The Different Types of Wedding
Wondering what types of wedding would fit you the best?
There are plenty of possibilities, to fit everyone’s wants and needs. Let me walk you through them!
The wedding industry is broad and diverse, encompassing a multitude of traditions from cultures worldwide. This leads to different types of wedding you can choose from.
At its core, a wedding represents the celebration of the legal, social, and/or spiritual commitment made by a couple to intertwine their lives forever. Once this commitment is made, the options for how to proceed are practically limitless.
In this post, I’ll endeavor to present some of the different types of wedding I’m familiar with. However, it’s important to note that there are countless beautiful traditions worldwide that I have no experience with. I’ve chosen to focus on the types of weddings I’m acquainted with, but this by no means suggests that they are more common or superior to any other form of celebration.
8 Different Types of Wedding
The Registration
The Registration
This is the legal aspect of marriage, and the specific procedures vary depending on the country. In the UK, for example, marriages can be registered in a register office, an authorized venue, or a registered religious building. A registrar can conduct the ceremony, or for religious ceremonies, an authorized person or registrar may be present. In Scotland, ceremonies can take place at any agreed-upon location with the registrar’s approval. In France, legal marriage typically occurs at City Hall, as registrars do not officiate at venues, and religious ceremonies are not legally recognized by the state. Therefore, couples often opt for a combination of a City Hall wedding and a religious or secular ceremony, which may take place on different days.
The Courthouse Wedding
The Courthouse Wedding
This is a typical civil ceremony where couples are legally married at the register office in City Hall. It can be a private affair with only the witnesses and the couple, or it can serve as the main ceremony with guests in attendance. While not always the most romantic option due to its legal focus, it is arguably the most significant, as it establishes the couple’s legal marital status.
The Secular or Humanist Ceremony
The Secular or Humanist Ceremony
This type of ceremony, common in France, offers couples a more personal and romantic alternative to the typically brief and legal civil ceremonies. Since registrars do not conduct ceremonies at venues in France, couples often choose to have a humanist ceremony alongside the legal registration. These ceremonies are purely symbolic, lacking legal or religious significance. Couples can choose a friend or family member to officiate, or hire a professional celebrant. In the UK, professional celebrants are not officially recognized, so couples may still need to involve a registrar for the legal aspect. Humanist ceremonies are cherished for their focus on the couple’s love story rather than legal or religious formalities.
The Destination Wedding
The Destination Wedding
For adventurous couples, a destination wedding offers a unique and meaningful experience. Couples may choose a destination with personal significance, favorable weather, or aesthetic appeal. Popular destinations include Paris, the French Riviera, or the Loire Valley in France, and Puglia, Lake Como or the Amalfi Coast in Italy. Professional wedding planners can assist with the logistics of planning a destination wedding, which can be particularly challenging due to language barriers with local vendors.
The Elopement
The Elopement
Elopements are intimate ceremonies focused solely on the couple. Typically held in scenic locations such as mountain peaks or national parks, elopements involve only the essential participants, often including an officiant and photographer. These weddings emphasize the couple’s commitment to each other and are ideal for introverted couples who prefer a more private celebration.
Wedding Weekends
Wedding Weekends
For weddings involving guests traveling from various locations or destination weddings, extending the celebrations over a weekend can provide additional opportunities for enjoyment. A typical wedding weekend may include a rehearsal dinner, the wedding day itself, and a day-after brunch. These extended celebrations can be religious or secular, with the focus on the duration of the festivities rather than the type of ceremony.
Small Wedding
Small Wedding
A Small Wedding is a celebration held with only your close family and friends. Usually, a wedding with up to 50 guests is considered to be a small wedding. Under 30 guests, you fall in the category of micro-weddings. It allows the celebrations to be much more intimate and personal. It allows you to spend more quality time with each one of your guests because there are fewer of them. Small Weddings are usually a good fit for more introverted couples.
Themed Wedding
Themed Wedding
If you met at a Sherlock Holmes convention and are obsessed with the famous detective, or if you’re Potter-heads using your houses to define your characters, you might want to consider a themed wedding. These examples are very niche and nerdy, but you can also have a more general themed-wedding, like focusing on an alternative vibe or a vintage feel. In any case, these weddings will focus all the planning and decisions around the theme, from the decoration to the food, the venue, and even the couple’s attire. They make for very original celebrations and can be absolutely beautiful!
I’ve shot over 25 weddings in multiple countries, and every tradition I’ve witnessed holds tremendous beauty
All in all, your options are endless when you decide to get married. I always encourage the couples I work with to focus on themselves and what they really want instead of trying to people-please. I know it can be hard, or impossible sometimes, but this is one day in a lifetime, and the couple should be the guests of honor, not the hosts. It’s a day to celebrate their love, and it’s important the day looks like what they dream of.
Let’s Connect
You’re getting married and you’re looking for a photographer to capture your day? Give me a shout and tell me all about the type of wedding you decided to go for; I can’t wait to hear everything about it!
