Unplugged Wedding

One new wedding trend that I'm really excited about is the unplugged wedding.  An unplugged wedding is one in which the bride and groom ask their guests not to take pictures or be on their devices for all or part of the wedding ceremony and reception.  Having an unplugged wedding has several benefits.  First, it allows guests to be mentally and emotionally present at the event, rather than engaged with their devices.  It forces them to actually look around, rather than see the world through a viewfinder.  Weddings are supposed to be once-in-a-lifetime events, and the bride and groom really want their loved ones to spend it with them!  Second, when guests take it upon themselves to act as photographers for the bride and groom, they tend to interfere with the professional photographers, sometimes ruining their only chance at a shot.  Flashes, focus laser dots, and people roaming the church aisles can get in the way and ruin the professional photos of key moments, like the first kiss or the cake cutting.  Once someone else's flash has gone off, there is no repairing the photographer's photos.  I was at a wedding last summer where the first few rows of people were actually holding up entire iPads to take photos.  Needless to say, no one in the back could see the bride and groom.  I don't think I've ever personally interfered with the professional photographer, but I have spent part of a 15-minute ceremony trying to take a good picture of the couple, and let's be honest, they never turn out well.  It makes much more sense to make the professional photos available to the wedding guests after the wedding and allow people to enjoy the day without their cameras.

Guest flash washes out professional photo of the bride and her dad.

Somebody's Uncle Bob haunting the aisles.

Lance and I are seriously considering an unplugged ceremony (reception photos are fair game).  To do this, we would print something in our program, or have a sign in the foyer, that says something like:

"We are so glad you're here to celebrate with us today!  We invite you to be fully present at our wedding.  Please turn off all cameras and cell phones during the ceremony."

We could also take a moment after the processional, before the ceremony begins, to allow everyone to take the shot they really want--of us smiling at the front of the church, before having the priest issue a friendly reminder to everyone to turn off their phones for the duration.  We will have the rights to distribute our professional photos, so we would then make the pictures available online (and maybe send a few in the thank-you cards) afterwards.

I have much less of a problem with photos at the reception.  Sure, the green dot of doom might be a problem during the cake cutting or the first dance, but those moments are not sacred in the way that a wedding Mass is.

What do you think about unplugged weddings?  I realize that some guests might not like being separated from their electronics, but I really like the idea of having everyone emotionally engaged with the ceremony.  After all, it only lasts an hour!