Best Wedding Timeline For Stress Free Day

January 18, 2023

The key to a stress free wedding day starts with an efficient timeline. I always recommend to coordinate with your photographer when you start planning out your day. You never want to put the ceremony right around the time of sunset because this is the best time for you and your spouse to get away, take in your day, and capture those warm dreamy photos. Below I'll show you an example of an 8 hour timeline. Note that the time of sunset changes throughout the year and should be taken into consideration.

8 Hour Timeline:

1:00PM

Photographer arrives and starts detail/getting ready photos with the bride/bridesmaids.

2:00PM

Detail and getting ready photos with the groom/groomsmen

2:30-3:00PM

First look with the bride and groom if they choose to
Followed by a short couples session

3:00-3:45PM

Group photos with the bridal party

4:00-4:30PM

Ceremony

4:30-5:30PM

Congratulations from guests
Family photos to follow

5:30-8:00PM

Cocktail hour/reception
Optional couples session could be made during this time
If you choose to go to bars or somewhere else with the bridal party, it would be done at this time
First dances could be done during this hour depending on the time of year (check with photographer)

8:00-9:00PM

Most likely somewhere during this hour you'll want to go for a sunset session with your photographer
Use that time to take in your day with your spouse and get those amazing photos
First dances could be done during this hour depending on the time of year (check with photographer)
Photographer captures the start of the dance and finishes their day

Final Thoughts:

The timeline described above is the perfect guideline for planning your day to best utilize your photographer/videographer. The guests will also enjoy that there's no long downtime between the ceremony and reception time. For the traditional couple not wanting to do a first look, make sure to schedule time after the ceremony for those bridal party and couple's photos before the reception. As stated above check with your photographer on when golden hour will be for your wedding. You'll want to take advantage of that time for photos. You can schedule the first dances accordingly. I hope you find this useful and allows you to enjoy your day to the fullest.

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BONUS:

Here's a photo checklist to help you organize the different family photo variations.

Family