We understand the stress that comes with planning the perfect wedding day timeline – questions like 'Did we include enough time for family photos?' or 'How long should we give ourselves before my dress goes on?' can be overwhelming. Fear not, for we've assisted countless couples in creating custom timelines tailored just for them. The dreaded timeline doesn't have to induce anxiety. Below, we share general timeframes for different parts of the day. If you are opting out of the first look, check out our guide to a photo timeline WITHOUT a first look.
Timelines WITH a First Look
If the term 'First Look' or 'First Reveal' is unfamiliar, it's a wonderful opportunity for couples to see each other before the ceremony, offering various benefits, including capturing all photographs before the main event. Many couples choose this to savor the remainder of their wedding day without the stress of formal photos.
If you decide to go this route, here's how the wedding photography timeline with first look will unfold:
PREPS> FIRST LOOK > PORTRAIT SESSIONS > CEREMONY > COCKTAIL HOUR > RECEPTION
Now let’s go through a sample WEDDING DAY to show actual lengths of time for each part.
PREPS
1 Hour 45 Minutes
BEFORE GETTING INTO DRESS: 1 HOUR
In this 1 hour we’ll shoot details like your dress, shoes, invitation suite, rings, and jewelry. We’ll also shoot candids, get makeup touch ups, and group shots of you and your bridal party in special garments like matching robes or pajamas (if you’re wearing them).
GETTING DRESSED: 30 MINUTES
The moments surrounding you getting into your dress plus a card reading, first look with your Dad/Someone Special/Bridesmaids will take about 30 minutes.
PORTRAITS/MISCELLANEOUS TIME: 15 MINUTES
With your hair and makeup fresh, it’s a good idea to grab a few portraits of yourself! Add in some miscellaneous time and we think 15 minutes is smart to plan for. This includes bathroom breaks, small chit chats with friends and parents/relatives, and getting yourself out of your room. It might seem crazy but you’ll soon realize that these 15 minute increments add up. It’s smart to include them in the timeline and if you don’t need it, you’ll never go wrong with more time on your side.
If you’re adding up time, preps have taken about an hour and forty five minutes. The only caveat to this timing is if your First Look is not at the same location as your preps. If we need to travel to the First Look, you’ll need to add that time here. Whenever calculating travel times, use Google to get approximate times and then add 10-15 minutes. This accounts for possible traffic delays as well as the slower travel speeds since most times limos and party buses can’t travel as fast as your normal car.
FIRST LOOK & PORTRAITS
2 Hours
COUPLE PORTRAITS & FIRST LOOK: 1 HOUR
We’ll follow the first look immediately with portraits of you and your soon-to-be spouse.
BRIDAL PARTY PORTRAITS: 30 MINUTES
We’ll now add the bridal party to the fun. It’s a smart idea to tell family members who will be in the family formals to arrive at this time. This gives those family members who are notoriously late to arrive on time (without them even knowing). You'll most likely shoot combinations of the different wedding parties, individuals with each wedding party member, and group shots of everyone.
FAMILY PORTRAITS: 30 MINUTES
We’ll get every combination of family portraits you want captured written down so there’s no possibility of forgetting anyone. We allocate 30 minutes in this sample timeline but know that if you have a large family, this may have to be adjusted.
If you’re adding up total time spent so far, we’re at three hours and forty-five minutes.
CEREMONY
1 HOUR
SETUP & RELAXATION: 30 Minutes
Now’s a great time for you to relax and regroup before the ceremony. Your photo and video teams will use this time to get prepped for the biggest part of the day. They'll shoot details of the space without guests, setup cameras and prepare audio capture, and game-plan with their team.
CEREMONY SERVICE: 30 Minutes
It's been our experience that those who choose to do a first look typically have about a 30 minute ceremony. If yours is longer, please adjust your timeline to accommodate a longer service.
COCKTAIL HOUR
1 Hour
One of the benefits of a First Look is that now you can enjoy your cocktail hour with limited interruption! The only thing we would need to do is finish any remaining family formals that didn’t occur during the Family Formal session.
RECEPTION
4 Hours
A typical reception lasts 4 hours but unless you're having any kind of send off (think sparklers or jumping in a getaway car), most couples opt to have us end services before the end of the reception. At this point coverage of our services has been about six and a half hours. With the reception now documented, you’re looking at a total of around 10 hours of coverage.
When everything is at the same location, we’ve been able to capture all major moments described above in as little as 8 hours. 8 hours is the minimum number of coverage hours we’d recommend as that timing does not include much buffer for delays or mishaps. It’s our recommendation to add an hour or two so that you can enjoy the day without the feeling of being rushed!
TOTAL COVERAGE TIME: 10 hours
We know that's a lot of information so take your time while reviewing it, write things down, and plan out the different parts of your day with this guide as a reference. Our #1 recommendation when crafting a wedding day timeline is to add more time to it than you think. If you believe something should take 5 minutes, better plan for 15. When you're dealing with a wedding with many moving parts and lots of people, it's much like herding cats!
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE WEDDING READY PROGRAM NOW!
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