Wedding planning
How to plan your wedding photography timeline
Working out portrait times, family photographs and travel around the rest of the day.
A useful wedding timeline accounts for the things that happen between the main events: getting dressed, finding relatives, walking to a portrait location and moving everyone into dinner. Those are often the minutes missing from an early draft.
Start with the ceremony and meal times, then work through the photography with your venue, planner and photographer. The aim is a schedule that reflects your priorities and can actually be followed.
01
Check the light at the actual venue
Sunset is a helpful reference, but a garden behind a hill can lose direct light well before then. Buildings and trees also change which parts of a property work for portraits at different times.
Use the date and location of your wedding, including daylight saving where it applies, and ask your photographer about the proposed settings. Avoid copying portrait times from a wedding held in another season without checking them.
02
Decide what you want time for
You might want to join cocktail hour from the beginning, spend a few minutes together after the ceremony or take portraits before seeing guests. Tell your photographer and planner early so they can explore the options with you.
A first look may suit some plans, but seeing each other at the ceremony might be more important to you. Ask what each choice would mean for the schedule, then make the decision based on the day you want.
03
Include the journey to the portraits
When choosing a portrait location, allow for getting there and back as well as the photographs. Walking in wedding clothes, changing shoes or arranging transport all take time.
One or two nearby locations can offer enough variety. If you’d like photographs later in the evening, check that the timing works with the kitchen and reception plans. A gap on the run sheet isn’t always a practical opportunity to leave.
04
Prepare a named list for family photographs
List the combinations you want and use people’s names. Nominate someone who knows the family to help gather them, and tell those guests where to be before the wedding.
Share any sensitive family arrangements privately with your photographer. Discuss the order if someone has limited mobility, needs a seat or will be leaving early. The photographer can estimate the time once they see the actual list.
05
Review the full schedule with the suppliers
Allow realistic time around departures, bus boarding and changes of location. Check access and setup with the people responsible rather than relying only on a map’s driving estimate.
Circulate the final run sheet to the relevant suppliers, including hair and makeup, the celebrant, caterer and photographer. It should show agreed finish times and the person to contact if anything changes. Guests usually need a much shorter version.
Look for the missing minutes
Read the schedule from getting ready through to dinner. At each transition, ask how you and your guests get to the next place and who is responsible for making it happen. That review often finds the gaps before they become delays.