Group Photos

Most wedding couples tell DJs "We're looking for someone who will keep the dance floor filled!" Favorable reviews of DJs often say "He kept the dance floor full all night long!"

Yet, sometimes during the dance period, the DJ is requested to interrupt the music and invite guests to leave the dance floor for group photographs. Things like: "Will all members of the extended Smith family please step outside on the patio for a group photo" or "All University of Virginia alumni, please meet in the corner of the ballroom for a group photo."

Those group photos are great. They'll give you wonderful pictures to look at in the years ahead. It's fun to see all those folks together in one shot.

But . . . keep in mind that every organized group photo during the dancing disrupts the dance floor. The spoken announcements interrupt the flow of the music. Most important, all those guests gathered for the group photo are guests unavailable for dancing.

Like so many things at your reception, it's all a matter of balance. I'm not saying dancing is more important than photos. It's just this: IF you want a full dance floor, schedule the group photos PRIOR to the start of dancing.

Group photos can be taken immediately before or after the ceremony, during the cocktail hour, or even immediately after the meal (and just prior to dancing). If it's not possible to get all the group shots by then, another option is to schedule the remaining group shots just before or just after the cake-cutting (since we're already taking a break from dancing for the cake).

I've DJ'd a couple of receptions recently where for prolonged periods during dancing, as many as one-third of the guests were off to the side posing for group photos. Needless to say, this significantly lowered what I call the "dance energy" for a portion of the allotted dance time.

Please believe me, I am not criticizing the photographers. Like the DJ, they're trying to do a great job, and like the DJ, they're responding to the planned or impromptu requests of the bride and groom and their friends and families. What I am doing is suggesting that there IS a trade-off here. Brides and grooms who highly prize a full dance floor need to consider this trade-off when thinking about the timing of group photos.