Six Reasons You Should Have a Micro Wedding

Micro weddings became popular since the Covid-19 pandemic (when couples were forced to limit their guest counts due to local restrictions), but personally I’m hoping it’s not just a passing trend.

What is a micro wedding?

A micro wedding is an intimate affair, typically with no more than 50 guests (and often less than 20). They often still feature most the the expected wedding “traditions”, but on a smaller scale.

Now that we’re (sort of) past the pandemic…

…we can go back to our big parties and gatherings, but that doesn’t mean we MUST. A wedding is an extremely personal celebration, designed to join two lives together forever, and in my opinion it should be super-tailored to the couple getting married.

Some people love a giant party, or love to be the center of attention, but it’s not for everyone. Often, as a wedding photographer, I’ll be photographing cocktail hour or another event during the wedding weekend and I hear a guest introduce themselves to the couple for the first time. This isn’t an unusual thing, or a problem at all (especially if the wedding guests were given a plus-one), but often I can see the overwhelm and stress on the faces of the couple getting married.

Getting married is a big deal, add upwards of 100 people there beside you when you’re saying “I do” and you’ve created the perfect nightmare for an introvert. Okay, maybe not a nightmare, but potentially a very stressful situation.

Why I’m in love with micro weddings

Choosing a micro wedding rather than a traditional wedding doesn’t mean you’re sacrificing anything at all, in fact you’ll likely have far more flexibility on your wedding weekend than if you have a traditional wedding.

A micro wedding means an abbreviated guest list, which means you’ll be incredibly intentional about who you choose to invite. It’s not “mean” or “rude” to leave people off your guest list, the people you choose to support you on your wedding day should be those who actively walk beside you and support you in your life. I promise you won’t ruin a relationship with your third cousin, or a childhood neighbor if you don’t invite them to your wedding. They may be offended at first, but in the long run they’re not the people you’ll call when you need support in a rough time, or someone to come help you move to your new home together.

Since your celebration will be intimate it’s much easier to invest in the areas that truly matter to you. Plan extra time for quiet moments with your soon-to-be spouse before or after your ceremony. Go all-out on your design since you’re only paying for 20 guests rather than 200. Choose an incredible destination where the culture and architectural design inspires you, and then dive deep into planning a celebration to remember that really speaks to you and your partner.

How do I know if a micro wedding is for me?

We’ll keep this pretty simple. Here are our favorite 6 Reasons to have a micro wedding:

1. You want your wedding day to be about your relationship with your partner, and you want to actually spend some time together.
2. Thinking about standing in front of more than your immediate circle of friends makes you anxious.
3. Your circle of friends is “an inch wide and mile deep”. (you don’t have a ton of friends, but the ones you do are very close)
4. You’re a traveler, and have always dreamt of a wedding in a different country, or someplace far from home.
5. You like to do things your own way, traditions for traditions sake makes no sense.
6. You’d like to be able to plan an all-out celebration, but also want time to celebrate with the people who matter most to you.

A micro wedding might be wrong for you if:

1. You’ve always wanted to throw a giant party to celebrate your marriage.
2. You’re an extrovert, and a crowd on your day sounds exciting (not stressful).
3. You can’t imagine getting married without your 10 best friends from highschool, middle school, grade school, preschool, plus your mom’s-hairdresser’s-brother’s-wife’s-cousin. 😉

At the end of the day what matters is that your wedding is a reflection of who you and your partner are as people, and when you look back on your photos you can say you were present and loved the celebration of your marriage.