"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" worked better before everyone had a camera in their pocket. Now you've got forty photos of Jake doing karaoke in a wig, Sarah's questionable dance moves from the club, and someone always captures the exact moment things get weird.

Bachelor and bachelorette parties need documentation. They also need discretion. The trick is knowing which photos are "future rehearsal dinner slideshow" and which are "delete before we board the plane home."

Photograph this

Get the group looking good early: matching t-shirts at brunch, coordinated outfits before anyone's had three drinks, the posed shots where everyone remembers to smile. These deteriorate fast, so capture them first.

Photograph activities that make you look cultured: cooking class, wine tasting, beach volleyball, axe throwing, a spa day with face masks. Anything your parents would approve of.

The bride or groom being genuinely happy is worth getting on camera: real laughter, opening gifts, wearing the ridiculous sash, surrounded by friends. These are the money shots.

Location proof matters too: the city skyline, the restaurant exterior, the pool at the resort, a hiking trail view. Get something that proves you actually left town for this.

Don't photograph this

Avoid photographing strangers who didn't consent: the bartender, the person you dragged into the group photo, anyone who works at the venue, the guy from the other bachelor party who seemed cool at 1am.

Anything involving money changing hands shouldn't be documented. The escalation is similar: the first drink is fine, the sixth is not. First hour at the club works, last hour doesn't. You know the difference.

If a photo requires context or excuses to explain, it shouldn't exist.

The private album approach

Create tiers. The public album gets the safe stuff: brunch, activities, sunset on the beach. A private group album gets dancing, the late-night diner run, someone's terrible karaoke performance. No third tier. If it doesn't fit in the group album, it doesn't need to be documented.

One person should manage collection. Preferably someone with judgment. Not the person who suggested body shots as an activity.

Before you leave

Set ground rules while everyone's sober: what's fair game, what's off limits, who has veto power.

Establish the review process before anything gets shared outside the group. One person filters, and everyone has the right to delete photos of themselves.

Remember the couple will see these eventually. The bride and groom don't need to see everything, and they definitely don't need proof their friends are terrible influences.

After you're home

Share the good stuff quickly, before the wedding if possible. These photos work in rehearsal dinner slideshows, thank you notes, and anniversary throwbacks.

Keep the raw collection private and backed up. Five years later when everyone's married with kids, you'll want proof you were all once fun.

Destination parties get more photos. Weekend trips need documentation of the travel, the accommodations, the meals, the activities. Show the full experience minus the parts that would concern HR.

Joint parties

If both sides meet up, capture it. The moment the bachelor party crashes the bachelorette party, combined group shots, the couple together before the wedding. These are rare.

The reality

You're documenting the last hurrah as single people, or at least the ceremonial version of it. Everyone's performing "we're so crazy" while staying just inside the bounds of "we're still employable."

The photos should reflect genuine joy without creating evidence. Good memories, not depositions.