Wedding Day Timelines
Planning out your wedding day timeline is the key piece to making sure that your day flows smoothly and stress-free - especially when it comes to photography. Surprisingly, photography takes up a large portion of the wedding day, especially for those couples wanting to preserve every memory for years to come. The goal is to never make your wedding feel like a photoshoot, but you will need to plan out some time for that photo that your grandma has been collecting at each one of her grandkids's wedding. So - where do you start? Below is a rough timeline broken down to help you plan out your day!
Getting Ready Photos (30-90 minutes)
During getting ready photos, your photographer will snap candids of you and your girls getting your hair and make up done, mom helping you into your dress, the guys putting on ties or combing hair, details from around your venue, photos of your dress, etc. If you wish to do a first look with your bridesmaids, add on an extra 5-10 minutes to allow for changing somewhere the girls aren't.
Have all your details - the rings, shoes, veil, jewelry, invitations, perfume, bouquet, etc. - set aside for your photographer so they're ready for photos. I provide a list for my brides if you're not sure what you'd like to have in your details & flat lays.
First Look (optional, 15-30 minutes)
A first look is the perfect time to steal a couple of quiet, intimate moments with your person, and calm down your nerves before the ceremony begins. Having a first look also gives much more flexibility for photos before the ceremony so you can spend as much time with your guests as possible.
If you're wanting to do something alternate, like private vows readings or a first touch, this is the place to do it.
If you want to do a first look with family, add on an extra 5-10 minutes
Wedding Party Photos (30-45 minutes)
Smaller wedding parties will take less time than this, and larger wedding parties will take more time. Here you'll usually take photos of the group together as a whole, and then separate photos with your attendants. If you have particular groups of people you'd like photographed together, make sure to let your photographer know!
Couple's Portraits (15-30 minutes)
These can be done directly after the first look, after the wedding party photos, or sneaking away during the reception for those golden hour photos. I recommend doing two different sessions, ones just after the wedding party and then sneaking away during the reception for a few more.
Family Formals (15-30 minutes)
Traditional family portraits are usually taken with both the immediate and extended family. Once again, a larger family may take more time than a smaller family, talk with your photographer to plan and adjust accordingly.
Provide your photographer with specific family combinations to help keep everything organized, stress-free, and make the photos take the least amount of time.
Ceremony (20-60 minutes)
During the ceremony, your photographer will capture everyone walking down the aisle, vow exchanges, the first kiss, and photos of any special elements. Make sure to provide the photographer with your ceremony outline so they don't miss anything important!
Timing varies! Religious ceremonies tend to be longer and non-religious ceremonies are typically shorter.
Reception Details & Cocktail Hour (30-45 minutes)
Your photographer will be grabbing photos of the venue, table decor, florals, & guest candids. Oftentimes, family formals are done during the start of cocktail hour, so if that's the case, make sure your photographer has enough time during the day to sneak in and get photos of the decor you worked so hard on!
Reception Events (Time Varies)
During the reception, you'll likely want photos of your first dance, speeches, cake cutting, bouquet toss, and dance floor moments. You can spread these out or do them all at once at the beginning - there's multiple theories to which one is better. When my husband and I got married, we decided that stopping the dancing for any reason was going to kill the dance floor, so we decided to just do everything before our first dance and open up the floor after that with no interruptions. It worked great and the floor was busy and full all night long.
Grand entrance: 5 minutes
Toasts & speeches (after the meal): 10-20 minutes
Cake cutting & bouquet toss: 10-15 minutes
First dances: 10-15 minutes
Open dancing & fun candids: as long as you have your photographer for!
Grand Exit (optional, 10-15 minutes)
Whether it's a sparkler send-off, glow sticks, bubbles, or a private dance before you leave, make sure you let your photographer know to plan accordingly!
If you want exit-style photos, but your photographer is leaving early, you can plan a fake "send-off" with your sparklers, etc. before the dance floor really gets going. You will likely need some sort of a game or a draw to get everyone back to the dance floor to make sure the vibe doesn't die off with the dancing interruption.
So that's it!
It's actually not that difficult to do and your photographer and wedding coordinator should be able to help you if it all starts to feel overwhelming. I've written quite a few wedding timelines now so I've got you! Below are a couple of sample timelines with various hours of coverage, if you want somewhere to get started!
Photography Timeline - 10 hours of coverage
12:00 PM - Bride and groom getting ready photos, details
1:30 PM - First look and couple portraits
2:00 PM - Wedding Party Photos
2:45 PM - Family Formals
4:00 PM - Ceremony
4:30 PM - Cocktail hour & reception details
5:15 PM - Golden Hour Photos
6:00 PM - Reception begins
6:15 PM - Grand entrances
6:30 PM - Dinner is served
7:00 PM - Toasts & cake cutting
7:15 PM - First dances
7:30 PM - Open dancing
10:00 PM - Grand exit!
Photography Timeline - 6 hours of coverage
2:00 PM - Bride and groom getting ready photos, details
3:00 PM - First look and couple portraits
3:30 PM - Wedding Party Photos
5:00 PM - Ceremony
5:30 PM - Cocktail hour & reception details, Family Formals
6:00 PM - Reception begins
6:15 PM - Grand entrances
6:30 PM - Dinner is served
7:00 PM - Toasts & cake cutting
7:15 PM - First dances
7:30 PM - Open dancing, sneak away for sunset photos
8:00 PM - Stage a grand exit!