Wedding Day Photography Timeline
A wedding day photography timeline is the running order of your day, built so the photographs fit around your guests and the daylight. I'm Paul Hickey of Once in a Lifetime Photography, a Worcestershire wedding photographer. I have photographed more than 150 weddings since 2014. This is the timeline I talk couples through, with real timings.
Most timeline advice online is written for American weddings. This one is written for a UK day: a civil or church ceremony, a drinks reception, a wedding breakfast, speeches and evening guests.
How long do wedding photos take?
Allow about 90 minutes of photography time between the ceremony and the meal, spread across a two-hour gap. That covers confetti, family groups and portraits of the two of you. The rest of the day I photograph as it happens, without stopping anything.
Getting ready: up to 3 hours before the ceremony. Details, hair and make-up, getting dressed.
Ceremony: 20 to 30 minutes civil, 45 to 60 church. Guests are seated 15 to 20 minutes before.
Congratulations and confetti: 15 to 20 minutes. Hugs first, then the confetti line.
Family group photographs: 20 to 25 minutes for ten groups. Largest group first.
Couple portraits: 10 to 30 minutes. Your choice. Often split into two short sessions.
Wedding breakfast: 2 to 2½ hours. I photograph the room, then leave you to eat.
Speeches: 30 to 40 minutes. Three speakers usually run over.
First dance and dancing: 30 minutes. Usually half an hour after evening guests arrive.
Night portraits: 10 to 15 minutes. After dark, with off-camera flash.
Not sure how many hours of coverage that adds up to? I've written separately about how long to have a photographer.
Start with sunset, not the ceremony
The time the sun sets should decide your ceremony time. After the ceremony you need around 90 minutes of daylight for confetti, groups and portraits. In December that light has gone before four o'clock.
May to August: sunset 8:30pm to 9:30pm. Suggested ceremony time: 1pm to 2pm.
April and September: sunset 7:25pm to 8:05pm. Suggested ceremony time: 1pm to 1:30pm.
March and October: sunset about 6:10pm. Suggested ceremony time: 12:30pm to 1pm.
November to February: sunset 3:55pm to 5:20pm. Suggested ceremony time: 11:30am to 12:30pm.
In high summer, a midday ceremony puts your photographs in the harshest light of the day. People squint. A slightly later start gives softer light and a long evening.
In winter the opposite applies. A 2pm ceremony in December leaves almost no daylight afterwards. I've written more about planning winter weddings in Worcestershire.
A sample wedding day photography timeline
These are two starting points for a civil ceremony at one venue. Your registrar, venue and caterer will each move things a little.
Summer (July, 1:30pm ceremony)
10:30am Photographer arrives
1:10pm Guests seated
1:30pm Ceremony
2:00pm Congratulations and confetti
2:20pm Family group photographs
3:15pm Couple portraits
3:45pm Guests called to dinner
4:15pm Wedding breakfast
6:15pm Speeches
7:30pm Evening guests arrive
8:00pm Cake and first dance
8:45pm Golden-hour portraits
10:15pm Night portraits
Winter (December, 12 noon ceremony)
9:00am Photographer arrives
11:40am Guests seated
12:00pm Ceremony
12:30pm Congratulations and confetti
12:45pm Family group photographs
1:10pm Couple portraits
2:10pm Guests called to dinner
2:30pm Wedding breakfast
4:40pm Speeches
5:45pm Night portraits, before evening guests arrive
7:00pm Evening guests arrive
7:30pm Cake and first dance
There is no golden-hour session in the winter version, because sunset is at 3:55pm.
In both, the meal starts about two hours after the ceremony ends. Many venues suggest 90 minutes. Ninety works only if nothing runs late, and something usually does.
Before the ceremony
My full-day coverage starts up to three hours before the ceremony. Three things make the morning run to time.
Add half an hour to the hair and make-up schedule. It nearly always overruns.
Don't go last. If the morning slips, you are the one person who can't be rushed.
Be dressed an hour before the ceremony. That hour disappears quickly.
Choose the room with the largest window, and clear one corner of bags and packaging. Have rings, shoes, jewellery and an invitation in one place before I arrive.
If you are having a civil ceremony, the registrar sees each of you privately beforehand. Worcestershire's guidance says the bride is usually seen 15 to 20 minutes before the start. Plan to be fully ready half an hour before.
During the ceremony
The person conducting your ceremony sets the rules for photography. Worcestershire registrars ask photographers to keep movement to a minimum and do not allow photographs during the signing. You pose with the document straight afterwards.
In a church, each vicar decides. Ask early, and put your photographer and vicar in touch.
Should we take photos before or after the ceremony?
Most UK couples take all their photographs after the ceremony, during the drinks reception. Everyone is together, dressed and in good spirits. It is the simplest plan and it suits most days.
Taking some photographs before the ceremony makes sense in three situations.
A late ceremony in winter. If daylight will be gone afterwards, family groups can be done first.
A very short drinks reception. Moving groups earlier protects your time with guests.
You'd like a private moment. Seeing each other before the ceremony is called a "first look". It takes about 15 minutes and calms nerves.
A first look is common in America and less so here. It is a choice, not a requirement. If walking down the aisle is the moment you want, keep it.
Family group photographs
Ten family groups take me 20 to 25 minutes. That is an average. It is quicker when helpers have the next group waiting. It is slower when guests have wandered to the bar.
Twenty groups would take most of your drinks reception. Keep the list to about ten, write it with first names, and choose two helpers who know the faces. I've put together a family photo list you can adapt.
Confetti comes just before the groups, while everyone is still gathered. It needs a minute of planning. Here is how to get confetti photographs that work.
Portraits of the two of you
You may read that couple portraits need 45 minutes to an hour. I don't agree. The sessions I plan run from ten minutes to thirty, and the couple decides.
If you don't enjoy being photographed, shorter is kinder. Ten minutes of walking and talking is enough for a set of portraits you'll be glad to have. I ask every couple before the wedding how they feel about being photographed.
Two short sessions often work better than one long one: ten minutes after the groups, and ten more near sunset.
After dark
Creative night portraits are a large part of what I do. They are made after dark with off-camera flash, sometimes with coloured light or smoke behind you. They take 10 to 15 minutes.
When they happen depends on the season.
Winter: it is dark by five. They fit before the evening guests arrive.
Spring and autumn: straight after the first dance, once the floor is full.
June and July: it is not properly dark until after ten. Tell me early if these matter to you.
Five things that knock a timeline off course
Hair and make-up running over. Build in half an hour.
Travel between two venues. Add the drive, the parking and the walk.
A long family list. Each extra group adds two to three minutes.
A receiving line. Eighty guests at twenty seconds each is nearly half an hour.
Speeches. Ask for five minutes each and allow ten.
Wedding day photography timeline: common questions
What time should a wedding ceremony start for photographs?
Between 1pm and 2pm in summer, and by 12:30pm in winter. The aim is 90 minutes of daylight after the ceremony ends.
How long should we allow for wedding photos after the ceremony?
About 90 minutes within a two-hour gap before the meal. That covers confetti, ten family groups and a short portrait session.
What is the best time of day for wedding photos?
The last hour before sunset. The light is low and soft. In summer that falls in the evening, so we slip out for ten minutes after the meal.
Do we need to give you a shot list?
A family group list, yes. A list of moments, no. I photograph the day as it unfolds. Here is what to tell your photographer beforehand.
What happens to the timeline if it rains?
It bends. Rain is rarely constant. Family groups move indoors, and portraits wait for a dry spell or happen under cover.
Will you help us plan our timeline?
Yes. Every couple I work with gets a questionnaire covering timings, family groups and priorities. I then check the timings with the venue.
Planning your own timeline
If you have a draft timeline and want a second opinion, send it to me. I'll tell you where it looks tight.
If you're still choosing a photographer, my wedding photography packages set out what full-day coverage includes. Once in a Lifetime Photography covers Worcestershire, the West Midlands, Herefordshire, Warwickshire and Shropshire. My work has earned several Wedisson Awards and a Flashmasters Gold Award.
Paul Hickey, Once in a Lifetime Photography · paul@onceinalifetimephotography.co.uk · 01905 900911