Wedding photos

What is the best way to collect wedding photos from guests?

Short answer

Print a QR code, put one on every table, and ask for photos once out loud during the speeches. That combination beats every alternative, because it removes the two things that stop guests: not knowing where to send photos, and not being asked. A QR code on the table answers the first at the moment a guest is holding their phone. A single spoken prompt from the host or the DJ answers the second, and it is worth more than any sign. Skip group chats, which bury photos in messages and compress them, and skip hashtags, which scatter them across an account you do not control. With Gathmo the code opens a browser page, so nobody installs anything.

The setup that works

Put a card on every table rather than one sign at the entrance. Guests photograph during dinner and dancing, not on arrival, and a code they can reach without standing up gets used. Per-table labels also tell you later which table a photo came from.

Ask out loud exactly once, and ask late. A prompt during the speeches lands when everyone is seated and holding a phone. Asking at the start is wasted, because there is nothing to upload yet.

Keep the album open for a few days afterwards. A meaningful share of uploads arrive on the Sunday and Monday, when guests are going through their camera rolls at home. Gathmo albums stay open for the whole retention window, which is 30 days on the free plan.

What to avoid

A group chat looks free and costs you image quality. Both WhatsApp and iMessage recompress photos aggressively, so what you keep is a small copy of the picture your guest actually took.

A hashtag depends on guests posting publicly, on an account you cannot export, under rules the platform changes without telling you. It is a nice extra and a poor primary method.

An email address collects almost nothing. Nobody composes an email at a wedding.

Common follow-ups

Where should the QR codes go?

One per table, plus one near the bar and one by the exit. Table cards get the most scans because guests are seated and already holding a phone.

Can I change what the QR code points to?

Yes. Gathmo QR codes are dynamic, so you can print them weeks early and repoint them later without reprinting.

Do I have to approve every photo?

Only if you want to. Moderation is on by default so nothing reaches the album or the live wall until you approve it, and it can be switched off.

Where to go next

All 11 wedding photo questionsThe hub, grouped by what you are trying to decide: collecting from guests, choosing a platform, and which app belongs on a phone.