The Tricky Toast
It's only on a very rare occasion that a bride tells me there won't be a toast at her wedding reception. Even if there's no champagne to be served, at most weddings, someone has been asked to deliver some sort of congratulatory message to the newlyweds. While no two toasts are exactly alike, as a professional photographer, I fully understand there's no toast more important than the one I'm photographing today! The trick is to be as prepared as possible -- and then be ready for anything.
To be prepared, details about the toast are something I make sure to discuss with a bride in advance of the wedding. In many cases I've already photographed receptions in that particular location, so I'm
familiar with the physical set-up. There are always basic considerations like
the size of a room, available light, and the proximity of the newlyweds to
their guests. There's also the question of the person or people who
will be toasting the couple, their relationships to the bride and
groom, and where they will be physically located while giving the
toast. A lot of the time I also go over these details with the DJ or
Master of Ceremonies. It's very important that everyone is on the
same page.
Some toasts are short, some are long. Some are dramatic, some are
sentimental, others are humorous. Some bring tears, some bring
laughter. One thing's for sure, the wedding toast should never be routine for a professional photographer--the element of surprise is always
something to be watching for. In that regard, we play the part of
photojournalists, capturing the expressions, the reactions, the emotion
of the occasion. But I've found that many couples also want a posed
shot of the toast--usually of the two of them looking at the camera as
their glasses "clink". 
When it comes to planning the toast, I have several pieces of advice I'd like to share -- based on my experience at the many wedding receptions I've photographed: Consider stressing to the catering manager the importance of having the guests' champagne glasses filled in time for the toast. It's surprising to me that so many times when the DJ is ready to announce the toast, the servers haven't even begun to pour the bubbly. Most couples are toasted immediately or very soon after the first dance, so during the first dance is the perfect time for the wait staff to be going from table to table filling glasses. It might be a good idea to have your coordinator or someone from the wedding party ready to remind the catering manager when the champagne should be poured. And the DJ could be clued in, too.
Also, many toast-givers get a heads up about where they should stand while making their remarks, but the "heads up" doesn't always come from the photographer. I would like to suggest that some thought be given to how placement of the toast-giver will affect the pictures. I prefer to see the bride, the groom and the toast-giver(s) placed in a straight line, all facing forward. When the toast-giver stands behind the newlyweds, the back of the bride and/or groom's heads are what we end up seeing in the toast pictures. Sometimes It's unavoidable. The toast could be staged later, if that were to happen--but many photojournalists wouldn't even sug
gest such a solution. One good idea could be to have the DJ or MC waiting with the microphone at the spot where the toast giver should stand. Although it's not the most difficult wedding activity to capture with a camera, the toast to the newlyweds is one of the most important -- and unpredictable -- events at the reception. The experienced wedding photographer understands that no matter how many toasts will be given or by whom, the number one concern is documenting the emotions.
For more wedding ideas and images, visit my website http://www.dougforner.com
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