History

I've been researching wedding photography and found a bunch of information online at answers.com. Included was a pretty interesting description of the historical progression of wedding photography as a major portion of a wedding celebration. Here is a snipett of info from there :

"...for a long time wedding pictures were usually limited to a studio portrait of the bride or bridal couple in formal attire, with the bride often identified as such by a bouquet rather than a wedding dress. The studio portrait remained popular until the Second World War, but with the group often enlarged, from the 1920s onwards, to include the best man and bridesmaids. By the 1900s, in England, outdoor group photographs had begun to appear, including members of the extended family. Church-door pictures proliferated from the 1920s, especially when the groom was in the forces, entitling him to an avenue of comrades making an archway of swords, bayonets, or even police truncheons. There might also be a picture of the bridal couple leaving for their honeymoon. But for most ordinary town dwellers until at least the 1950s, weddings were unpretentious affairs in which photography played a modest part. After the Second World War, wedding photography (and eventually videography) became increasingly elaborate, to the point, sometimes, of hijacking the proceedings. From being the record of an event it became a major lifestyle statement, at a cost to match: in the early 21st century, photography may absorb 10 to 15 per cent of an American wedding budget. Growing affluence made weddings key success indicators and occasions for conspicuous consumption, to be documented as lavishly as possible. "

Wedding photography really has come a long way, and we don't really realize that I think when we consider it. It has become such a staple in weddings, much like the cake or flowers, or even the rings!!