From Webcam to Wedding: 6 Tips for Planning a Virtual Celebration

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, many couples are opting to celebrate virtually rather than postpone and they are embracing the challenge of social-distancing with style and creative flair!

While celebrating virtually can sound tempting, many hopeful soonly-weds are curious what it takes to bring a virtual wedding together. Thankfully, we’re here to walk you through it! Here are the 6 tips to help you plan your virtual wedding:

Choose Your Platform

Between apps such as Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, and more, there are plenty of free video conferencing options available, but finding which platform best suits your needs and your guests is key.

Determining which platform works best for you is completely dependent on your priorities and what you’d like to incorporate into your virtual celebration. Is it more important that you would be able to invite as many guests as you would like or that your guests would be able to interact with each other?

Either way, discuss your wedding day priorities with your partner and remember that since guests can’t celebrate with you in person, ensuring their ability to stay connected and not miss a minute of the celebration is crucial.

Once you have decided which platform best suits your needs, take inventory of tech that you already have in your house. Whether it’s your laptop’s webcam, a DSLR camera, ring light, tripod, or your cell phone.

Put the tools you already have access to, to work for you. Even the most basic household items can all be great resources at a time like this. So, get creative and keep an open mind!

Lean on Your Vendors

Call on your vendors and let them know that you have decided to take your nuptials online! With everyone operating in uncertain times, most vendors are more than willing to accommodate their couples as long as they’re practicing safe boundaries.

You can ask your caterer if you can order takeout for two from your wedding menu or ask your bakery if they can deliver a miniature version of your wedding cake through contactless delivery. If they are comfortable, your photographer can still shoot your celebration from a safe distance and your DJ can still rock the dance floor over a webcam.

You’ve chosen your vendors because they understand your vision for your day and you trust them to bring it to life. Although these are new circumstances, lean on them to guide and support you!

Invite Your Guests

If there is one perk to having a virtual wedding, it has to be the ability to invite as many guests as you’d like! As it is a virtual wedding, and you aren't paying for each individual guest, the sky's the limit when it comes to inviting friends and family to celebrate with you.

Create an invite to let your guests know that your wedding is still on and include your platform’s meeting link and meeting ID to ensure that only invited guests will be able to join your celebration!

Get Dressed Up

With social distancing limiting the interactions between couples and vendors, hair and makeup artists have begun offering virtual appointments to assist hopeful couples. As opposed to supplying their traditional services, hair and makeup artists are instead using the web to guide clients through a step-by-step process to help them achieve their day-of looks.

Whether you opt for a virtual appointment or try your hand on YouTube tutorials, this is your wedding day and you should be dressed for the occasion! You can don your wedding dress or save it for your in-person celebration if you’re planning on having one. No matter what you decide to wear, make sure that it is something that sets the mood and makes you feel beautiful.

Set the Scene

Treat your “virtual” wedding the same way you would an in-person celebration! You’ve planned your wedding to perfection (for the second time around), but how can you make the virtual celebration feel as personal as it would if you could actually be with your guests?

Take your ‘venue’ selection seriously and pick a location near a good source of natural lighting. Now that you know where you’ll exchange ‘I Dos,’ set the scene and all, and add any decor that you’d like. Incorporate elements from your originally planned wedding and be sure to face the direction of the light to ensure you aren’t backlit while on screen.

Work with your DJ or band to create the perfect playlist or DIY your own music plan to set the tone as soon as guests enter the platform. Encourage guests to use “Speaker View” so they can see other guests but you remain the focus and allot a few minutes before the ceremony to allow them to interact and catch up with one another.

To reduce potential interruptions, mute your guests during the ceremony but encourage them to use the chat function to cheer you on to ensure that only you, your partner, and your officiant can be heard.

Once the ceremony is over, unmute your guests, have your first dance, toast everyone for coming - the party starts now!

Have Fun!

Lastly, whether it is a virtual or in-person celebration, remember to have fun! You’ve brought your wedding to life despite life’s coronavirus curveball; and for that, you deserve to celebrate.

Take a moment to enjoy this new phase of your life and toast your hard work and dedication. Besides, when the pandemic is over, have faith that you will be able to celebrate with your loved ones without the screen in between.