How to Plan Your Massachusetts Wedding With a Long Engagement | Boston Wedding Photography

What do you do with all the time during a long engagement ahead of your Boston Wedding? - Photo Illustration

Couples looking to get married in 2022 and 2023 are scrambling to find available vendors and they’re either settling for a third choice or finding creative ways to plan their day. But for couples that aren’t in a rush to tie the knot, there are advantages to having a long engagement. Let’s talk about some of the do’s and don’ts of waiting for your special day so you don’t get burned out on wedding planning or spend half the time second-guessing all the early decisions you made.

Take Your Time: You don’t have to start planning a wedding the moment you’ve said “yes” to your partner - if it makes sense to have a longer engagement then you can take some time to enjoy the moment without pressuring yourself to take the next step. Maybe do some initial reading and research, but then give yourselves the gift of enjoying your engagement. Once you decide it’s time to start planning, having a long timeline also means you can take breaks from wedding planning so you’re not just dreaming about napkin folds and different shades of white.

Research: With a long engagement you have more time to do comparison shopping. Start following the wedding vendors you love on social media to keep abreast of their work (and sometimes they’ll do special deals and discounts for their followers, we’ve done some big giveaways in the past on Facebook and Instagram). It’s not too hard to turn yourself into an expert in your local market by following Facebook groups and joining forums like r/weddingplanning on Reddit.

Budget: Time gives you more of an opportunity to understand what a wedding will cost and how you’re going to pay for it. It can also soften the blow of a big wedding planning stumbling block: deposits. Most vendors require a large payment up front and couples aren’t always ready for that, which can leave them scrambling for credit options or help from family. The added time also gives you an opportunity to have the awkward questions about who will be contributing to the wedding without the pressure of a looming wedding.

Once you’ve laid the foundations of research and budgeting, it’s best to start planning in earnest 18-12 months out from your preferred wedding date (this might vary depending on the venue you’re looking at, some fill years in advance and others like public parks will only let you book a certain time ahead). You should be well armed to make quick decisions so you can work with your favorite vendors.

For couples planning during a long engagement, second-guessing and burnout become major issues. The primary way to avoid these is to give yourself the time to disconnect from planning every so often. This is a great excuse to have some fun with your partner - have a regular date night where the wedding is off the table, take a class or start a hobby together, or take some time to hang out with your wedding parties where you’re not worried about the wedding.

Long engagements can be frustrating, you just want that big day to happen, but they can also give you time to enjoy being engaged. Are you planning a long engagement? Contact me today and we’ll talk about the best time to start booking your wedding photography.

Ryan Richardson is a wedding and engagement photographer serving Boston and beyond; including Cape Cod Weddings, New England Weddings, Massachusetts Weddings and Rhode Island Weddings.