5 Reasons To Have An Unplugged Wedding Ceremony

Mobile phones. How did we ever live without them?! I'm seriously terrible for spending too long on my phone, often loosing hours after falling down the Instagram rabbit hole. In fact Craig once sent me a text that read "Hi this is Instagram. We think you're on us too much. Can you please take a break and enjoy a bath. Love from all social media platforms x" Either he was concerned about my usage of social media or he was trying to tell me something else.....

Despite how you feel about them, its undeniable that mobiles have become so much more to us than just being actual phones. We've all become quite attached to these little devices that connect us to everything within seconds. So its unsurprising that one of the questions that often crops up when meeting couples is "How do you feel about guests using their phones at the wedding?"

So instead of droning on about the pro's and cons or flat out saying "Well that's a terrible idea!" I've put together our top 5 reasons to have an unplugged wedding ceremony.....

1. There's plenty of research supporting the theory that using your phone to capture events and moments can actually impair your ability to be able to recall the memory accurately. And that's before you've even hit the gin bar....

2. Even the most courteous of guests can inadvertently obscure the view of your professional photographer. Important moments that you've likely paid lots of money for the previously mentioned photographer to capture for you. Then there's the really super excited guests who "just want to get a quick snap" and will even stand in front of the camera. Whilst the bride is walking down the aisle. I know, right?!

3. The truth is, it honestly doesn't matter how amazing your new camera phone is or what lush new filter your friend has discovered on Instagram. It just can't compete with the £5k+ camera and lens that your photographer will be using, along with the years of experience they're bringing to the table. We're well equipped to deal with the magical, yet seriously lacking in light, fairy lit barn. And we do this all time. Quite literally for a living!

4. Most photographers, including ourselves, will provide their couples with galleries. All you need to do is reassure your family and friends that they'll be sent a link with access to all the pictures. That's not to mention all the sneak peeks that get shared before the full wedding has been delivered. So get your guests to put their phones away and enjoy the moment. Leave it to us to sweat over lighting, composition and not missing those all important moments.

5. Guests will be less distracted by the those little pesky little devices that notify you which ex Love Islander you should be following now (None of them. Seriously) or notifications from the BBC news app telling us the country is a bit screwed (we know.) Instead, a mobile free ceremony will encourage your guests to be more in the moment and to then interact with each other more when you're doing the whole signing of the register thing. Also, when you glance around at your guests during one the biggest days of your life, what you really want to see is all of their lovely, happy faces. Not the back of an iPad with half of Uncle Bobs confused face because he can't get the camera out of selfie mode.....

Our advice? Encourage your guests to leave their phones in their pockets until after the ceremony. Like for when they want selfies with you at the cocktail bar or when your Nan starts enthusiastically dancing around to "Play That Funky Music White Boy" after the photographer has left. That's the time for the mobile phones to come out!

If you have any questions or would like advice on any aspect of your wedding planning then get in touch, we'd love to hear from you!

Hayley & Craig x