After what feels like a lifetime of lockdown and (photographic) inactivity, things are - ever so slightly - starting to wake up.
Alongside postponed commissions I’m now shooting (I can’t even recall last Spring!), new buds are appearing on my schedule in the form of fresh enquiries. A pattern is definitely forming: the small yet beautiful wedding is definitely in vogue.
For many years now I’ve been shooting several intimate weddings per year where the day went something like this:
No prep shots; a Town Hall wedding; 15/20 guests; walk to a nearby restaurant (or, if you’re lucky, parent’s house nearby!) and enjoy delicious food and drink and a chat. No fanfare, no dancing: just a simple wedding day celebration with your nearest and dearest.
Now this ‘Town Hall Ceremony + Meal’ format is becoming the norm. And apart from a few masks, is the end result really all that much different? As I write, the Government has once again revised its guidelines for wedding receptions, and this template feels like it will be adjusted and tweaked for some time.
So how do you make the post Covid wedding wonderful? My colleague and luxe party planner, Anna Wills, of ARC Events, has the answers - because she does this a lot;
“The short answer, particularly if you have downsized your wedding, is that it will be special. You’re getting married after all! Intimacy is important, the chats will be better even if the dancefloor isn’t packed, embrace it! Think of the personal touches, make your day truly reflective of you both rather than pleasing others. Pamper yourself by taking the time to get your hair and make-up done. Treat yourself, it’s your wedding day! Think about keepsakes of the day to show extended family and friends, plus invest in a good photographer – you won’t regret it!”
For a photographer, these smaller functions offer plenty varied, people-centric opportunities for shots. The ambience is somehow calmer and there always seem to be many more genuine moments to record. It is also apparent the couple themselves appear under less pressure to ‘host’, which eliminates any pressure to make sure everybody knows what is happening, where and when.
I’m not saying a bigger wedding can’t be - and isn’t - amazing. Of course it can. Grand celebrations will always be incredible. Yet the Coronavirus pandemic means we have new boundaries and, whether we like it or not, they will be here for a while yet.
ARC Events is certainly geared up for it’s ‘new normal’;
“A lot of brides think for a small wedding they can’t have the big dress, the speeches, cutting of the cake, a first dance – these are quintessential wedding traditions, and we say keep them, there’s always room! Sure, there are certain rules we need to abide by, and it may not be the day you planned it to be, but ultimately you are celebrating your love and commitment to one another by getting married. What defines a wedding is not how you celebrate it.”
All the shots below could have been taken in the last month, as they basically adhere to new parameters (save a couple of masks here and there). These couples chose to plan their wedding in this way because for them small was beautiful. It still is now…
Click any thumbnail to enlarge.
