Why Wedding Exits are Dead

If you’re new here, I’ll start by explaining what I mean by “wedding exits”. This is any “officially” planned exit from the reception of your wedding! You may be thinking… wait… everyone does official wedding exits, right?!

Nope.

& they’re quickly becoming a thing of the past (and for the better).

If you’re not convinced yet, let me explain.

01. Sparkler Exit Expectation vs. Reality

If you’re a new bride (or thinking you may be soon), you’ve probably seen someone post a photo of a sparkler exit. The happy couple is kissing while their guests are cheering for them in the middle of sparklers.

This has been a fun trend to enter the wedding industry, but it’s time is almost played out for several reasons.

What brides imagine is this fun, upbeat moment where their guests are cheering and they are happily leaving their reception without a care in the world!

However, 99% of the time ONE if not more of these things are what actually happens:

(1) Someone/something catches on fire

(2) Intoxicated guests / couples get hurt tripping over objects in the dark

(3) You accidentally go over venue/vendor coverage time trying to organize the sparkler lines & get charged extra – venues can be picky about this since they have to do the clean up!

(4) The bride is trying to exit while also communicate to her maid of honor to grab her bag because she forgot it

(5) The couple gets in a car & then immediately has to go back inside because they forgot a phone

(6) Guests leave items inside by accident

02. Ok, but what should I do then?!

Over the last few years, I’ve watched imperfect sparkler exit after imperfect sparkler exit come & go without saying anything because it’s what’s “normal”. But recently, I’ve started educating my brides on the realities of these “official” exits (sparklers or other) and equipping them with better options to end their photography coverage.

After the last several months of brides choosing these options, I’m CONVINCED that official exits are not the way to go!

03. The BIGGEST reason you should forego an “official exit”

Before I give you the other options I recommend, I HAVE to tell you the biggest game changer with this choice. By choosing not to have an official exit, you are actually ADDING something huge to your experience.

way.more.portraits.

way.less.rushed.

Because your photography coverage now has a more “open ending”, you have the freedom to schedule more time on the FRONT end of your day for portraits without the rush.

The photos my couples return to over & over again are not the reception dancing photos, they are the intimate moments that happen before everything else AND all their portraits!

04. Think about this – before your reception, these photos are covered:

• Details
• Getting ready (hair & make-up, candids, robes shots, getting your dress on, candids with your girls helping you get ready)
• First Look with Bride & Groom
• Bride & Groom portraits
• Individual bridal portraits
• Individual groom portraits
• Wedding Party (big group, just bridesmaids, just groomsmen, & individuals with each person)
• Family Portraits
• Ceremony Details
• Ceremony
• Sunset portraits (depending on the time of year)

That’s A LOT to cover. And not just that, but that is the MOST important parts of your day! It’s the BIGGEST moments, the most intimate moments, the most memorable moments. Making the choice to have an official exit covered doesn’t just mean “you want an exit photo”, it means you’re sacrificing time from THESE moments just for one photo. You’re creating rush during the most important parts of the day.

05. What you SHOULD do instead!

Ok, you’ve made it to the options!  Here are the options I recommend over doing an official exit (in order of most recommended/popular to least):

Note: you can always choose a ceremony exit (rice/petals) if you want that “just married” photo – plus the light will be way better during this time of day! This could be done with ANY of the following options.

06. I’ll prove it to you.