Unplugged Ceremony

Shanna and Russell had talked about how they wanted their ceremony to sound, but also how it would look.  Shanna recalled weddings that had folks wandering all over taking snapshots, cell phones and  ipads up in the air, people blocking the aisle during the procession...all negative images to her. 

So they asked that I announce at the outset of the ceremony that the bride and groom requested no photos be taken during the ceremony...not even the procession or the kiss.  They wanted their family and friends to "unplug" and be fully present for these important moments.  (Of course, their professional photographers captured the ceremony images from start to finish.)

Everyone honored Russell and Shanna's request.  Their wedding guests all watched and listened attentively to the ceremony.  It felt different and looked different even to me.  Less frenetic, less jumbled up, less moving around, less interference to get the perfect shot. 

I hope Shanna and Russell got positive feedback on this decision.  It was forward thinking and retro at the same time.

So I have no pictures of their ceremony.  But I have great images in my mind's eye of their happiness the moment they were declared husband and wife.

Oh, I did get a picture with them before the ceremony.  I hope this new marriage is picture-perfect!

 

 

Julie Laudicina, Celebrant!

Use "per se" in a Sentence About a Wedding

Here's the sentence:  It was an elegant, sophisticated, urban wedding on a Saturday evening in New York City's renowned restaurant Per Se.

 



 The bride and groom had attended a wedding I did last year on the garden terrace at Rockefeller Center, and they liked it enough to seek me out for their ceremony. 

Lisa and Jichao's ceremony had a theme of stars...linked to star-gazing which is one of their mutual hobbies.  The telling of their love story had several references to the stars as did their reading by Robert Browning.  May the stars always shine brightly for them in the years to come.

 

 

P.S.  The cocktail hour was wonderful...lived up to Per Se's reputation!