Hi everyone!
This week I really wanted to sit down and talk about the different benefits between different types of wedding coverage. As someone who shoots elopements, micro-weddings, as well as regular full-sized weddings, I've definitely noticed some differences between them and I like how different and unique they can all be especially when it completely fits the bride and groom's style and personalities. I thought about making this a pros and cons type of post but I truly don't think there are any cons to what you pick, so the objective here is to focus on the positives, and hopefully a post like this can help guide you to make a decision on what kind of day works best for you.
ELOPEMENTS -
Personally, I cover elopements where its just the couple and an officiant, or just the couple traveling somewhere special and just exchanging private vows, or a couple eloping with just a few family and friends around (about 10 or less people). Your elopement should be catered to you and what your preference is. I've had couples elope at the courthouse in Dallas, or decide to take their bride and groom portraits in a gorgeous park before their courthouse appointment, and it would be an absolute dream to shoot a destination elopement somewhere epic. If your vibe is maximizing the privacy and intimacy of your relationship, or you'd rather spend your budget on your dream honeymoon and only spend a minimal amount on the ceremony part of your wedding, or even just the fact that you don't have the budget to do anything big, then eloping might be for you. Don't focus on what other people are going to say about how you choose to celebrate your relationship, the only people in this union are you and your partner so you're the only ones who need to have an agreement on how to decide to do it. Some people come from complicated family backgrounds, some people just want to get it over with because they already live together, and some people just want to enjoy that privacy with their partner. You don't need to have a "good reason" to have an elopement, it can just be what you've always wanted and that's perfectly fine.
MICRO-WEDDINGS -
As someone who personally had a micro-wedding, I have to say I can't recommend them enough. Our budget wasn't that big for our day, and what was important to us was having the Islamic marriage ceremony, the Nikah, and having that memorialized. A big part of why I wanted to keep it small is because most of my family still lives halfway across the world, so even though the village and community I've built here is small, there were very specific people I wanted there and didn't need the extra noise. The other part too was that it was taking place over the weekend in Houston, while most of my friends live in Dallas. So keeping our day short and sweet and focusing on the cultural traditions for the day were the priorities and not having a huge affair. It also worked out that our wedding took place close to Eid, so my wedding doubles as a little Eid celebration for some of our family friends, and my friends were able to experience something like that for the first time in their lives. So if keeping it small, having it in a small venue or even somewhere like a family home or backyard is your vibe, then maybe a micro-wedding is for you! I think the guest count for these usually range between 40-60 people, so I always advertise that my guest count for these is 50 and under, but if your guest count only goes up to 60 I can be a little flexible with that. A huge benefit to these is how casual the vibes are, the level of stress can sometimes be lower, and generally your wedding timeline won't be 6-8 hours long which can sound exhausting before it even happens. If you don't need the grand venue with the getaway car and the firework show, I'd definitely advise looking into having a micro-wedding. For those of you who come from cultures where there are multiple events, a Nikah or a tea ceremony can be covered as a micro-wedding if you decide to have the big grand wedding on a different day down the line!
WEDDINGS -
Now of course I don't have to go into super detailed descriptions on what a wedding is, but I do want to talk about how this day can look different for people of different cultures. As someone who comes from a Malay Muslim background, my version of a wedding day looks very different from someone whose wedding day comes from a Mexican Catholic background. The timelines will look different, the ceremony and traditions are different, the dancing and games all look different. At the heart of it, a full sized wedding definitely looks at a guest count of more than 60 people, the day of is looking at more than 6 hours, it could involve outfit changes, dances, cake cutting, and speeches. Not everyone's wedding days go into the night, I've definitely been to wedding days where they started at 12pm and were over by 6pm. If you've always had the Pinterest board of color palettes, outfit options, and decor you've always dreamed of, then you're probably destined to have a regular wedding. One of my biggest pieces of advice for those looking to have these is that your venue is your color palette - if you like whites and neutral spaces, then a venue that's dimly lit with wood and greenery will not give you photos like you're imagining. If you like lots of natural light, make sure you pick a venue that has white walls and floor to ceiling windows. It's not just about picking a photographer with an editing style that you like, there are multiple aspects of your wedding details that contribute to how your gallery will look, and most of the time your venue is one of the biggest ones, in addition to your florals and your decor.
I hope this was super insightful and provided you guys with some insight as to what details to be thinking about when you're planning your big special day. If you'd like to look at my pricing for these, you can click here and look at the wedding section of my website. Picking a photographer for your wedding day is such an important choice so I always completely understand if it takes time to make a decision. My final pieces of advice when doing so is to make sure 1. you have a venue and a date locked in, 2. you ask for a sample gallery or two to view what your finally gallery might look like, and 3. communicate with all the photographers you inquire with (even if you're not picking them). If you were being inquired for your services and then were suddenly ghosted after sending over questions or pricing, it would be hurtful to you as well. It takes 30 seconds to let them know that they're out of your budget or not a good fit for you, so please be thinking about that! Otherwise, I have nothing else for you guys this week and I'm looking forward to checking in with you next week!
