I love a memorable wedding. One of the ways that you can make your wedding fun and memorable is by personalising it. It’s no secret that the more unique and personalised a wedding is, the more fun the couple and their guests will have. So, how do you personalise your wedding?
You can start by writing your wedding vows, and guests love to hear personalised vows. When you’re going for a memorable wedding, your guests deserve to hear more than “For richer and poorer…” Personalised vows are enchanting to hear, and the moment when the couple reads them to each other is usually the most moving part of their wedding ceremony.
As a Cornish wedding photographer, I love to take pictures of this particular moment, the looks on the faces of your guests are something you want to treasure. So if you are considering writing your wedding vows, it’s well worth it!
If you’re looking to give it a go but not sure where to start, this post is for you. So, grab a pen and paper, take a seat and let’s talk about how to write your wedding vows.
Start with A Brainstorm
Before you start, think for a minute. Remember those funny moments in your relationship? How about romantic memories and other fantastic experiences you’ve both shared? Your Engagement? The moment you met? Then jot those down. You don’t need to structure or pattern it in any way just yet. We’ll do the structuring later. What matters at this point is to get those ideas down on paper.
Decide on a Theme
The best approach when it comes to writing your vows is to see them as a form of storytelling. All good stories have themes running through them. It only makes sense that you also have a theme for your vows. So how do you know what theme to go for? It’s easy.
Remember those experiences you wrote down above? They’ll come in handy here. Look through them. Are there any running themes that jump out at you?
Once you’ve been able to figure out what is prominent, then that’s it. That’s the theme of your vows. Use it to centre everything that you write. Your vows should be about how you intend to apply that theme with your spouse going forward as a couple.
Pay Attention to Your Word Count
An excellent personal vow is between 400 to 650 words. That means it should be less than the length of this entire article but no less than half of it. 400 to 650 words is about three to five minutes in speaking time. It would be best if you kept your vows short, articulate and engaging.
Structure your Story
So you have the main points down and have chosen your theme. Now its time to structure all of this into a coherent story that will engage the audience. You will most likely have too much written down at this point, so it’s worth removing any repeating parts to slim it down.
Consider The Photo Opportunities
By now, you already know that your wedding photos are important because they’ll help you preserve the memories of that special day. In choosing your wedding venue, you should also keep your photos in mind by selecting a venue with great locations for your pictures. You could also ask your Cornish Wedding Photographer for ideas on venues with great photo opportunities. Venues with lakes, gardens, grand staircases, and feature windows are usually photography gold.
Practice Makes Perfect
If you’ve ever paid attention to great public speakers, one trick that they use is that they practice their speech beforehand. If you have difficulty with public speaking, this could also prove very helpful. Practising will help you build the confidence that you need to convey your story to your guests and more importantly, your partner.
Print It Out
As much as we’ve technologically advanced as a people, whipping out your phone in front of the celebrant to read your vows is not the best idea. Wedding vows are best read from paper, or memory if you feel brave. Imagine looking back on a picture of you looking into your phone screen at the altar. It probably wouldn’t speak to the beauty of the moment.
Print your vows out on a piece of beautiful paper or write them out on a small board which you can then read from during your wedding ceremony. Make more than one copy also to have a backup. If you’re going the paper route, remember to put it in an envelope and keep it somewhere safe for your wedding day.
Here at Steven Rees Webb Photography, I’d love to capture you reading your vows and other special moments at your wedding. I know that moments like these are priceless, and they are what add to the beauty of the day. Why not check out my portfolio to see how I was able to capture the moment for my previous couples.
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Professional, Fun and Relaxed Wedding Photography
My name is Steven! I'm a full-time documentary wedding photographer from Cornwall. I specialise in relaxed and unposed photography, capturing the moments of your day as they happen.
I love what I do, and I always have fun doing it. If you are looking for someone to capture every moment, create beautiful lasting memories, someone who will laugh with your guests, talk to the kids, pet all the dogs and get stuck into almost any task on the day, then I am the person for you!
