Should you avoid this years wedding trends?

All images' rights reserved to Gabrielle Steberis Photography

2017 has definitely been the year of trends the good and the bad! Weve had unicorn makeup brushes to hairy fingernails (don't think I'll be trying that one anytime soon), but I'm talking specifically the wedding trends that have been on the rise this year.

Usually I'm not for one to follow the crowd (I call these people 'sheep') and I love to see individuality and people trying not to conform to contemporary social standards. However there has been something about this years trends particularly that have resonated well with me, and have fallen into my style of photography in general. So, I will be going through some of the specifics, and you decide whether or not they are becoming 'over done'.

Displaying Personal Photographs

Now I know what you'll be thinking; 'But Gabby, you're a photographer! You should be encouraging having photographs displayed!' Yes of course! Nothing excites me more than a great photograph that is physically in front of me! Just like the whole of this blog post, this is purely down to style/ tastefulness, and maybe a discussion on the quality of the photographs maybe?

For example, I've done two weddings that have had physical photographs displayed but one wedding had phone snap-shots printed, on the other hand the other wedding had professional photos displayed on canvas and framed.

With the first wedding it was (for me) a lovely idea, because the walls were filled with the Bride and Groom's memories of their personal lives and then their time spent together. It had a homely feeling, you got a sense of family values (this was reflected when witnessing how close the family were), which made the photographer in me pipe down and not care about them being 'just phone snaps'.

The other wedding didn't have no where near as many photos displayed in contrast to the first wedding we touched upon, however these were a few of high quality prints, which were very important events and people in the couple's lives. The fact that there were only a few physical photographs, I noticed that guests were huddling together in groups to gaze upon them, and also took in turns holding the physical memories.

Naked Cakes

I have never even heard of a 'naked cake' until this year! It really did make me wonder; 'Is it a naughty cake topper?' (wink wink), and found that it was a cake that was stripped back of everything that makes a traditional cake! There's no velvet icing, there's no fancy swirls that you want to naughtily scrape off with your finger on the sly; there is minimal edible decoration. Although, this is usually balanced well by placing alternative decor such as artificial flowers like Gypsophila, fruits which act as a topper and trails down/surrounding the cake, fancy chocolate pieces, or sometimes there is nothing and the cake topper dominates!

The Sweet Cart/ Goodies Galore

This trend has caught on so much, that I see brides and grooms are spending a fair but of money buying crates of sweet things in bulk (hey I'm not complaining as long as I get some), and it's the idea of the guests (especially the children) helping themselves and enjoying the gift of sugary heaven. It takes you back almost to the childhood experience of the affordable 'pick and mix', and visiting the specific sweet shop, which weighed all your sweets out for you as you chose specifically what you'd like. I think this trend is the idea of bringing back familiarity that made you feel good as a child, and it allows the new generation to experience that also.If the sweets are part of the 'favours', then it's a way of your guests choosing what they would like, rather than risking your guests not particularly liking the chosen favour (they should just give me theirs if they don't care for them anyway).

Selfie Sticks/ Photobooths

Now every photographer will probably have their own take on whether they think selfie sticks, or hired photobooths are a 'good' idea (not like that matters, it's not up to them) but there will always be that passing thought on whether or not our work will be somehow interfered, or even our presence could be dismissed. It all depends on how the photographer works and what their style of shooting is. E.g. if you have a traditional photographer that likes to pose you and the guests accordingly, then alternative photographic methods may distract away from the photographers presence. However, if you have a more relaxed or documentary photographer in particular, they are most likely going to enjoy waiting for your facial expressions and responses to the images that your guests are doing, therefore the opportunities are still there.

Personally I haven't had any problems with photobooths or selfie sticks; they are a way for the party to interact with each other in modern society, and it allows (in my opinion) for guests to be a lot less withdrawn when asking if they would like their photograph taken. Mostly I find them positive in a way that the guests are filling in the blanks which the photographer will miss; we can't be there for every laugh by everyone, and we only stay for as long we are hired for.

The Bohemian/ Hippie Theme

Even though Im absolutely ecstatic that I've had the privilege to photograph so many boho inspired weddings this year (because that is my personal style anyway) I had to include it in this list, with it being one of the biggest trends of 2017! Out of the full year I have done 1 traditional styled wedding, with the high end jewelry, large church with stain glass windows, mermaid styled/fitted dress.

2017 has been about loose waist lines and flowy skirts, Gypsophila flowers, fairy-lights, material wall coverings (this includes fairy-lights as well), outdoor wedding ceremonies (sometimes not even legal), dainty jewelry, groomsmen are missing waist-coats (I really like that!), Barbeques, outside bars, campervans, and the list goes on.

The boho theme is inspired by the 1960's where the counterculture movement (hippie movement) surfaced. In all honesty, I'm not surprised by this whilst the fashion of the 1960's is coming back, influencing the way people dress, home decor and even people are taking on board the idea of 'freedom' that the 60's counterculture movement adopted.

So because 2017 has been a BIG year for trends it is best to leave the exploration there, and the choice of whether or not you should follow the rest of the crowd and have any of these is completely up to you!

One thing I would say is; don't feel like you have to follow the crowd because it is what's expected of you. If you want a Harry Potter theme then make it a day that YOU want to remember! Sometimes a wedding that reflects the couple's true personality will be more enjoyable and charming, compared to a style that doesn't reflect you as a person.

Happy researching, and I would LOVE to know whether or not you'll be following any of these trends!