Short and sweet
For a small sign or an easel at the ceremony entrance, where guests read it in passing.
“Welcome to our unplugged ceremony. Please turn off your phones and cameras.”
“We invite you to be fully present. Phones away, please.”
“Our ceremony is unplugged. Thank you for being here with us, not on your screen.”
“Please be present. Phones off until after the ‘I do’.”
“Unplugged ceremony: we'd love to see your faces, not your phones.”
“Phones away, hearts open.”
Warm and explanatory
When you want guests to understand why, not just obey. These work well in the programme or on the wedding website.
“Welcome to our wedding! We've asked a wonderful photographer to capture today, so we kindly ask you to put away your phones and cameras during the ceremony and simply enjoy it with us.”
“We'd love you to be fully present as we say our vows. Please silence your phone and keep it tucked away. We promise to share the photos afterwards.”
“Our photographer has the ceremony covered. Please keep the aisle clear and your phones in your pocket so every guest gets a great view.”
“Today we ask for one thing: your presence. Please switch off your devices for the ceremony. The reception is all yours.”
“The best gift you can give us is your smile. Please keep phones away during the ceremony so we can see it.”
“Please join us in being completely present. Our photographer will capture every moment, and we'll happily share the pictures with you after the wedding.”
Funny
A joke lands the request without sounding like a rule. Keep it kind: the guest who reads it should laugh, not feel told off.
“Unplugged ceremony. No phones, no tablets, no cameras. Yes, Uncle Dave, that includes you.”
“Hey, you! Put the phone down and watch us get married.”
“Please don't be the guest with the iPad.”
“Our photographer is a professional. Your phone is not. Please put it away.”
“Phones off, tissues out.”
“The only thing we want you holding today is a drink. After the ceremony.”
Unplugged ceremony, plugged-in party
The most popular compromise: phones away for the vows, out for everything after. It also solves the problem of unplugged weddings, which is losing all the candid photos guests would have taken. Tell them where to send them.
“Please keep phones away during the ceremony. Once the party starts, snap away and share your photos with us.”
“Unplugged ceremony, plugged-in party. Scan the QR code on your table to share your photos.”
“Be present for the vows. Capture everything after. Our photo QR code is on every table.”
“Phones down for the ‘I do’, phones up for the dance floor.”
“Please don't post photos online until we do. Instead, send them to our wedding album with the QR code.”
“After the ceremony, please take all the photos you like, and scan the code to add them to our album.”
“Let our photographer take the ceremony. You take the party.”
Asking guests not to post: give the photos somewhere to go
Many couples are less worried about phones in the room than about photos of the dress appearing online before their own. If that's the request, pair it with an alternative, or the photos just stay in camera rolls and you never see them.
A shared album with a QR code on the tables is that alternative. With JoinAlbum, guests scan, type their name and upload photos and videos from their phone browser, with no app and no account. The album is private by default, so nothing is public until you decide to share it. It's free for up to 10 photos or videos and €49 once for unlimited uploads, and the QR studio has templates for the sign and the table cards.
Where to put the sign, and what else to do
Put the sign where guests enter the ceremony, at eye level, big enough to read while walking past: an A2 or A3 board on an easel works. A sign on its own is easy to miss, so ask your officiant to repeat the request in one sentence just before you walk in. It's the step that makes an unplugged ceremony actually unplugged.
Mention it on your wedding website and in the programme too, so nobody is surprised on the day. And if you have a photo QR code, put it on the reception tables, not at the ceremony, so the two messages don't compete.
Unplugged wedding FAQs
What is an unplugged wedding?+
One where guests are asked not to use phones or cameras, usually only during the ceremony, so the professional photographer has a clear view and guests are present for the moment.
Should the whole wedding be unplugged?+
Most couples only unplug the ceremony. A fully unplugged day means losing the candid photos guests take at the reception, which are often the ones couples treasure most.
How do we politely ask guests not to post photos?+
Say it warmly and offer an alternative: 'Please don't post photos online until we do; send them to our wedding album instead.' A private album with a QR code gives guests somewhere to put them.
Where should the unplugged sign go?+
At the entrance to the ceremony, where every guest passes it. Back it up with a one-sentence announcement from your officiant.