I love it because i think its more personal you get to capture the moments with your guests at each table. I would also hire a professional photographer as well.

I would leave it. We had a small wedding and thought it would be cute to do the little cameras at each table. No one took pictures, except our 6 year old niece. While those pictures were funny half the cameras went mostly unused and it turned out to not be as fun as I had hoped.

Instead of doing this, I just encouraged many of my guests (particularly our friends) to take pictures with their digital cameras whenever they felt like it. After the reception, I had a "post-reception decompress" party for close friends and family. If a person let me copy their pictures from the day from their camera to my computer (and I had the equipment there and ready to go to do it), their name was put in a hat. At the end of the party, I drew names out of the hat and gave away some pretty nice prizes. People didn't really care about the prizes, but it was basically my way of saying thank you for being my photography crew.

I also hired a professional photographer, but it's assured that the professional photographer will miss some things unintentionally...and your friends will catch them. One of my friends got a great overhead view of our dance floor during the Hora by going up to a balcony during it. Our photographer was focusing on getting pictures of us during the dance instead, so he didn't think to get that shot. Another friend took pictures of all the food and fancy drinks...something a photographer might not think to do but which is an awesome memory for me.

I prefer the professional photographer as well, maybe ask a few friends who dabble in photography to bring their cameras to support the photographer's crew because they usually cannot be everywhere at once, it helps to have several back ups just in case...

Ooo. It's dead even right now. haha.

I said, Love it. But I'd definitely have a professional there taking the "real" pictures. I just think it's a nice touch to have people be able to take pics around the table if they feel like it. I've seen some awesome and very funny pictures that way!

At my parent's wedding, they hired a professional photog who ended up taking tons of photos and ruined the negatives, so none of them turned out. Luckily there were guests taking photos with their cameras, so nice friends gave them duplicates for their wedding album. I would say yea, go for it, that way if you do still want the traditional wedding photographer, you can still catch fun candids with the guest photos, not to mention, you have a backup if something happens, like in my parent's case.

Theres nothing wrong with having both. My brother did it for his wedding. They had a professional album put together, and then put together an album of all the snap shots people took with their disposables. A lot were really fun. And in his case, they didn't get what they paid for in their 'professional' photographer... I could have taken better picks than this guy did. I think you gotta be careful because now anyone with a digital camera and fancy lens can call themselves 'professional'.

I would encourage people to take pictures on possibly a digital disposable camera, and also have a professional photographer on-hand.

I like the idea but disposables can be expensive and adds up! I think I'm just going to ask people to bring their own camera and feel free to take plenty of pictures! I'm having my professional friend take pictures too =]

yeah but there are the family members that end up taking pictures of the table, or just themselves. Leave the photography to the pros.

I love this and when ppl do this they should have a professional too.

Only works if your peeps KNOW they're suppose to use them and leave them. More often than not Auntie Gertrude makes off with pictures she's taken.

disposable cameras at a wedding are a BAD idea! i work in a photolab & during wedding season we always have people come in, be it the bride & groom or one of their relatives, with the disposable cameras from the wedding tables. and hardly any pictures come out! people don't realize how the cameras are supposed to be used & the pictures come out either not in focus or extremely dark because the flash only works for barely 7 feet!

so many people have digital cameras now, granted there are some older relatives who have digital cameras and still don't really know how to use them, that there is no reason to supply disposable cameras at a wedding anymore. if you're worried about not getting pictures from those relatives, just be sure to ask for them to email them to you or send you a cd or upload them to a photosharing/print site.

Single use camera leave you with a bunch of pictures of the same thing, or blurry pictures, or pictures of naked bums, which you have to pay to get developed anyways since you don't know what pictures people took. Most people bring cameras to weddings and are willing to share the pictures with you, or try renting a photobooth, which is tons of fun! You could also try to make a photo booth yourself if either of you are good with gadgets and have a good camera.

I have never seen good photos come from the disposable cameras at the tables. My friends who have done it don't recommend it.

What about the environmental reasons for not using tons of disposable cameras?! I think it is a waste of money and resources for those things. I even think favors are a waste. what are people there for anyway?

why not splurge and buy some/borrow some cords for various cameras in order to be able to upload them onto a computer set up somewhere at the wedding? I think that would be fun - and all the pictures would be up for everyone to see...plus people could sign a book with their email address if they wanted to be sent some. don't most people bring their own camera to a wedding anyway?

you can do it but know you will get a bunch of cut off heads and off centered pics mixed in with the rare gems. it could be a waste if you allow the wrong people to take the pics. just think if a kid grabbed the camera!

eventually they get stashed in a corner and they never get developed and alot of places that develop film does it poorly........digital cameras are a good investment, they may be expensive at first but they last a long time and they eventually out pay all thsoe old disposibles!! i think....

i think they are tacky. you usually end up with a lot of either crappy photos or all of the same thing. Leave it up to either a professional or just one or two people to take care of photos.

my friends wedding got some of the BEST pictures from those. Of course there's plenty of crap pictures too but it was fun and people were having a great time with them. They had a pro too and everyone else had their pictures that we all sent them afterwards too. I think that's the perfect way to do it, all bases covered!

I think its a great idea. Of course a professional photographer is a great idea, however they cant be everywhere at once, plus you get different angles on moments that the photographer may have gotten.

In theory it's great... in reality it's a hot mess! LOL It does keep some guests amused, but others are too shy, uninterested, clueless to make it worth your time and money to buy the cameras, then develop the shots... out of focus, no flash, just messy. The pictures we did get that were fab were the cameras the kids had! It kept them busy, made them feel important and they had fun. PLUS, seeing the event from a kids POV was a riot. If your going to do it, I suggest giving them to the kids, (4 to 14 or SO) then having a designated person give them a quick tutorial on how to use it.

I love the person above me for using 'hot mess'

Well I would definitely hire a profession photographer...

however if the guests wanted to use a single-use camera, that's fine with me. Although if I was a guest I would choose to photograph with a digital camera.

^ I am so dumb... I thought this question was about people bringing single-use camera's TO the wedding, instead of being available at the wedding.

I guess it's still a good idea although I think money would get waster since the photos might come out junky. I would have some available however not a huge stock.

^ i meant "wasted" not waster."

was a cute idea a decade ago, but i think it's terrible for the environment now. i like the idea of having guests be able to upload their digital pictures to a dedicated album on a site like flickr or an album on a personal wedding website.

I love it, but I would also hire a professional photographer.

ive been to weddings where people take the disposable cameras home so just in case i would also hire the professional and ask the wedding party to take pics and send them to me. I also like TsuKata's idea of having people come together afterwards amd sharing the digital photos.

Love it! I got a lot of great candid moments from those cameras. Some of my best pictures in fact.

Film developing can be really expensive and you never know what you're actually going to get. I've seen many people do this and end up with random pictures or only pictures of the cute kids sitting at that table.

We set up an online photo sharing account for guests. Each table at the reception had little cards with the username, password and instructions so guests could upload their digital pictures. It went over really well with guests and everyone enjoyed being able to see photos from other guests. We still had a professional photographer.

LOVE them. They are the BEST!

We had our reception in a restaurant where photogs weren't allowed, but they allowed our little disposable cameras. Our guests cut loose with them. The shots were way more candid than those of a photographer. Plus, with double prints, I had a set to keep and a set to share.

I like the digital camera option better. You can rent digital cameras in place of disposable, and the guests can still take pics of their favorite moments. Then they can all be put on a picture cd and incorporated into any professional digital photography you might be getting done.

I was all for it... that is, until my photographer was tripping over people during the ceremony. While I wanted to get some candids from friends & family, the photos from my hired professional were more important to me (especially since I paid to have my digital negatives, so the more good pics the better). I think it's a great idea to have SOME other pictures from guests as long as they aren't interfering with the photographer's shots!

I think in this day and age with digital cameras, these disposables just aren't necessary anymore. They take horrible pictures and are tacky to put on the tables. I'm sure lots of people will bring their own digital cameras and hopefully someone will take a nice candid. I think investing in a professional photographer is the best use of money because you'll be looking at the photographs for the rest of your life.

all the pictures are just of people sitting around the table...we have hired a professional, (2) and we are also having an old time photo booth for fun!

I love them we had about 12 cameras around and put "instructions" on them about how to use them, leaving them there, etc. My only problem with them was that his little brother took 24 pictures of HIMSELF just close up on his face, I made the little Sh*t pay me for the development, and gave them to him.

I've seen people rent photo booths to take pictures that way. I thought it was much more creative and more fun! I'm not a big fan of disposable cameras. The picture quality sucks!

Our guests had fun with it (or at least some of them did), and we got some great pictures we wouldn't have otherwise. And it made the photography costs cheaper, as we just hired for the ceremony itself, and reduced the number of strangers at our party. Some people might prefer a professional photographer, but I liked not having too many people we didn't know, especially one with a camera.

I think the disposable cameras are outdated and a little tacky. My best friend's professional pictures in my opinion were not worth what she paid for. Fortunately, she has a lot of friends and family that own digital cameras and dabble in photography as a hobby. We all gave her copies of our photos, so now she's working on making her own photo album of them all. Luckily, some of those same friends will be attending my wedding next July, so they will be encouraged to take pictures and share! I love TsuKsta's "post-reception decompress" party idea. I am now definately looking into when I could have a lunch one day and have people come over to see and share pictures and share stories about the day. Depending on when we leave for our honeymoon, it could be the next day or when we get back!

I think the disposable camera idea is a bit outdated.

The last wedding I went to...the newlyweds just borrowed a bunch of peoples memory cards and uploaded the pictures onto a file sharing website. Which worked out perfectly. They did get a lot of similar photos, but from different angles depending on where the picture was taken. The wedding was basically a weekend event, so there were tons of candids and silly pictures. They also had a professional photographer, which provided the more traditional photos.

I also like TsuKata's idea...I think that would really work for a close-knit wedding.

I think they are a bad idea and a waste of money. At weddings I have attended, most people end up forgetting about them and just taking photos with their own cameras! Just ask your friends and family to share their photos with you! And I think a professional photographer is a must!

leave it unless you are within 7 feet of the subject you are photographing or you'll just end up with dark pics.

I had single use cameras at my wedding and the kids loved them, I haven't gotten the pictures developed yet but if anything it kept the kids occupied.

leave it. they are so wasteful. tell your friends & family to bring their digital cameras and email the pics to you after the wedding.

LEAVE IT....I hate this idea...It tells people U don't have enough money for a photographer. BAd idea

I think one of my friends did this at her wedding, but the pictures turned out to be of poor quality. I think it was cooler to have a photo booth for the guests to enjoy like my other friend and she ordered a copy of everyone's pics as a memento of her guests just being silly and having a great time.

I like a little of both. I would want a professional taking pictures of my husband and I and family pictures however I like the idea of the guests taking reception pictures. I think it's more fun that way.

Well... I'm a professional wedding photographer, so my opinion may be biased. I do catch the happy snapshot unexpected moments - except I know how to frame them and use my flash. And when 15 people have a camera in hand, it makes it much harder for me to do my job, they're all in the way and prevent me from getting THE great shot.

Those cameras have disgusting cheap optics and getting a good shot with them is really rare - a stroke of luck which can happen but really , is it worth the expense? I'm all for other people taking pictures too (even though, again, during the ceremony it makes my job much harder to do!) but they should be with real cameras - digital, or film, whatever - just not disposables!!!

Everybody has a digital camera nowadays anyway so what would be the point? I'd rather not waste £2.50 x 100 just to provide disposable throwaways which I'll then need to go and develop and sift through what... 2400 pictures? Psh!

Digital please!