The “Plugged-In Wedding” New Technology and Wedding Reception Ideas
Photo courtesy of Crow Entertainment
Flowers are blooming, bees are buzzing and couples are saying "I Do" all over! It’s Wedding Season! But what is new this Season? Tech, Tech and more Tech. The Wedding Industry is all abuzz (like those bees) with new trends for the tech savvy couple. What makes our list for the “Plugged-IN Wedding”? Check out the hottest ways to incorporate social media and the latest technology to make your wedding an interactive experience for your guests.
Innovative Lighting and Staging
Monogrammed lighting is quietly elegant and extremely popular among couples, but new advances in technology are taking projections to whole new levels. Many DJ and Lighting companies are offering real-time photo feed projections during the receptions. Guests tag the DJ with their photos and they are fed directly to the dance floor projector eliminating the need to wait to see the pictures the next day on Instagram. This is great for the social media savvy couple with the idea of making the wedding guests photojournalist for a day, documenting the wedding with an “in the now” feel.
Interactive LED lighting is also becoming popular with couples. Brian Crow of Crow Entertainment says “More couples are recognizing the need to please all the guests rather than only focusing on what they want themselves. In that area, it’s less of me [the couple] and more about the guests,” using the lighting as a way to complete the guests’ experience and making the day fun for all.
Invitations by Paper in the Park
Interactive Wedding Invitations
2016 & 2017 saw an uptick in e-vites for wedding invitations. Predictions by those that do that magic 8 ball thing say that 2018 will see a resurgence of personalized printed wedding invitations with a tech twist. Couples will be creating and sending invitations again but asking future guests to RSVP by scanning the invite or to visit the couple’s website to respond.
Eversnap
Photo Apps
New photo sharing apps are popping up all over the wedding industry. Hashtags and Instagram have been around and popular for a while, but have you heard of WeddingParty (partnered with MyWedding.com so guests photos are sent directly to your wedding page), EverSnap, formerly WeddingSnap (with its high resolution photos and fun filters) or WedSocial (a full social media experience for your guests)? Photo apps are becoming the way to crowd source your wedding, making your guests truly an integral part of the day’s events.
Pro Tip: Charging Stations for the mobile friendly wedding! Make sure to have charging stations with multiple platform chargers for all the guests who are participating in making the day memorable.
Photo by bliss paper boutique
“I Spy” List
Now that your guests have downloaded the apps and want to take pictures, now how to make them get involved. Challenge your guests with an I Spy list that creates fun and funny opportunities as they roam and mingle, shooting photos such as Holding Hands, Giddy Giggles, or Dance floor Happy Feet! A little competition never hurt and helps to keep the less creative guests from shooting 15 shots of the bride and groom chewing or the cake from 30 different angles.
Photo courtesy of Merit Aviation
Go-Pro/Drone Filming
Photography technology is flying high these days. Drone shots of the wedding day are the hottest tech and turning the wedding video into the Industrial Light and Magic of the wedding industry. The aerial sweep and shots of the wedding party have become a must for the modern wedding, and come on, it’s totally cool. The fun possibilities are only as limited as the range of the remote control. With tech getting increasingly smaller and more portable without the hassle of losing sharpness of image, Go-Pro filming is the hidden gem of the videographers tool-kit. Be on the look out for Go-Pros in bouquets, hidden in headpieces or poking out of an officiant’s breast pocket for the unique view they provide. Couples want a way to relive the experience from the up close and personal perspective and they are loving the opportunities this tech produces.
Photo from Pixilated
GIF Photobooth
Hold the phone! Photobooths that make an instant gif. This looks like so much fun. How will you get your guests to the dance floor?! This tech jump takes three quick sequential shots, automatically turns them into a gif and then gives the guests the opportunity to share via social media. Sign me up!