Unplugged weddings: how to do it and still get your guests' photos
What an unplugged ceremony is, sign wording that works, and how to unplug the vows but still collect everyone's photos.
Updated · 5 min read·By the DropSnaps team
Quick answer
An unplugged wedding is one where guests are asked to put phones and cameras away, usually just for the ceremony, so everyone is present and the photographer has a clear view. Tell guests on the invitation, on a sign and through the officiant, then invite them to share their photos from the rest of the day.
Questions people ask
What is an unplugged ceremony?
A wedding ceremony where guests are asked to keep phones and cameras away, from the moment it starts until the couple walk back down the aisle. Photos carry on as normal for the rest of the day.
Is an unplugged ceremony worth it?
For most couples, yes: you get clear ceremony photos and guests who are watching rather than filming. Keep the rest of the day plugged in so you still get guests' photos of the reception.
What should an unplugged wedding sign say?
Keep it short and kind, for example: "Welcome to our unplugged ceremony. Please put away your phones and cameras and be present with us. We promise to share the photos."
An unplugged wedding is one where guests put their phones and cameras away, usually for the ceremony, so everyone is present and the photographer has a clear view. Lots of couples love the idea but worry about losing guests' photos altogether. You don't have to: unplug the ceremony, then let everyone share their photos from the rest of the day.
What is an unplugged wedding?
At an unplugged wedding, guests are asked not to use phones or cameras during part or all of the day. Most couples choose an unplugged ceremony: phones away from the moment the ceremony starts until the first kiss or the walk back down the aisle, then photos as normal for the rest of the day. A fully unplugged wedding asks guests to keep phones away all day, which is rarer and harder to enforce.
Why couples choose it
Clear photos of the big moments. No arms and screens sticking into the aisle, and no guest stepping in front of the photographer during the vows.
Guests who are present. People watch the ceremony rather than a screen.
Your first look stays yours. Some couples want to see the professional photos before the internet does.
Privacy, especially at weddings with children or guests who prefer not to be posted online.
Ceremony only, or the whole day?
For most weddings, an unplugged ceremony is the sweet spot. You get calm, uncluttered ceremony photos, and guests still capture everything the photographer can't: the reception from every table, the dance floor at midnight, the friends you didn't see all day. Asking guests to put phones away for the whole day usually means losing those photos, and it's hard to keep up once the drinks are flowing.
How to tell guests
Tell them more than once, kindly and clearly:
On the invitation or your wedding website: "We're having an unplugged ceremony. Please keep phones and cameras away until we've said 'I do'. Snap away after that!"
On a sign at the entrance to the ceremony.
From the person leading the ceremony, just before you arrive. This is the one that really works.
Unplugged ceremony sign wording
"Welcome to our unplugged ceremony. Please turn off your phones and cameras and be present with us. We promise to share the photos."
"We've hired a fabulous photographer. Phones away for the ceremony, please; you'll see the photos soon!"
"Be here now. Phones away for the ceremony, phones out for the party."
"Our photographer has the ceremony covered. Please share everything else with us: scan the QR code on your table later."
What the officiant can say
"Before we begin, the couple have asked for an unplugged ceremony. Please put your phones and cameras away and simply enjoy the moment with them. There'll be plenty of time for photos afterwards, and you'll find a QR code on your table to share them with the couple."
How to still get your guests' photos
An unplugged ceremony and a photo-sharing page work well together:
Unplug the ceremony, plug in the party. Put a QR code on every table so guests can share everything from the drinks reception onwards. See where to put your QR code.
Say so in the same breath. The officiant's announcement and the sign can both mention where to share photos later.
Turn on approval if you'd like to see photos before anything appears on a screen.
Ask for the moments you missed. Guests often have the best photos of the evening, the children and the dance floor.
Exceptions worth making
Family who can't be there. A live stream run by one person keeps them included without a sea of phones.
A close relative's moment. If a grandparent would love a photo of their own, it's fine to say "phones away, except for…".
