Online Wedding (How to guide)

Before I begin, the more personal account of the wedding (stories, experiences, highs and lows) could be found here.

Prologue

I know and I empathize to what some of you might say. And yes I have heard them. "I want the sort of wedding where there are hundreds of people looking at me in my white gown as I enter the hall in a shy manner" or "I would just love the colour coordination and theme that would be so cool" It would be so nice to have that dream wedding. That one day moment. And I totally get it.

So allow me to respond to give context before providing you the guide. God instituted marriage and being married is a good thing (not the ultimatum). But in light of that, it is God that ultimately dictates how one gets married not the ideals of human traditions. Again not saying that those traditions are wrong. And if you are willing to wait to have that experience by all means. But marriage is a good design by God and when you have the biblical benchmarks ready one can move ahead (yeah if you want to talk about finances and what not I would love to)

So for those who are in agreement with this and would like to see how to start an online wedding here is what you need to do. I will break it down in three phases. Initial implementations. The team. The execution. Keep in mind this is based off my own wedding. Our online wedding suggestions does not mean they are the best practices rather reveals only what matters to us. But this could give you a skeletal framework to begin with in terms of operations.

Initial implementation

Some things need to be in place. During this Covid season everyone is more cautious and weary so we need to plan the wedding in that lens. But mostly delightful sir, government allow 250 people. Yes they do but few things to consider. A venue that can follow social distancing SOP while fitting in 250 (which would be a huge hall) and the more prominent elephant in the room, whether they would want to go out regardless of whether the facts reveals it is safe. Make no mistake, covid-19 left the world shaken that humans are not in control no matter how hard we try. We can only survive.

Inviting 250 people might place them in a position of obligation and fear and all sorts of things. They might even throw you the bomb which was thrown to me "why could you not wait?" But till when? that is the question.

Next to get the necessary items like a good camera/webcam that can shoot 1080p resolution. Good mics to pick up the right sound and the right decorations for the right viewing angles. Like for me we made sure that the arch way where we were standing under and the flowers at the side of the table was the masterpiece. Of course, everyone live dress nicely.

Next upgrade the zoom account to 500 people. I suspect that once upgraded they shift you to a better server that will enlarge internet traffic and reduce lag. Yes a good wifi connection. Then, provide a clear wedding invitation that not only tells them they are invited but clear directions on how you are to enter zoom and if they are not tech savvy enough, a link either on Facebook or Youtube to watch it live.

Tip invitations should be done with google forms asking them to RSVP with their emails. So that it is easy to send out the link when the time comes (Trust me, i made a mistake with this).

With that in mind, the most important component of all. The team that you need.

The team

You can have whatever team you need but there are four types of person you need.

1. Zoom manager

This person is in charge of doing the camera transitions from the walk in, where the couple will be standing (or however many cameras you want though I suggest keep the cameras active to a minimum). The manager is also in charge of coordinating the wedding photos through breakout rooms. (Tip as the guests enters zoom they can name their name as e.g. 'ding dong [relative], ling long [college friends].) The bracketed category allows the manager to put you in the right breakout room.

2. Online Emcee

online emcee (Ken Ming) only needs
to look good from the top

The emcee keeps the zoom active and gives the guest a sense of ownership in where they are at. The emcee has the skill to draw those watching from the screen into the world of the online wedding. He manages the people, ensures the timing, provides the announcements and comforts the anxious guests. Like a shepherd to the sheep he is to feed them online (I kid). He/She facilitates conversations and makes connections.

3. Floor manager

The one that is live on the ground. The floor manager is the one who sets up the cameras and the mics and makes sure everything is in place for the zoom manager and online emcee to navigate. He communicates to the guests who are physically present and helps out with the miscellaneous stuff. The floor manager is of great importance for the couple because on that day you would not want to worry about anything and get married. He will handle it when things fail or goes wrong and ensures it runs smoothly.

4. Zoom busters

Finally zoom busters. Elect one zoom buster for each category of guest to save time so that when the guests enters zoom they can quickly recognize without checking with the guest list. Important as to not have zoom bombers come in.

Each of them can only work together when all of them are in sync and trusts each other. So yes, you need to do a rehearsal to practice the flow. The emcee needs to carry the crowd and trust that when he says "time to bring in the bride" that the zoom manager will switch the spotlight to the right camera and the floor manager is ready with that camera. But this 4 were the pillars to making the online wedding run so smoothly. We were blessed with such a great team that people thought we hired professionals. No, trust your friends. (well it depends on what you want lah).

The execution

Please please please double and triple check those whom you have invited that they have the link. I am suffering for it now for forgetting some people and some will not even speak to me. Regardless of whether you want to say that they are being immature or what not the main point is I careless left out few names that should have been part of the online wedding. While planning things within 10 days could be a reason it certainly is not a justification. Triple check your guest list.

Next, please please please leave it to the team. On your wedding day, your job is to get married not being part of operations. Bride, make sure you don't trip and not think about which camera is panning. Groom, well....since you are waiting for the bride you can help a bit lah.

The rest are of secondary importance. Like solemnization online or physical? worship live or recorded? Preacher online or physical is all up to you. But the skeletal framework is as such.

With that I hope you get a good rough idea on how to operate these things and we wish you all the best.

God bless.

Genesis 2:24-25

"^tTherefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh  And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed." 

Logistics check list

1. Laptop connected to good camera (we used a Microsoft Surface), mic, and loud speaker (for physical audience to hear)

2. Laptop connected to large screen (for physical audience to see) BUT no sound (otherwise might get feedback) (alternatively you can use Laptop in no 1. straight but our cable was too short)

3. Tape the floor where each person is going to stand in front of the camera

4. Good mic for emcee

5. Pin important camera videos on zoom so they are easier to find for spotlighting (alternatively just name the zoom IDs as 'AAA ....' so it's easier to find)

6. Activate as many shortcuts as possible on zoom to ease screen/audio changing

7. Do a rehearsal the day before!

 

Writer: Eddryll 
Author's views are his own and does not represent the entire team