This Picture Sums Up Why Wedding Guests Should Just Put Their Smartphones Away

Wedding photographer Thomas Stewart was sick and tired of snap-happy wedding guests ruining his photos, so he went on Facebook to vent. His rant has now gone viral, and for good reason:

“You’re paying a photographer quite a bit of money; that means you want great photos. We cannot do our best work with people getting in our way,” Stewart wrote.

UNPLUGGED WEDDING: Have been discussing a lot about this with a #bride recently. WE ASK YOU: As a guest, would you be offended if there was some sort of signage that asked you to please turn off your phones and put away your cameras during the ceremony? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. #sposiamovi #unpluggedwedding #weddingtalk #italywedding photo @ratnieksjanis

A photo posted by SV Wedding Planner Italy (@sposiamovi) on Jul 27, 2015 at 12:24pm PDT

“In your invites, tell everyone you’re having an unplugged ceremony: no technology, please, Write it on a chalkboard which guests can see as they arrive on the day,” he continued. “HIRE A PLANE TO WRITE IT IN THE SKY!”

Quickly becoming obsessed with wood signage! Details from @geefresh’s wedding day! #blvly #unpluggedwedding #woodsignage #wood #wedding Photo by @ashimagery

A photo posted by Belovely Floral & Event Design (@belovely_design) on Sep 29, 2015 at 8:06am PDT

“And guests, you’ve been invited to this wedding to share and celebrate the love that two people feel for each other,” he concluded. “You are witnesses to their marriage, so for goodness sake, watch them with your eyes and your minds, not your phones.”

#unpluggedwedding

A photo posted by Mike Allebach Photography (@tattooedbridephotoguy) on Sep 29, 2015 at 1:49pm PDT

And in case you get the urge to take a quick photo with your phone, remember Stewart’s words: “The guests’ photos are usually crap.”

An Unplugged Wedding. Those three words are music to a photographers ears, but to a bride, you might not understand their importance. Today we’re sharing exactly what is an unplugged wedding and why we encourage our couples to have one! (link in profile) #laurahernandezphotography #unpluggedwedding

A photo posted by Laura Hernandez (@_laurahernandez) on Jun 5, 2015 at 7:52am PDT

“You can’t take great photos with your camera phone by leaning into the aisle of a dark church to photograph a moving subject,” he wrote. “Hell, even lots of professionals have trouble with this.”