged wishes.
