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Couples across the country told TODAY how heading to the altar during the pandemic meant altering their wedding plans. COVID-19 not only forced some couples to postpone or cancel their big days, but those forging ahead had to get creative. From a backyard “minimony” to a tailgate-style “micro wedding” and everything in between — including virtual weddings. And because we’ve all gotten so used to video conferencing, experts say the wedding industry is changing for good.

“A lot of invitations are starting to say ‘yes, no or attending virtually,’” Caroline Creidenberg, the CEO of Wedfuly, told TODAY. Her company handles livestreaming wedding events — everything from serving as a master of ceremonies, setting up multiple cameras and making sure the ceremony goes off without a glitch.

She said the pandemic has normalized weddings with a virtual component. Creidenberg used one example of a bride who wanted an “intimate” wedding with a groom who always wanted a “huge blowout.”

The couple settled on having just five people there on-site and 700 attending virtually.

“This was the perfect marriage, no pun intended, of their needs and wants,” she said.

There are some benefits to attending a wedding virtually, including the obvious money saved by not traveling. However, there is some virtual wedding etiquette guests should be aware of. For starters, make sure you are muted. Also, don’t attend the ceremony from the car — look presentable and treat it as though you’re attending the event in real life. And finally, keep your camera steady while you watch the ceremony — a shaky camera is distracting to other guests.

Couples who went with more virtual and scaled-down weddings have been spending more on engagement rings, experts said. Many couples also decided on more casual looks for the event; women often went with shorter dresses or less traditional looks and men opted for suits instead of a formal tux.

“I think it will be a shift going forward. It’s just permission to be able to wear what they want, wherever their wedding is taking place and whenever their wedding is taking place,” Beth Chapman, the owner of the White Dress by the Shore, told TODAY.

Experts also said to be prepared for bigger nuptial celebrations in the coming year. The centerpiece for 2021 weddings: vaccinations.

“The vaccine rollout is actually giving couples optimism to have bigger guest lists again,” Jeffra Trumpower, the senior creative director for WeddingWire, told TODAY. “We’re really going to see those weddings come back full swing starting around August.”

She added that experts are preparing for a double wedding season, with canceled events from last year being rescheduled and, of course, 2021 brides.

As the show must go on, there will still likely be some hints of COVID-19 safety protocols at ceremonies this year.

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