Wedding Photography - How much time do we need for pictures?

Sep 17, 2017
4 min read

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY – HOW MUCH TIME DO I NEED?

Disclaimer: you may be working with a fabulous wedding planner and they'll put together your timeline for you. Some of the comments and discussion here should still prove useful - especially as they relate to time for photography.

General Thoughts

It's hard to explain, but it's like the hands of the clock speed up and everyone else slows down. Actions that would normally take you 30 seconds now take 20 minutes. A short car ride that would usually take 10 minutes on the highway now takes over an hour as you have to load a large wedding party into cars, find the missing groomsman who went to to find a restroom and then drive on back roads. And then let's not forget about all the conversations we have to try to drag mom or grandma out of. Always plan on giving yourself some extra time so you don't feel rushed.

Getting ready photos

Getting ready shots are the most common thing that I see people cut out from their wedding photography time and the most common thing that I hear people say they regret not having photos of. When you are looking through your photos a couple of weeks after the wedding is over, it always a huge bonus to have pictures of your hair getting done, your make-up getting done, mom helping fix your dress, dad straightening your tie, and photos of your fiance and his buddies getting ready. Getting ready shots helps to build a more complete story of the day.

Photos before vs. after the ceremony

This is also something that is becoming more and more popular. There are definite pros and cons to seeing each other beforehand. I can’t say if you SHOULD do it, but I will say that if you do photos before you can spend MUCH more time and get tons more variety. A 1/2 hour after the ceremony is about average for the amount of time that I (as the photographer) would get with just the bride and groom.

It can be really special to see each other for the first time not surrounded by hundreds of people. It's just the two of you (and me ). You'll get to hug, kiss, talk about what's about to happen which you can't do when the person marrying you is just inches away. We take all of the formal pictures - family, wedding party, pictures of the two of you - in an unhurried, relaxed way before the ceremony. Hair and make up is freshly done so everyone looks flawless (not always the case if you have a hot humid outdoor ceremony and we take pictures after)

Do you need a photographer till the very end?

Once the dancing starts there isn’t a whole lot of time that you need the photographer there. I would say that on average an hour or two of dancing is enough. Once the Bride/Groom dance, the Mother/Son and Daddy/Daughter and Garter/Bouquet have been done most of the photos look the same. If you’re trying to figure out time, I’d say that most you can cut the photographer an hour before the end of the night. Of course, if you’d like photos of the two of you leaving the reception (sparklers, get-away car…) the photographer has to stay.

Adding it all together

First question to ask, what time everything is ending? Once you know what time you need a photographer to stay until, you can start doing the math backwards. For example, if your wedding reception is booked till 11:00pm and you didn’t want the “get-away” shot, you would probably need someone till 9-10:00pm.

Yes you can absolutely squish more things in/move times up but if one little thing goes late (hair and make up, cars/limos are 10 minutes late arriving, a family member is late to photos then your timeline gets all messed up and it causes stress. Better to have a little spare time in case you need it!

Sample timeline

WITH A FIRST LOOK

12:00pm Marie and second photographer arrive to take detail and getting ready pictures

1:00pm Anyone helping Bride/Groom get dressed should be ready and dressed

1:15pm All hair and make up complete. Get dressed (allow more time for tiny buttons/corset style dresses).

2:00pm First look in grounds of hotel/church/getting ready location– Bride & Groom alone

2:45pm Wedding party photos

3:15pm Family photos

4:00pm All pictures complete, travel to wedding ceremony location

4:30pm Arrive at wedding ceremony location to set up

5:00pm Wedding Ceremony

6:00pm End ceremony / Travel to venue

6:30pm Cocktail hour starts. Enjoy champagne and hors d’oeuvres with your guests.

Optional – sneak off for 5-10 minutes to take some sunset pictures.

7:00pm Reception (times to be discussed/confirmed with venue coordinator)

Entrances First Dance Toasts Parent Dances Cake Cutting

Garter & Bouquet toss

Dance floor opens

11:00pm Reception end / "get-away" shot

Last words of advice

You're here on your wedding day because you're marrying the person you love surrounded by your closest friends and family. Things will run late - that's OK. Things will go wrong - that's OK too. As long as you're having a good time, your friends and family will too!