What is included in my wedding photography coverage? This is a question wedding photographers get a lot. It’s understandable—for most people, this is the first time they’ve ever planned a wedding! It’s important to know what you want recorded on your special day, and to be sure of what your photographer will be covering in their wedding packages.
Here are some tips for planning your wedding day timeline around fabulous photos.
Consulting with your wedding photographer on the timeline for your big day is super important. They can let you know how much time to expect certain pictures to take and what sequence of events tends to flow the best, plus you can let them know what elements of your day are the most important to you to be captured, and they can give you tips to help make the most out of your day.
This is how a typical wedding day runs for me:
1) I arrive to photograph the last-minute details of everyone getting ready. Whether you’re getting ready at your ceremony venue or somewhere else nearby, I like to show up to say hi and capture the bridesmaids touching up makeup, the bride getting in her wedding dress, and in another room the groom and groomsmen pinning their boutonnieres and cufflinks. This part doesn’t take long, but it’s an important part in the story of your special day.
2 ) If the couple chooses to have one, we do the first look. (And you can read all about why I recommend doing a first look here.) I take the groom to a special location and instruct him not to turn around until I have the bride in place. These photos are always so sweet to witness (with my long lens from afar!) because it’s just the couple having a private moment together before standing in front of the crowd and the rest of the day whips by. Often right after the first look we will take some or all of the couple’s portraits.
3 ) We take the bridal party portraits. It makes everyone less stressed the more of the portraits we can take before the ceremony starts. So if you choose to have a first look, I recommend taking all the bridal party portraits before the ceremony so that you can get to the reception that much faster. And if you choose not to have a first look, we can still take portraits for each side without having the bride and groom see each other! If we’re feeling very ambitious, we can knock family portraits out of the way before the ceremony as well, but I tend to do those directly following the ceremony, because then everyone is already in one place, no one will be late, and no one is showing up early then having to twiddle thumbs until ceremony time.
4 ) I make sure to finish all portraits at least 15-30 minutes before the ceremony starts, as guests are usually starting to filter in at this point. I use this time to capture the beautiful ceremony site, the details and decor, and guests arriving.
5 ) Then of course there is the ceremony! I ask all my brides a few weeks before the wedding what types of ceremony events to look out for, like a sand ceremony, tying the knot, and any religious traditions to be aware of. I shoot the wedding as discreetly as possible, while still getting those key shots.
6 ) After the ceremony, we finish up any group portraits and/or portraits of the bride and groom alone. Depending on the timing, I may split the couple’s portraits up so that we get some done early but then come back out during the reception for some sunset shots. It’s well worth missing fifteen minutes of dancing!
7 ) After portraits are over dinner is usually served, speeches made, the couple cut the cake, and dancing starts. The reception is under way! I cover all of this all the way through the bouquet toss later in the night, although some couples keep me through the end to capture their official send-off.
Essentially, I will cover all of the important details of your day, so that you can relive it all over and over. The actual timeline of each wedding day varies, but generally I capture all of this within 8 hours, sometimes even more! It depends on how many people are in your bridal party, how many guests are in attendance, the length of your ceremony, whether it’s all taking place in the same location or at multiple venues, and what events you plan to include throughout the day. I highly suggest consulting with your photographer on your wedding day timeline as you plan to make sure you get the most out of your coverage. This is a good place to start :)
Your photos (and video) are going to be the only tangible things you have left to remember your wedding day, and finding a photographer who will capture the day the way you want it told is so important.
You can read more of my tips for brides here:
5 Reasons to Have a First Look
How to Plan for Amazing Getting Ready Photos
How to Deal with Rain on Your Wedding Day
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What is included in my wedding photography coverage? This is a question wedding photographers get a lot. It’s understandable—for most people, this is the first time they’ve ever planned a wedding! It’s important to know what you want recorded on your special day, and to be sure of what your photographer will be covering in their wedding packages.
Here are some tips for planning your wedding day timeline around fabulous photos.
Consulting with your wedding photographer on the timeline for your big day is super important. They can let you know how much time to expect certain pictures to take and what sequence of events tends to flow the best, plus you can let them know what elements of your day are the most important to you to be captured, and they can give you tips to help make the most out of your day.
This is how a typical wedding day runs for me:
1) I arrive to photograph the last-minute details of everyone getting ready. Whether you’re getting ready at your ceremony venue or somewhere else nearby, I like to show up to say hi and capture the bridesmaids touching up makeup, the bride getting in her wedding dress, and in another room the groom and groomsmen pinning their boutonnieres and cufflinks. This part doesn’t take long, but it’s an important part in the story of your special day.
2 ) If the couple chooses to have one, we do the first look. (And you can read all about why I recommend doing a first look here.) I take the groom to a special location and instruct him not to turn around until I have the bride in place. These photos are always so sweet to witness (with my long lens from afar!) because it’s just the couple having a private moment together before standing in front of the crowd and the rest of the day whips by. Often right after the first look we will take some or all of the couple’s portraits.
3 ) We take the bridal party portraits. It makes everyone less stressed the more of the portraits we can take before the ceremony starts. So if you choose to have a first look, I recommend taking all the bridal party portraits before the ceremony so that you can get to the reception that much faster. And if you choose not to have a first look, we can still take portraits for each side without having the bride and groom see each other! If we’re feeling very ambitious, we can knock family portraits out of the way before the ceremony as well, but I tend to do those directly following the ceremony, because then everyone is already in one place, no one will be late, and no one is showing up early then having to twiddle thumbs until ceremony time.
4 ) I make sure to finish all portraits at least 15-30 minutes before the ceremony starts, as guests are usually starting to filter in at this point. I use this time to capture the beautiful ceremony site, the details and decor, and guests arriving.
5 ) Then of course there is the ceremony! I ask all my brides a few weeks before the wedding what types of ceremony events to look out for, like a sand ceremony, tying the knot, and any religious traditions to be aware of. I shoot the wedding as discreetly as possible, while still getting those key shots.
6 ) After the ceremony, we finish up any group portraits and/or portraits of the bride and groom alone. Depending on the timing, I may split the couple’s portraits up so that we get some done early but then come back out during the reception for some sunset shots. It’s well worth missing fifteen minutes of dancing!
7 ) After portraits are over dinner is usually served, speeches made, the couple cut the cake, and dancing starts. The reception is under way! I cover all of this all the way through the bouquet toss later in the night, although some couples keep me through the end to capture their official send-off.
Essentially, I will cover all of the important details of your day, so that you can relive it all over and over. The actual timeline of each wedding day varies, but generally I capture all of this within 8 hours, sometimes even more! It depends on how many people are in your bridal party, how many guests are in attendance, the length of your ceremony, whether it’s all taking place in the same location or at multiple venues, and what events you plan to include throughout the day. I highly suggest consulting with your photographer on your wedding day timeline as you plan to make sure you get the most out of your coverage. This is a good place to start :)
Your photos (and video) are going to be the only tangible things you have left to remember your wedding day, and finding a photographer who will capture the day the way you want it told is so important.
You can read more of my tips for brides here:
5 Reasons to Have a First Look
How to Plan for Amazing Getting Ready Photos
How to Deal with Rain on Your Wedding Day