Do you think it is a good idea to have disposable camera's at a wedding reception???

Answer 1

Yes and no.

While they can be a wonderful way to capture moments and guests the photographer may miss... nowadays so many people have digital cameras and phone cameras with the option to load pictures to the internet for everyone to enjoy, disposables seem almost outdated. Not to mention the money wasted on developing useless shots.

I you want candid pics at the reception perhaps enlist a few family members or friends with digitals to snap some shots for you. Or rent one of those photo booths which seem to be so popular now.

Answer 2

Yes, disposable cameras are good because you get some pictures that you wouldn't normally get even though you get a million different perspectives of you cutting the cake and all the traditional pictures. My suggestion would be to have the cameras there to make the people feel like they are part of the wedding. Everyone enjoys feeling special. Also, when developing the pictures, get them put onto a cd so you have all the pictures but didn't pay for prints of them all. This allows you to pick and choose what pictures you want as well as seeing all the pictures. If you do decide to have cameras at your wedding reception, be sure to invest in good cameras. There are some really crappy disposable cameras out there. Dollar stores cameras may be cheap but they do not develop. Also know that the disposable cameras may not give you crisp and clear images like your professional ones but these will often be the first images of your wedding you will be able to see which is nice. I hope this helps. Good luck!

Answer 3

A few years ago I would have said yes, but these days almost everyone has a digital camera and they'll probably bring it with them. Disposable cameras are usually made with recycled film and the quality is NEVER as good as with a digital or professional camera. Sometimes you'll get lucky and get some really good shots, but for as much as you spend to put a camera on each table and subsequently develop the film, is it worth the few candid shots your guests would have taken with their digital cameras anyway? I'm just going to ask people at the reception if they would mind e-mailing any good shots they got to me after the wedding. Then it doesn't cost them to print the pictures or anything and if I want paper copies of them, I can print them out. Huge cost saver all around. I've heard people say that they got lots of cute pictures that the photographer missed of the guests mingling and in some cases that may be true, but for the most part, I think its a waste of money. That's a big risk to take to "hope" that you get a lot of cute shots when you'll probably get a lot of blurry ground shots and even a few obscene ones. Especially if there are kids at the reception, they take the cameras and go nuts with them.

Answer 4

The idea is a but outdated since everyone uses digital cameras these days. What we're going to do is mention on our wedding website that there will be a place at the reception were they can upload their memory cards. It's the same idea as the disposable cameras but without the wasting of film. It's time for weddings today to join the 21st Century.

Answer 5

I think that most people hate taking pictures when there are disposable cameras on the table. Many of my friends have tried this and ended up with almost all of the cameras with only a handful of pics on them. Instead, give out a handful of disposable cameras on the day of the wedding to guests that are outgoing. Ask these guests to be in charge of taking the "candids". You will get much better pictures this way, and will see your wedding from the eyes of your friends.

Answer 6

Many brides provide disposable cameras for each table at the wedding reception. You get a ton of photographs this way--and some really funny ones that a professional photographer might not get because they are concentrating on the bridge and groom. You get some really nice fun shots this way. Just make sure the guests know not to try and shoot photographs right behind the professional photographer that you're probably paying a pretty penny for. If guests stand behind him and take photos while he is taking photos then their flash (from their no doubt cheap camera) will wash out the photo that the professional is trying to take. Just make sure the guests know to stay out of the professionals way and you'll get some really really good pro shots and some fun shots from family members.

Answer 7

Sure, go ahead with them. The bad idea is to depend on getting great wedding pictures from them, because it won't happen.

I am a photo lab manager (over 12 years now) and a part time wedding photographer. I have seen the images from literally hundreds of these wedding reception cameras. If you get two good pictures per camera, then count yourself lucky. Kids play with them, drunk adults take pictures of body parts and people shooting the bird finger, also people shooting a pic of their own finger. People don't turn on the flash. Or they take a picture from 40 feet away. Alternately, 4 inches away.

The flashes are under-powerful, so a night time reception will be ghostly figures lurking in the dim light.

If you use them, get good ones, Kodak or Fuji. Don't get the cheap ones from the various dollar stores or cheap mail order vendors. Just be sure you aren't planning to use them INSTEAD of a real photographer, but just as a fun addition to the real photography.

Answer 8

My mom and my sister both had them at their weddings. They got a lot of great pictures. Most of their guests, but some great candid pictures of the wedding party too. Just make sure that your guests know that they are to leave them there for you---not to take them home.

The only downfall is that you have to get the pictures developed. Meaning that you can develop a lot of cameras and waste money printing photos that didn't turn out or are just picutes of the wall, the floor, etc.

Overall--I think that it's a good idea. Just make sure that it is clear to your guests that the cameras stay there.

Answer 9

It's a great idea. You'll end up with hundreds of photographs from all different areas of the wedding, not just the parts you were central to. You'll get a closer look at everything else that was going on while you and your husband were making googly eyes at each other the entire time. It's okay. It'll happen.

I plan on doing the same thing when I get married. Then again, I'm a bit different when it comes to wedding pictures. I don't want any "posed" shots. I hate how they look. I just want candids. They always turn out better, anyway.

Answer 10

I had disposable cameras on the tables at my wedding and got some great candid shots of the guests. The wedding day is a little hectic and overwhelming and the pictures of the guests are a great way to remember who was there. I would advise you to do it. They are not that expensive and you can develop them one at a time if $ is tight. Your professional photographer is there to take pictures of you not your guests, this way you get the best (and worse) of both.