Why You Should Consider Small Wedding Venues

I am amazed in this day and age that folks actually get married but after shooting about 75-80 weddings I have to say, smaller weddings are better. Larger over blown weddings are stressful, expensive, uncomfortable, expensive, lacking in intimacy, and expensive. Did I mention that large weddings are expensive? I think you get my point.

When I shoot large weddings I get "canned" expressions that subjects think are attractive. It takes about 25 shots until I have people comfortable enough to give me their real faces to shoot. Large weddings are lacking in intimacy and everything is so planned that it is hard for anyone, especially the bride and groom, to have a good time.

You would be surprised at what is considered a small wedding. Some people actually think that a wedding of 100 or less is a small wedding. While that is indeed moderate, my definition of a small wedding is 30 people or less. This is actually the accepted number by most that are in the business of hosting weddings. 100 people in a wedding is moderate and still small enough to have a good time.

One point to consider is that when inquiring about the size of a wedding you may have to refer to the wedding party and then those attending the wedding. I have had a little confusion arise when I asked how large a wedding is and I get a number that only includes the "wedding party". The wedding party is all those that are included in the actual ceremony.

The most important thing to consider is the cost. Most people getting married have cost to consider and too many couples put off getting married because they don't have the money to pay for the cost of a wedding, especially young couples just starting out. These days frequently couples are having to be creative and cut corners in order to make their wedding happen.

In order to create a new niches for those that provide services to couples there are options that are opening up for folks to be able to find a place to have their wedding for little or no cost. This has given rise to unusual locations offering themselves up as a site for weddings.

The first that springs to mind is using your home or the spacious home of a loved one. While this is a good option to keep the costs down, things can quickly get out of hand. Even with just 30 people in the whole wedding you may have to still rent table and chairs and hire someone to assist with the event.

Another common small wedding option is definitely not the cheapest but it can be quite special. That would be having a wedding at your honeymoon location like Hawaii. It is easy to have a nice wedding on the beach in Hawaii for a very low cost.

Other options can be small chapels, public parks and beaches, historic buildings, hotel resorts, bed and breakfasts, and even on a boat. The key here is to be creative and think outside of the box.

I shoot weddings for a small Bed and Breakfast and their wedding business is called "Weddings by the Sound" (.com). Their total price for the chapel, minister, Unity candle, champagne toast, wedding cake, and buffet it $1,700. This is a lovely option and you may even be able to find small venues in your hometown.