Oh, your wedding day! What a magical time for you and your loved ones! And such an important time for all those in attendance to be truly present and invested in the moment.

Sometimes I wonder, do we honestly even know what that feels like anymore, to really be in the moment? We are so over-stimulated with our phones and other wonderful devices that it feels like it has become an actual part of our experiences. I’m guilty of it, too! I carry my phone with me everywhere; it's always in my hand or at least in my sight [I can literally see my phone out of my peripheral vision as I write this]. As much as our phones have become a fixture in our every day lives, there's no denying that there is a time and a place for technology, but your wedding ceremony is NOT one!

I have heard and unfortunately witnessed several horror stories where beautiful professional photographs have gotten ruined by eager guests getting in the way of the camera. People will literally lean out into the aisle, or even worse, stand in the middle of the aisle, to get their own [blurry, unflattering, amateur] photos of the bride. Sometimes, they stand right in front of the groom with their phones in front of their faces, oblivious to the magic happening all around them. WHAT?! I know! Guests, with the best intentions, often get so caught up in getting a quick snap for themselves, that they don’t realize that they are actually stealing that moment from the couple, AND the photographer!

In our digital world, everyone wants to be the first to post the best shot and get the most likes. However, chances are your guests don’t even realize they are sacrificing your most precious moments and memories in exchange for their own “perfect” photo. By standing in the way of your views of one another, or standing in the way of the photographer, or by hiding their raw and authentic reactions to the love story that is unfolding in front of them behind the screens of their ugly cell phones, they are ultimately missing all the good stuff! What they are forgetting is that they are very much a big part of the wedding day! Your guests become part of the backdrop. They set the mood; their faces are a part of the story. It’s really difficult to see your favorite aunt’s beaming smile when it’s hidden behind a giant iPad and it’s such a damn shame when the tears of joy that are streaming down your mom's cheeks as her actual dreams play out right in front of her are completely overshadowed by the Hello Kitty phone case positioned right behind her gorgeous up-do. Maybe we get lucky and no one dives out into the aisle during the first kiss and I have a clear shot, but then Uncle Bob decides to bring his entire camera set up and starts snapping photos on the side. His flash goes off at the same time I'm taking my shot. I wasn’t planning for that, so my settings are not set for someone else’s flash to blow out my exposure [photographer jargon, did I lose ya?!]. The entire frame is now just a white blur. I have now missed the photo of your first kiss as husband and wife, and it only happens once! You get the picture? It’s just NOT WORTH IT.

Think of it this way: You most likely spent hours going through websites and reading reviews before you booked your cake vendor. You thoroughly examined the menu, had a taste-testing to carefully chose your favorite flavors, and even showed them your wedding-cake Pinterest board. What if someone decided to take it upon themselves to bring their own home-made, clearly amateur cake and served it to everyone at your wedding? Even as a kind gesture, there’s no denying that would be absolutely ridiculous! Why should you look at your wedding photos any differently? So someone can Facebook blast an unflattering angle of you in your gorgeous wedding gown? You selected your photographer for a reason [it’s probably because we take professional pictures and would never let something like that happen]! Unfortunately, between all of the technology upgrades and updates, we haven’t really been programmed to think that way about our camera phones. A small sign at the entrance of the ceremony sight or a quick line addressing it on the ceremony program is all it takes to politely bring it to your guests attention.

Again, you have invited your guests to your wedding to create memories with you; to step away from the rest of the world into a magical moment made up of two people's love for each other and everyone around them. I challenge you to have an unplugged wedding. This will require you to ask your guests to be fully present with you. To request that they take mental photographs and to allow themselves to feel everything that is happening. I promise to get all the shots of the ceremony and give you an opportunity to share them with your family with a sneak peak and your online gallery. They will certainly be able to view that special moment again. However, no one will ever be able to re-LIVE those moments, so it’s best to enjoy it as it unfolds before your eyes and let the professionals you chose do their jobs.

Seriously! I got this, you guys! I just want you and your guests to be able to relax and take in every single moment for exactly what it is. You have worked really, really hard to bring this day to life. It’s only fair that you and your hand-picked special guests get a chance to enjoy it to the fullest. So kindly tell them to put down their phones, iPads, and cameras and just be there with you!

Still not sure how to go about it? Try looking on Pinterest for “Unplugged Wedding” ideas and see how other couples made it happen! Click here for a great article by the Huffington Post about this very topic.