Our daily lives are affected by social media. Some people have decided to distance themselves from them, and some have learned to use them to their advantage and turned them into their job. But somewhere in the middle is the majority, all of us who use them to follow the daily lives of others and share ours to a greater or lesser extent.

Like in other areas of life, social media has also changed the wedding industry. Social media has made wedding planning easier and speeded up communication because of digital invitations and wedding websites. A wedding is both a public and a very intimate event, and there are several important nuances to consider, so that wedding is displayed pleasantly in the virtual environment, and so that guests, who use social media during the wedding, do not spoil the special moments of the event.

Communicate your wishes

While planning the wedding, some couples pay attention to how everything will look on social media. They follow trends and shoot Instagram Reels and TikTok videos on their wedding day. Some pairs hold an off-the-grid wedding and ask guests to refrain from using social media and their phones on the wedding day. However, even if you don't use social media very actively, it is worth giving your guests some guidelines. Although nowadays everyone knows general social media etiquette, it's likely that wedding guests will be as excited as the couple and will want to document and post everything. You shouldn't rely on family and friends to refrain from using their phones at wedding, as they would at other public events.

Everyone wants to capture their special day in as many ways as possible and see it also from the guests' point of view, but make clear that, for example, you want your guests to document the wedding, but you don't want it to be published immediately.

Alternatively, you can use private Instagram Stories for your closest friends or create a private Facebook group or WhatsApp chat for guests to share photos. If you don't inform your guests what and when to post, the first thing you and your followers will see in the morning may be a hazy image from when the party hit the highest vawe. We're used to posting everything at the very moment when it happens, but when it comes to weddings, couples still want to post galleries of professional and edited images first.

Different rules for ceremony and party

On the wedding day, the newlyweds are the centre of attention and in a way they become celebrities. Fortunately, wedding guests aren't an intrusive crowd of paparazzi, and the couple can inform if they want to have their photographs taken by the guests on their wedding day. In the invitations, you can specify that, for example, the guests will receive professional wedding photos from the ceremony, but for the rest of the day, you encourage them to take pictures so that you can see the day through their eyes afterwards. If you want your guests to refrain from using their phones, you can place disposable or Polaroid cameras on the tables in the party area. Also, taking pictures can be turned into entertainment by setting up a specially designed photo corner. This way, the photos taken by your guests will be aesthetic.

There is already a professional photographer at the wedding

Guests should remember that the couple has already invested in having a professional photographer and maybe even a videographer to document special moments of the wedding day. Therefore, you should refrain from taking photos, especially during the ceremony. Mainly because you will disturb the photographer's work by attempting to photograph yourself. They will already have planned the angle from which to document the ceremony, and you can get in their way, block the shot or obscure the lighting. Perhaps, unbeknownst to the guests, another camera is placed on the side or at the back of the hall to capture the guests. If that is the case, you will be the guest standing up and covering their face with the phone screen in the photo.

Etiquette for using social media at a wedding

At a wedding, you should follow the basic guidelines of using social media - you shouldn't post too much, don't post unflattering pictures, etc. If the couple has not clearly expressed their attitude towards posting their wedding on social media, you can follow the principle - don't be the first to post. Especially the photos of the bride and groom, as they should be the first to post their wedding on social media. You should follow this principle already in the wedding preparations.

Close friends and relatives, who are involved in the organization, should not publish anything before the wedding. For example, girlfriends should not share photos of the bride in the wedding salon wearing the chosen dress. When preparing for a wedding, every detail is carefully considered, and usually, the couple wants to keep that secret until the wedding day.

Be present

The main thing on the wedding day is to be with the newlyweds and celebrate love together. It is best to document the moments when it seems appropriate, but it is better to post the photos after the wedding when you have time to select them and ask the couple's opinion. It's a special day when you should try to put your phone aside so it doesn't get in the way of being present and going with the flow.

Author: Renāte Berga