Candid Memories: Disposable Cameras at your Reception

Making your reception more interactive and fun for not only you, but your guests can be a challenge.

A fun idea is to place disposable film cameras or disposable digital cameras out on a few of the tables. Pay attention though, I said a few cameras. This means that not every table should have it’s own camera.

You need to keep in mind that usually with a disposable camera you get about 22 pictures per camera and if you put one out on every table at the end of the night you are going to left with 10 or 15 cameras that all have only have a few pictures taken on them. If you limit the number of cameras you put out on the tables you better ensure that all the pictures will be used.

Another perk is that the next day when you go into get the pictures developed you wont be wasting your money developing cameras that only had half the pictures used. An added benefit to only having a few cameras is that if your guests know that there are only a few cameras then they are less likely to “waste” pictures by taking pictures of unnecessary object like beer bottles or empty chairs.

There are plenty of different types of cameras you can use to get the candid fun moments at the reception that your hired photographer may miss. Usually the photographer is focused more on the bride and groom which is great, but a couple of days later is it wonderful to see how much fun your guests were having at the reception. Also, it is a nice idea to send a photo of your guests in their thank you card. It is not only a good gesture to thank your guests again for coming but it is also a moment you and your new husband and wife will also be able to keep and cherish.

Disposable cameras come in a wide range of types. You can purchase disposable digital cameras, but sometimes this can be a waste of money. You can get the same effect for a lot less by using disposable film cameras and when you get them developed just opt to have a CD come with the pictures that way you still can e-mail them out and edit them yourself if you wish.

Companies now make ‘wedding’ disposable cameras that can come in whites or creams. For these kinds of more tailored to wedding items you will notice that just because a product says ‘wedding’ on it, it automatically costs more. What I recommend is to purchase normal digital cameras and tie a ribbon or a bow around them, as if you were wrapping a gift. The ribbon can be the same color as your bridesmaid dresses to tie the event together nicely. You may wish to put a tag with a cute story explaining why the cameras are there and what each guest is suppose to do with them.

It is worth noting that if you do leave a note on the table or on the camera that you mention that the flash needs to be on for the pictures to turn out well. This was a mistake we made, half of our pictures turned out dark and grainy due to not have the flash on. Most people easily forget they have to push a special button the disposable cameras because they are so use to digital.