Cutting the Cake, the First Dance & Evening Celebrations Wedding Photography
Father and daughter are enjoying being purely in the moment as they dance together. Your wedding photographer should strive for shots as special as this.
Cutting the Wedding Cake
A short time after the meal, the newlyweds usually cut the cake. This tradition probably dates back to ancient Rome, where a wheat cake was smashed over the bride’s head to bring the couple good luck. Thankfully, I’ve never seen this happen at any weddings I’ve photographed, although it would make for some great photos!
Disclaimer: I don’t advocate smashing anything over anyone’s head at weddings or anywhere else generally!
Kolbe & Rebecca had a lovely display around their cake. This helped make for a more striking portrait of their cutting.
Wedding Cake Display
The cake is generally displayed prominently throughout the reception for guests to admire and take photos of. Sometimes it’s at the side of the room throughout the day, then brought into a central location for the cutting. This situation suits me better, as it’s sometimes awkward to pose the couple when the table is against a wall or in a corner. If the background isn’t the most aesthetically pleasing, don’t worry – the photographer should make it look much better than it is in reality.
The cake location wasn’t ideal when Patrick arrived at the reception, so he and a guest moved it for the cutting. The move made for a nice photo moment, too.
An example of the cake having been moved to a better spot for cutting. It was moved again for the first dance.
Posing the Cake Cutting
Often, the cutting is announced by a DJ or MC, and guests gather to watch the bride and groom cut the first slice of their wedding cake. This can seem a little intimidating for the more introverted couple. Couples are often unsure where and how to stand, but with guidance, they usually manage a fairly relaxed pose. The best position is for them to stand to the side of the cake, with the groom’s arms around his bride. He then places his hands over hers whilst she is holding the knife. With encouragement from guests, they generally relax into it, and the cutting happens without incident.
Soumeya definitely saw the funny side whilst I set up for the shot. The moments just before the serious pose can be the most fun. I’m always looking out for the more memorable moments such as this.
Cake Cutting Shenanigans
As a documentary photographer capturing candid moments, the cake-cutting never really appealed to me. Then I saw the humour in the situation. It reminds me very much of the ‘Dummy Register‘ as explained in Chapter 5 – Signing the Register. Everyone feels a little bit silly, but goes along with it as it’s become an expected part of the day. If you do feel daft during the cutting, feel free to ham it up a bit. Pretend stabbings are popular (be very careful, though!) It also makes for some great photos when the pair feed each other. I don’t spend much time photographing the cake cutting, but I’ve come to realise there’s more potential in it than it first appears.
Below is a selection of some fun cake-cutting shots I took at recent weddings:
Some couples get on with it and don’t mind the onlookers and photographer.
I often ask the couple to feed one another a piece of the cake, which makes for much more fun photos as they delight in shoving far too much into each other’s mouths! I love the look on Amanda’s face here as Mick feeds her a slice of cake – a whole slice by the look of it!
Here’s that fake stabbing shot – Paloma takes a knife out to her new husband. He survived to enjoy the first dance, though!
They did get round to having a fairly sensible cutting, which Paloma laughed through.
Adam totally hammed up the cutting to make a mixture of a serious and silly cake shot.
Adam’s humour quickly turned to passion. He and Melissa share a quick cake-cutting kiss as their guests look on…
Job done! Thomas gives a thumbs up as Melissa licks her fingers…
The First Dance
The couple’s first dance is one of my favourite times of the day for capturing some stunning images. It’s the time that the couple’s true love for each other really shines through. Photography that personifies the couple and their new marriage is highly likely. As friends and family gather round and the lights dim, they launch into a carefully rehearsed (or not!) routine to a favourite and meaningful song.
Most couples are so ‘in the moment’ that they rarely notice the photographer circling them during their first dance.
Poor Lighting for Ambience, not Photography
I’m never quite sure until it happens how the lighting will be, and I have to act quickly to adapt. DJ’s often love to dim the lights and use their own ‘disco’ lights for ambience. This means I have to work fast to adjust the camera settings to both preserve the atmosphere and to get the shot.
NB: In poor lighting, conversion to black-and-white works well, and colours can appear muddy and dull.
The lighting during the dancing at this Cardiff wedding was really poor. By pushing my camera to its limits, I took a series of atmospheric and fun shots that the couple loved.
A guest couple dancing post-first dance: The lighting was dim, but with a mix of direct flash and clever camera work, I captured a series of unusual, striking dancing shots. I utilised the disco lights to good effect here.
How to Photograph the First Dance
It’s very important that the newlyweds feel confident and relaxed as they enter their first dance. Alcohol usually plays a significant role in how they and their guests feel and behave from the reception onward (more on that below). I try to chat with them beforehand and ask them not to worry about what I’m doing, but to enjoy their moment together.
As for photography, discretion is important, but I do use a wide lens and need to get quite close for the more intimate close-ups. I feel it is important to include a mix of these and wider, more contextual shots with guests in the background, which add context. I like to take a sequence of shots if possible, as this works well over a double spread in the wedding album.
Don’t worry if you can’t dance. Emma and Ben couldn’t, but played on this and had a fun-filled first dance.
Top First Dance Tip:
Couples are sometimes unsure about having a first dance as they feel they will embarrass themselves. Don’t worry – just ‘be together‘. Go for it and have fun (as in the photo above). However you approach your dance is up to you, but don’t overthink it and do try to enjoy it… As far as photography goes, I think it is crucial to have a first dance as it really finishes off the set of photographs and the results can be well worth the effort.
Grooms Stewart and Marco couldn’t really dance, but did know how to have fun and threw themselves fully into the first dance at their same-sex wedding.
A three-piece play whilst Gloria and Oliver have their first dance. The streamers from the balloons made for some unusual shots when I moved closer.
We’ve Danced Together, Now What?
At some point before the end of the first dance song, the couple usually beckon everyone else to come and join them on the dance floor. During the second song, the floor is often crowded with people wanting to dance, and it can be tricky to navigate between them to get shots of the dancing and the fun. I don’t mind this at all.
The couple often dances with their parents: the groom dances with his mum, whilst the bride sways with her father, as shown below.
Groom Kolbe takes to the dance floor with his mum. I love it when this happens, as it extends the family dancing a little bit and is very poignant and meaningful.
Annabel and James take to the floor for their first dance…
Natural moments of the bride interacting with guests are most plentiful during the evening party. I try to take as many of these moments as possible to add to the couple’s photographic memories.
After the first dance, the dance floor often goes quiet. However, this guest made up for it with his exuberant, lively dancing.
The Evening Entertainment
As with most facets of the wedding day, the entertainment options for later in the day are almost endless…
Some couples opt for a DJ, whilst others prefer a live band. Some even go for both for a little diversity throughout the evening. I’ve attended weddings with comedians and drag queens, too.
Ideas for entertainment for your guests needn’t be limited to music or comedy. Other ideas include a photo booth, garden games in the summer (popular with the kids!), a sweetie cart, a quiz game, a dance-off or talent show, or any combination of these, plus many more. However, it’s the traditional DJ or band that couples return to for their partying time and again.
Bands are still a popular addition to the wedding evening entertainment. Here, I Rock play the Old Barn at Pencoed House near Cardiff.
Ben’s wedding day surprise was that his favourite DJ had been booked to play a set in the evening. I took a sequence of informal shots as they chatted later on.
A relative took to his sax as part of the evening entertainment, which was a special surprise for the happy couple.
Summer weddings are often outdoors-based. This creates a whole different atmosphere and experiences, such as marshmallow toasting here.
After a few drinks, everyone relaxes, and there is potential for fun and more informal shots.
End of the Wedding Photographer’s Day
I normally stay until about half an hour after the first dance. By then, I have taken a large number of shots throughout the day, as well as some of the couple and their guests dancing. I always liaise with the couple before departing, and if they want me to stay later, I don’t mind at all.
Later in the evening, things can start to get a bit messy. Things were delayed at this Irish wedding, so I ended up staying a lot later than usual. It turned very rowdy but was extremely good fun!
A bit of ‘Dad dancing’ from Thomas as he dances with his bride, Melissa.
Kolbe really was the life and soul and was very instrumental in getting everyone on the floor dancing.
Later on, there are all sorts of things to look out for. I’ve no idea why this chap’s friends wanted to lift him, but it happened so I shot it…
When guests start to get this drunk, it’s maybe time for the photographer to leave!
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