Price Of Picture Perfect Weddings: Insta-Worthy Visuals Have Fat Bills

Knowing what the heart wants is truly an art, but knowing what it does not want is often clearer. Ruling out what one does not what to spend on makes the planning process a lot more easier. Now this is where social media comes into the picture.

With a window into a world of options, the influence manages to confuse, inspire and overwhelm couples all at the same time. The love for exciting same-day edit reels, exuberant drone shots and save the date photoshoots have bumped up the bills of wedding visuals.

The chokehold that trendy visuals have on couples are insane, but here's the hot take: we found out that not everyone is a fan. While some said that social media does have a huge influence on how they plan their wedding, couples also say that there is a certain financial pressure that accompanies picture-perfect wedding visuals.

The picture-perfect wedding packages have gotten pricier specially in the last few years, with more trends coming up. More than photographing the big day for keeping the memories, there is a certain pressure to capture that can go viral.

"A lot of it is about show these days, with 'save the date' videos and trendy things coming up every season," said Hannah, who got married recently.

Keeping the budget under a reasonable threshold was difficult, she said, as the base prices were also pretty high this season.

The aim has become a lot more than recording an important day. The content on social media puts a certain pressure on the couple to ensure they hire services that are insta-famous as well. The standards of social media is not just have pictures and videos for keep-sake, but have content that could go viral.

"Everyone wants to be insta-famous and people do pay for the same. There is so much luxury in the wedding content on Instagram now. This might even be beyond the budget," said *Riya, who is getting married next year.

Though many couples are spending a good section of their budget for the visuals, one needs to ensure that they are not pressured into it. The sheer need for posting reels or pictures takes a lot more time, resources and planning.

The cost of looking great really comes through when it comes to the visual output of weddings. Displaying the best cars, parties and more become factors that decide how viral the videos will be.

"Social media has influenced how I do not want my wedding to be. Over-the-top wedding culture gets a little overwhelming," said Pooja, a Kochi-based architect getting married next year.

The need to understand how much of this one wants to take on and thinking about this sustainably is important, she said. Social media gives glimpse of exotic and exuberant weddings, but couples can take a sensible step back to evaluate what they want, before replicating the culture.

*Name changed on request.