Wedding Day Timeline

Every wedding is a unique story, written by the love, personalities, and moments that make it truly one of a kind.

Intro

I understand that every wedding is unique and represents one of the most important days of your lives as a couple. It’s a rare and special occasion where all your loved ones come together in one place for a single day. Maximising your time with your guests is essential, so I design my timelines to prioritise this while ensuring I capture the key photos that matter most to you.

In this short blog post, I will go over some typical timelines to give you guidance on how to manage your Wedding Day from my perspective.

Wedding Day Timeline

I like to design timelines tailored specifically to your ceremony time, as this serves as the anchor for the day’s schedule. Starting with the ceremony, I work backward to determine the best time for me to arrive and begin capturing the pre-ceremony moments, such as your getting-ready preparations and any special details you'd like included.

This approach also helps me map out the flow of the day, ensuring we allocate enough time for family photos, wedding party shots, and your couple portraits without feeling rushed. By carefully planning these moments, I can provide a clear estimate of when you'll return to the reception, allowing you to maximize your time with your guests while still capturing all the important memories of the day. This method ensures a seamless balance between enjoying your wedding and documenting it beautifully.

Example Timeline

I plan my arrival times at prep locations by starting from the ceremony time and working backward, excluding travel time. All the times are over estimated. If you have a shorter ceremony and no travel time in between then youll have more time at the drinks reception.

  • Groom Prep is typically 30-40mins

  • Bridal Prep is typically 90mins

In this example, the start time is 1pm.

I only do my family photos directly after the ceremony. Why? great question..

Doing this during the drinks reception can waste way too much time, I didn’t like it, because we wasted 30-40mins for a shoot that only takes me 15mins. People go missing, then your waiting around for them to come back. It’s very difficult to organise people when there’s also 150 other guests around. Certain family members will maybe looking at them and being distracted during our shoot. After the ceremony, all family members are there, guests are leaving for drinks reception, so it’s nice and quiet and relaxed. You’ll thank me later.. :)

In certain scenarios I will do family photos 10minutes before the bell rings..depending on your family size.

Couples Shoot & Bridal Party / Groomsmen

Im only with you, the couple alone for a very short period of the day. hence why it’s crucial we organise our photo session properly. Please make sure your videographer is aligned with this schedule, we will plan to head away somewhere quite for 10-15minutes, yes that’s all I need. Then for sunset or when the bell rings another 5-10min (you’ll thank me for the break)

With the Wedding Party I only need them for 10minutes either after family photos or they can come on the couple shoot lastly when the bell rings. (my only opportunity to get all of you alone and together!)

I love my timings and structure, I understand how much you want to be with guests. I have a very important job to deliver fantastic photos, work with me and trust my guidance. I am very flexible and will help you maximise the most out of your day. After all it goes by very quick!!

First Looks?

If you’re planning a first look with your partner, it’s important to schedule it one hour before the ceremony. If this takes place on the ceremony grounds, we’ll need to be mindful of keeping you out of sight from arriving guests once we’re finished. We’ll also allow time for you to freshen up before walking down the aisle.

The groom will need to be available for the celebrant or priest 15 minutes before the ceremony begins, as well as to greet a few guests beforehand. During the first look, we can capture some couple photos, but please keep in mind that we’ll need to limit certain shots to avoid the risk of your dress getting dirty. I also like to give you a moment to enjoy this time alone together.

While first looks do save some time later in the day, I’ll still plan to take additional couple photos after the ceremony to fully utilize the grounds or location. The entire first look process typically takes about 45 minutes. (inc couple photos & time alone to yourselves + travel ) I often suggest having the groom stand with his back to the bride, allowing her to walk up and touch his shoulder, or the groom can turn around when he hears her footsteps approaching—whichever feels most natural to you both.

As you can see, a first look requires a bit of preparation to ensure everything runs smoothly. To make this happen, your getting-ready schedule will need to be adjusted so that hair and makeup are completed earlier than usual. This way, you’ll have enough time to get dressed and be fully ready for the first look without feeling rushed.

It’s important to inform your makeup artist and hairstylist about this adjusted timeline so they can plan accordingly and ensure everything stays on track. By coordinating these details in advance, we can make the first look a seamless and memorable moment for you both.

Hope this helps. What Next?

I’ll send a Wedding Questionnaire, this will help me get an understanding to your wedding day flow. Once it’s completed, we can jump on a call - either the week before or the week of your wedding.

Any questions, always feel free to reach out :)

Thanks, Paul.