Interestingly enough, as I was about to blog a follow up to my post about how soon to bring a wedding date, my favorite show HIMYM touched on my follow up topic - being a stranger at an important event.
Ever since that incident happened where my friend's boyfriend refused to go to our friend's wedding with her, she's been fuming about it. Now the bride-to-be caught wind of the situation and approached me and told me how she's actually glad he's not coming because it would ruin her group photos.
If you're wondering wtf and in case you didn't catch the episode, she meant, who knows if they're going to last and if they don't, she's going to have this stranger in her wedding photos forever. Sure, reading this might make you think, "wow, she's such bridezilla" but I can understand where she's coming from. It's her day and her memories so of course she wants it to be perfect.
As I flipped through my scrapbook, I can't help but remember that one of my girlfriends was just like that. Every year for one of our birthdays, there was always a different guy in the photos. It did often cause tension and annoyance among the group because we felt that it was unnecessary for her to constantly bring a guy with her unless it was serious. After my trip down memory lane, I rang up my friend and told her to watch that episode online. Apparently she watched it on TV and everything is peachy with her and her man now. At least there's a happy ending.
Have you ever been "THE STRANGER" in a group at an important event? Have you ever brought someone you're not entirely serious to an important event? Do you think that's okay and would you do it again?
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Comments (13)
It depends on the stranger. I'm always up to meeting new people and it's great when you meet someone new that brings positive energy to a group. I feel like at all weddings, there will be at least a handful of people that you won't know that well, perhaps a distant crazy aunt or a family friend. but i also can understand the other perspective as well. i'm in neutral, i suppose.
I'm just confused as to why a stranger would have to be included in group photos...I mean if the friend in question is part of the bridal party, don't those group photos ONLY include the bridal party? It's kind of like saying that you should never take pictures with your current SO, spouse, partner, etc, because you really don't know if it's going to be truly permanent. I don't see how having one or two pictures with a harmless guest is really going to spoil her whole night for years to come. For christ's sake, you can photoshop ANYTHING now, just photoshop him out of the picture if it's really that much of an inconvenience.
yeah only family should be in the photos. I know what you mean by some stranger in the photo that you never see again...
hey stranger
well... i've got my wedding date... just not a wedding date! hahaha!
my ex brought me to his sister's wedding and introduced me to every single member of his extended family as his girlfriend, about a week after we'd broken up. it was awful. i wanted to cry the entire time because it was so not right for me to be there.
I've been a stranger to a few events. Whenever I am though I stay out of the photos. I don't feel like I should be in them and don't want to intrude.
It is extremely awkward. But after meeting again a few more times things are more chill.
My best friend lives in a different city, so whenever I go down there to visit her and we go out to parties, I'm always the stranger. But the people I'm with are strangers to me too, so I don't really take picchas with them :S
It depends on the people you're with. The first few times it was really awkward, but after a while or after seeing the same people a few times, its not so bad. (:
I've been the stranger, and I usually offer to take the photos so I'm not in most of them. But I don't shy away from pictures if people there want me included. I think it's a little over the top for a bride to be relieved a stranger won't be in all her pictures, but that's just my take. I think about the flip side of it: what if it lasts? Then this bride could brag that the couple's beginnings were at her wedding.
my bf took me with him to his brothers wedding...it was rather awkward for me, and I just stayed out of the photos, period. Since he's serious about me and vice versa, I don't think his family minded...but still...since we'd only been together about two weeks.... >_o
i feel like the stranger whenever i'm with my bf's family. i typically avoid being in the photos since i'm not family, but usually i get invited to join in...though we've been dating over a year, live together, and have done all the holidays at with both of our families, so it doesn't look like either of us is splitting anytime soon.
as for having a stranger in a photo, i don't really care...it's just a picture.
and as for having a stranger in my wedding photos...as long as he's not part of the bridal party photos that's fine. i mean, if he's the one who catches the garter, i'm going to want pictures of that, regardless of how long i've known the guy.
but i'm chill with pretty much everyone to begin with anyway...
I avoided this this year. I was invited to a few different proms, as friends, 2 senior proms and a junior. I said no to all of them, cause I wouldn't know anyone and I would feel so out of place and insecure.
On a side note, I just wish they asked later, because I have intense feeling for one of them, and now they've moved on cause I said no like a bitch.
ugh, i've been the stranger at an important event. i went to an out-of-town wedding with my then-boyfriend, and although i was his longest relationship EVER (we'd been dating just six months...and he's 31. ...yeah.), we were rocky all along. now i sort of wish that i hadn't been there, because i'm in the pictures from the whole vacation and i don't want them to remember me and talk about me- that guy was never very respectful towards his exes, and i don't want him trash-talking me. :-/ weird, i know. but yeah, i see the point i guess.
on the other hand, if the person means a lot to them, even if it's only a short relationship i still have no problem with it. a snapshot is a frozen moment in time, and if that person was important, the memory still has integrity, even if they were only around for brief period.