Tips for Throwing an Epic Wedding Reception
Of everything you’re looking forward to about your wedding day, your reception is likely near the top of your list.
It’s your chance to finally let loose with all your best friends and family, enjoy a glass of wine, eat, and celebrate the fact that you just got MARRIED! We are ALL about stress-free wedding days around here, and we believe that extra touches of intentional planning truly go the extra mile when it comes to you having the best day of your life. Between being wedding photographers and getting married ourselves, we have learned a tremendous amount of nifty little wedding planning tips and tricks to help you create your best day. Today we’re discussing wedding receptions and the little touches we believe will completely transform your day (& the party) into the absolute best.
If you can, choose a reception space with lots of natural light.
Now we Arizona wedding photographers & couples are incredibly blessed in this department- we get the luxury of having mostly outdoor venues. As you’re touring venues and reception spaces, make note of how much natural light is let in everywhere, but especially the reception space.
Think about it for a minute. Let’s picture your first dance. You hold each other close as the warm glow of the sunset streams across the dance floor, with twinkly lights softly illuminating the joyous glances between you two and of all your favorite people taking in the moment. It feels natural, magical, and romantic. Nothing about this moment feels fake or fabricated. Looking back, you’re glad you chose a naturally lit reception space, because the ambiance the natural light created was just unbeatable.
Additionally, your photographers may really thank you. Around here we are big proponents of the idea that your wedding day isn’t about the photos, but we also really value the heirlooms your wedding photos become. While caring all about your photos isn’t necessarily the most productive focus in every aspect of planning, it is important here. Venues with more natural light just make for better photos- it’s fact. Harsh, blinding overhead lights photograph differently than soft, ambient light in a naturally lit space. Though your photos will be beautiful and special regardless of venue, we like to think you’ll appreciate them more if the wedding reception space is more open and naturally lit.
2. Keep the space clean- avoid excess amounts of decor!
We really enjoy the word ~tasteful~ in this case. Add a tasteful amount of decor to the space to reflect you & the overall vibe you’re going for, but do your best not to overdecorate. If you’re getting married in Phoenix, this shouldn’t be too difficult. Again, we are truly blessed with venues around here that are just naturally beautiful and don’t require much decor at all. But regardless of where you are getting married, don’t get too carried away by details. Not only will they make the pricetag of your wedding go waaaay up, but I really believe this is an area that causes truly unnecessary stress for couples. Unless you’re trying to get your wedding featured in a magazine for its brilliant decor, you’re not really going to be paying much attention to it while you’re surrounded by everyone that you love at your wedding reception, we promise.
And because we are wedding photographers, we do have to add a little photo-related blurb to this one. Too many decorations will make your photos look busy and distracting. Now we know some couples and photographers are really focused on all the little details of the day, but around here we care more about the people who are in your life and who are celebrating your day with you. You’ll find us photographing more of the interactions between all your most special humans and less of the centerpieces, and for this reason we LOVE it when those sweet, candid moments are the things that stand out in the photos, as opposed to the wall decor in the background.
3. Plan cocktail hour to be in a separate space from the reception.
This one is an important one for a number of reasons! We’ll start with the reason that, typically, people want to keep these parts of the wedding day separate-they’re not meant to blend together too much! The reception space, and what time people enter it, affects more vendors than you think. The reception space needs to be completely set up by your coordination crew or rentals set up team. Your caterers may have a hand in setting out certain items on the tables like ice water, bread, or other things for dinner. Your photographers need the space empty to capture detail shots of the tables, cake, and other reception space decor. All of these jobs are much easier, or don’t have to be done literal hours earlier, if guests are kept out of the reception space until the reception begins.
In addition, this will help the party be much more lively. We know your wedding day isn’t about entertaining people, but you will have more fun if you’re not worried about people getting bored or things proceeding too slowly. Keep your guests from sitting at their tables and planting themselves there for the rest of the night by separating your cocktail hour and your reception!
4. Plan extra space in your timeline throughout the reception.
We talked about the nitty gritty of creating the perfect wedding day timeline in a different article, so we’ll keep it short and sweet here. Just plan extra space between “events” during the reception like dinner, toasts, first dances, cake cutting, etc. Things will run behind, we guarantee it. The biggest thief of joy, especially on a wedding day, is feeling rushed. These are moments that are meant to be cherished by especially you two, as well as everyone you love. Take it from me, it is not worth planning all of these unique moments back to back in the name of efficiency. Spread them out, and take your time with them. You don’t want to be literally running from your first dance to cake cutting while the blurred memory of your grandma’s sweet toast escapes you. The extra time is worth it, do yourself a favor and plan for it.
5. Fake a grand exit once it gets dark.
For two people who deeply value authenticity, this is one area in which we really suggest faking it. Grand exits are fun, but they can be really, really difficult. By the end of the wedding, people are tired and drunk. If you’re involving any sort of open flames or sparklers in your grand exit, this can be incredibly dangerous. However, there are still ways to have magical grand exit photos without the liability, or having to pay your photographers for a crazy amount of extra hours just to have this moment documented.
We like to fake grand exits with the important people: family, bridal party, and other close friends, as soon as it gets dark. There are less people to coordinate, it’s earlier in the night so you don’t have to worry as much about drunkenness, and that early twilight lighting is much more dreamy than later on in the evening. After this is done, you will be completely free to enjoy the rest of your night. You will be able to stay and hang out as late as you want since your exit won’t be constrained by the end of photography coverage. You will have nothing in the way of someone accidentally burning the barn down to worry about. And most importantly, you will still have the best photos!
6. Have guests submit song requests with their RSVP.
A legitimate fear of couples getting married is that their guests won’t want to dance. The literal most difficult part of wedding planning for me was creating a dance playlist (catch me only listening to country & Jesus music- not the recipe for a good dance party). Get your guests moving with songs they want to hear! Have them submit a song request with their RSVP so everyone is happy and dancing, and so you’ll have a list to start from when you plan with your DJ!
7. Make sure you order enough food for your vendors.
This is something that I get asked about a lot, so let’s clear up some confusion. Typically the “unspoken” rule is that if your vendors are on site working for more than 5 hours on your wedding day, it is your responsibility to feed them dinner. These vendors tend to be your DJ, coordinator, photographer, & videographer to name a few! These people have been working their butts off all day and are likely a little tired at this point, make sure your DJ isn’t passing out on you mid-reception because he hasn’t eaten since breakfast!
Another tip to go along with this one is to have these vendors get their food right after the bridal party does. The one opportunity for downtime during the wedding day is dinner for these vendors (no one wants photos/videos of them eating for example), so give them the chance to really sit down and rest so they’re able to bring all the energy to the big events during the wedding reception!
Hey pals! We’re Katie & Joseph, a husband & wife team, and wedding photographers in Scottsdale.
We are big fans of documenting wedding days in an unposed, raw, genuine, and honest way that allows our couples to maximize their experience on their day while also receiving a gallery full of stunning images that communicate how it felt to be there.
Though we’re based in Arizona, we’ll travel anywhere for a good love story (and dance party). We invite you to follow the links below to learn more about us and our services, and to get in contact with us!
