Micro Weddings | Choosing The Right Photographer
We’re all aware of the impact of the coronavirus on weddings. As uncertainty continues, couples are starting to think differently about their wedding plans and what their options may be for the months ahead.
The trend for micro weddings has been on the rise for a while; even before Covid-19, small weddings were becoming increasingly popular. If you’re think about possibly having a small wedding or a less traditional, intimate celebration, then a micro wedding could be just the thing for you.
What is a micro wedding?
A micro wedding is a wedding with less than around 25 guests in attendance. At the time of writing the government restrictions have lowered numbers allowed at a wedding in England to 15 people. Restrictions aside however, many couples opt for this option as a first choice – regardless of any limitations imposed on them externally.
There are many advantages to having such a small wedding; It relieves a whole lot of pressure on you both during the day itself, and throughout the entire planning process. It will keep costs from spiralling and it should be a super relaxed occasion.
Smaller weddings are a great opportunity to spend some quality time with those most important in your life – It sounds obvious, but the less guests you have, the more time you’ll get to spend with them. Couples often comment how quickly their big day passes and how they don’t get enough time to chat to everyone.
Choosing to have a micro wedding (whatever your reasons) can also help to avoid conflict, disappointment or awkwardness with those whom you cannot invite. If you explain the situation clearly, everyone will understand – particularly given the current circumstances.
Micro weddings & photography
I believe having a professional photographer takes on another level of importance at a micro wedding, but is essential that you choose the right photographer.
Remember you’ll have many friends and family who won’t get to share the day with you. They will still want to see how amazing it was! You’ll want to ensure that the photography does it justice and tells your story in a way that absent friends can truly get a feel for the emotions, details and the overall vibe of your amazing day.
Having a photographer who really captures the intimacy of the day will definitely help those who weren’t there get a better understanding of why they couldn’t be invited.
How do I choose the right photographer?
It’s important that you choose a photographer with plenty of intimate wedding experience. The whole feel of the day is very different and often much less formal that a traditional larger wedding.
It’s vital that you feel you can trust your photographer to blend in and really get along with your guests, almost as if they are another guest themselves. Whilst a good photographer will always be discreet – it is much more difficult to completely blend into the background at a micro wedding. You’ll need to feel that the photographer you choose has the right kind of personality for the job.
Emotions run high at any wedding but in a smaller setting these things can become magnified, so it’s really important that your photographer is good at capturing emotions.
Great couple portraits
At small and intimate weddings, great shots of the couple take on extra importance. Most modern wedding photographers shoot in a documentary style. This essentially means that they capture moments as they naturally occur throughout the day. With everything natural and without direction, this makes for great photos; it is at the heart of what I do for 90% of the day. It is worth noting however, not all documentary photographers will save that other 10% to take time out with the bride & groom for couple portraits. I believe they are super important.
These are very often the photos that newlyweds use to remember the day most prominently. The portraits my couples often tell me that they love most are the ones that capture the connection between them without any other distractions of the wedding going on around them. That show stopping image that you’ll want to hang on your wall that brings back the amazing memories of your wedding – every single day.
Most of the couples I work with don’t really likes to”pose”. Instead, I use lighting and a small amount of help and direction to get you both feeling relaxed and looking your best but without doing anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or unnatural.
One of the great things about a small wedding is the lack of expectation to follow traditions or schedules. You can take a little time out and even do these shots before the wedding ceremony or after the guests have left. Why hurry?
This gives you the option to explore the nearby surroundings or head off somewhere different and capture something you would never have got at the wedding venue. Let your photographer get creative. Having this extra time out can produce some fantastic and unique couple images with the wow factor.
For more about small weddings I have covered and the importance of photography in intimate weddings, please see my post; 5 Reasons To Have A Photographer At A Small Wedding.
If you’re planning a small or micro wedding and would love to have really special photos to remember it by, please have a look around my site and ping me a message – I’d love to hear from you.