Ask one hundred people in the United States where they would most likely attend a green or sustainable wedding, and ninety of them would probably answer “California”. Five years ago, that might have been the correct answer, but since then we’ve found that the eco-friendly wedding is quietly going nationwide.
Our company, Photofest, was established to provide brides with an eco-friendly alternative to disposable table cameras: digital camera rental. And since we opened our doors, we’ve had inquiries and visitors to our website from every state in the union. Brides in Atlanta, New York, Washington DC, San Antonio, even North Dakota, have all “stopped by” to see how our service can help them with their green wedding.
Disposable table cameras may be inexpensive to purchase initially, but the costs to both your budget and the environment quickly add up. In the United States alone, approximately 20 to 30 million disposable cameras end up in landfills each year. This is in addition to the environmental impact of the chemicals used to develop the pictures – most of which will be low quality or unusable, anyway. Then there is the problem of sharing these pictures. You would have to sort through each picture, scan the usable ones, and then email them to each of your guests or upload them to a photo sharing site. That's a lot of work!
Digital camera rental may cost a bit more up front, but our brides keep telling us they are well worth the extra money. The cameras take very high-quality photos, and lots of them – typically between 75 to 100 per camera – and the photos can be reviewed right after they are taken, so any bad shots can be deleted right away. They are easy to use, so everyone can join in the fun, which means you’ll get pictures of every single one of your guests. Plus they can be used over a period of several days, so you’ll have memories from every event, not just the wedding reception. Best of all is the photo sharing. The photos are presented online in a password protected gallery, and are arranged by the time stamp on each photo, so you and your guests will have a chronological record of candid memories starting with the bachelorette party and ending with the traditional Sunday brunch.
There are plenty of steps you can take to green your wedding: using recycled paper products for your invitations, ensuring your caterer uses locally produced food and flowers, selecting vendors that are committed to environmental sustainability, or buying your wedding dress from an eco-friendly manufacturer. Now you’ve got an additional option, and we hope you’ll consider using Photofest and digital camera rental instead of disposable table cameras. After all, every little bit of green helps our environment, no matter where your wedding takes place!
Blog Submitted by: Michael Stoll
www.myphotofest.com
