Overwhelmed, stressed, busy, are all things I frequently hear from brides and grooms when planning their BIG day! One of the easiest ways to take a little bit (because let’s be honest, it is a lot to plan) of stress off is making wedding timelines for the day! I cannot stress this enough, I cannot and do not want to imagine a wedding day without a timeline. It’s such a great way to help keep everyone where they’re meant to be at the time they’re meant to be there. I could keep going on about how you need a day of timeline, but instead I’ll just give you five pointers of what you should add that a lot of couples don’t!

Here are five pointers from a professional wedding photographer of what wedding timelines should always include, but usually don’t! (I’ll expand on each one below, too)

1. An hour of pre-ceremony rest time
2. Guest photos
3. An hour for arrival & details
4. First looks
5. Private last dance

AN HOUR OF PRE-CEREMONY REST TIME

I like to call this rest & retouch! I’ll share three different reasons I always add this to all of my wedding timelines.

1. You never know what’s going to happen
   • I have been part of many wedding days at this point and one thing I have learned is that the day can be unpredictable. This may sound scary and you may be thinking why the heck is she telling us this, to scare us?! Not at all! I tell all of my couples this, but I end with what matters MOST is that you get to marry your best friend. This gives wiggle room for those just in case’s. But let me emphasize that no matter what happens, you get to marry your best friend and at the end of the day that’s what matters most!
2. Your wedding day is so much go go go
   • I’ve also had wedding days where everything is very ahead of schedule which is also great! If that happens then you have time to lay back and really just take it all in for a minute. Get a quick bite and hang around with your girls and boys and maybe even your soon to be spouse! Another good idea for this time is sneak in a prayer for the bride and groom, I’ve seen this a lot, also!
3. Most of all, you get extra time with the person you get to spend your life with
   • I am an extreme anti first look fan turned I think every couple should have a first look, including myself. If you do a first look you get extra time with your soon to be HUBBY/WIFEY! I am also an advocate for the more alone time together on your day the better. I love weddings SO much but couples don’t have enough alone time, in my opinion, so this gives for more!

GUEST PHOTOS

Creating a guest list takes a lot time and thought, so obviously the people you invite are meaningful to you both! It can be hard to go to over 100 sometimes 200 people in a short amount of time. It’s something that’s frequently wanted but not so often added to wedding timelines. I’ve seen a few different ways to get photos and a bit of chat time with all of your people!

• Going around to each table at your reception after you two are done eating
• Have two chairs for you both set up at your reception and have people get in a line
• RIGHT after your ceremony recessional, be by the entrance to your reception and see everyone as they walk in
• One large group photo of EVERYONE right after your ceremony or announced at your reception. This is a great idea when drone footage is added to your wedding package!

AN HOUR FOR ARRIVAL & DETAILS

This may seem like a long time for wedding timelines, but in my experience, this is best for sure! I like to arrive and go straight into an hour of details. It gives time for me to meet your girlies (since I usually start with girls getting ready) and get candids! I grab your box of details from you and get straight to it. This allows for me to get all the combos of your special things you may not see in other photos. Flatlays and details also allow for your guy’s big day small details to be featured! I’ve never had couples regret doing this for their wedding timeline. This also can give time for a second shooter to get candids. Sometimes, if the getting ready room has good natural light, I can do the same while getting details!

FIRST LOOKS

Please stick with me before skipping this section because you are set on your first look at the altar! I used to think that way too. Then I heard a photographer couple say “now that we’ve seen so many weddings, we wish we did a first look at our wedding”. This is so common and not invalid, but I genuinely believe that a first look evokes more emotions at the first look and altar. I used to despise the idea of having a first look at my future wedding. But like I said, until I got into the wedding photography world and now I’ve seen dozens of weddings & I know that first looks only ADD to the amount of emotions on your big day! Now, the first look is one of the top three things I’m most excited for someday at my own wedding!

In my opinion, everyone should do a first look at their wedding. I have seen it both ways so many times and it doesn’t take away any of the emotions when the bride walks down the aisle to her groom. Instead, it adds to it because it gets the initial shock out of the way! I truly do believe that everyone should have a first look because you get so little alone time with your significant other on your wedding day. This also allows for a time of private vows that only the two of you can share with each other!

Side bar on first looks, a bride and groom first look isn’t the only kind, and I’m a fan of many more. A groom and his mom, groom and his dad, bride and her brothers, bride and her bridesmaids, and one of my favorites, a bride and her father. There are so many and every single one has me in some tears and the bride/groom, too!

PRIVATE LAST DANCE

Last but not least, one of my absolute favorites I saw for the first time at a wedding in 2023. It’s such a great segway for wedding timelines going into a send off. It gives you time alone together on the dance floor and allows for your people to get all set up for your send off into forever! I stay for 30 sec max to document with a few photos but then I like to give you guys genuine privacy together.

All in all, what I push for most is to make your day, YOUR day! It’s about the two of you! So, customizing your timeline to what fits you two best is why I like to have a seperate timeline meeting after or before I create a draft of what your big day could look like. So if you have any questions, let’s chat all about it!