12/28/2025
Congratulations to all the recently engaged couples! In 2025 we started hearing from photographers, wedding planners and function managers we know about a new ceremony trend that doesn’t always work out as planned: having a friend or relative obtain a “one-day pass” to perform the ceremony instead of an experienced wedding officiant.
Yes, anyone can read a script… but several industry professionals have shared stories like:
1) “first-time officiant” correctly asking the wedding guests to “please rise” right before the bride and her father walk down the aisle, but then starts reading their ceremony without remembering to say “please be seated” to the guests, who, at one recent wedding in Danvers, stood like that for several minutes until the photographer finally motioned for them to sit down!
2) Nothing ruins the classic “you may now kiss the bride” picture like a “first-time officiant” still standing dead center in that photo, when an experienced officiant knows to step aside so that the magic of that first kiss as a married couple features only the newlyweds!
3) Finally, we hear from Town Clerks that they are constantly getting marriage licenses that have been incorrectly filled out by “first-time officiants”, which means the official recording of the marriage and issuing a certified copy to the couple is delayed until the license is completed and signed again, correctly.
Hmmmm… think that trend will fade?
