So you are a “COVID Bride”? I have seen so many couples struggle with what to do about their wedding with COVID-19 being what it is currently in the world. Since we are all cooped up at home, we just see what is on social media. From what I can see in these bride Facebook groups are people constantly rescheduling, cancelling, or simply in fear of making the wrong decision. Being in these bride Facebook groups, I see people bashing others who are not cancelling or rescheduling their wedding. Which is 100% unacceptable. It is YOUR wedding and it is up to you to make a decision on what to do for your special day.

There is not enough information out that shows brides what options they have when it comes to their wedding day and COVID. My goal with this blog post is that you can understand your options, what vendors are going through and seeing, and make the best decision for your wedding day.

Over the summer I have seen couples choose one of 4 options. I will be going through each option on the vendor and bride side to help you understand. The 4 options are as follow:

1. Cancel
2. Reschedule
3. Keep everything as is
4. Have a Micro Wedding

Vendor View

Before we get started with everything, I think it is important to understand the vendor side of things. I will try my very best to explain it to everyone.

As a vendor we provide a service or product; however, our service/product is not our inventory. Our inventory are our available wedding dates. So when you book a vendor, you are then taking one of their available dates off of their inventory shelf. That way they cannot sell that date to anyone else. When you cancel, you are then taking that original wedding date off of the inventory shelf and the profits that were expected to come from it. If you reschedule, you then are taking 2 inventory dates off the shelf for the price of one. This means that the vendor cannot book your rescheduled date as well now and they are going to lose income for not only 2020 but also 2021.

For me, I only book 15 weddings each year, so when a couple reschedules for 2021, that takes one day off of my inventory for that year and that is profit that I will not see. I hope this makes sense. I think it is important for couples to understand what vendors are going through as well when considering your options. This is why some vendors might be hesitant to reschedule.

Cancelling Your Wedding

If you decide to cancel your wedding all together and just get married at the Justice of Peace or by a friend just quick at home, there are some details you will need to know. If you decide to fully cancel everything, please understand that you are more than likely are not going to get your retainer/deposit back from the vendors that you have already booked. Be sure to read your contract and understand each vendors cancellation policy. Every vendor is different, so being aware of what you have as an option is the best way to go before deciding on what to do.

Rescheduling Your Wedding Date

Rescheduling is a good option for some couples; however, it can be very tricky. To avoid cancelling specific vendors, you’ll have to find a date that works for every vendor that you have already booked, which is the hard part. What makes this difficult is that some brides have already rescheduled and taken up availability of vendors.

Not only are you fighting against the 2020 brides that have already rescheduled, you are battling the 2021 brides that would have normally had those dates. 2021 brides have seen that 2020 brides are starting to reschedule, so they have been on their game in booking vendors to ensure that they get who they want for their wedding now too.

Additionally, you may end up having to pay for a reschedule fee or more if you reschedule depending on the vendor. I have seen that many venues have allowed reschedules, but they have to pay for the new 2021 pricing instead of the pricing they got when they originally booked for 2020.

I personally think that the number 1 reason to reschedule is if your closest people (i.e. grandparents, parents, best of best friends, etc) are unable to attend. I personally cannot imagine our wedding day without those people and I 100% understand and respect those that want to reschedule to ensure that their closest people will be in attendance.

Keep Everything as Scheduled

Yes! People are still having their weddings as scheduled! You can be a COVID bride and have your wedding too! Just because we see others in Facebook groups rescheduling and cancelling does not mean that weddings are not happening. Many people who have weddings fear to post about it in those groups because the jerks of the world will attack so that is why we aren’t seeing it as much in these groups.

The past weddings that I have photographed during COVID have been the most LIVE weddings I have every attended. Every guest was having a blast! From what I can see and talking with wedding guests, they are so happy and excited to attend a wedding and celebrate the bride and groom. Think about this for a minute, we have all been cooped up inside and we finally get an opportunity to go out and see friends and family to celebrate a beautiful day between 2 people, OF COURSE they are going to enjoy it! Weddings are the light in this darkness of COVID that people are loving! The guests are so happy to celebrate the couple!

If you think that COVID is going to be this cloud of darkness over your entire wedding day, I personally do not think this will be the case. Guests accept the risk when they decide to attend, just as they accept the risk when they go to the grocery story, Target, or anywhere.

Consider going for it. Have some fun. Have the wedding of your dreams.

 

Have a Micro Wedding

Micro weddings are the new trend and I am absolutely loving them! What is a micro wedding? Micro weddings are a short ceremony with about 15-30 guests in attendance. These guests are mainly family with a couple of close friends sprinkled in. Micro wedding photography coverage is between 3-4 hours based on the couple’s timeline. This coverage ensures that the details of the day from getting ready to family portraits are documented.

When you have a Micro Wedding you have a couple options as well:

1. Have your micro wedding on the original scheduled date and venue with a dinner and no reception to follow in later months
2. Have your micro wedding on the original scheduled date and venue with a reception to follow in later months at a different venue
3. Reschedule your venue for a reception in later months and have your micro wedding at a different location

 

What’s Next?

I write all of this just so you can understand the options that you and your fiance have when it comes to your wedding and COVID. Please remember that this is YOUR day. Do not let anyone tell you what to do or what not to do. If you want to cancel or reschedule, DO IT! If you want to keep it as planned, DO IT! If you want to change things up and have a micro wedding, DO IT!

Know that this is your wedding day and don’t let anyone take that away from you!

If you have questions or want to talk to someone in the industry about your options, please feel free to connect here! I am happy to hop on a call and talk things out with you!