How To Plan A Perfect Wedding Day Timeline
The best way to have a seamless and enjoyable wedding day is to put together a perfect day-of timeline so you don’t feel rushed. But how do you do that when no two weddings are the same?
Below you’ll find my tips for what to consider when planning your wedding day timeline, how long different activities can take, as well as some sample timelines for you to reference. These tips are mostly centered around the part of your day that will be photographed so this guide can definitely help you determine how many hours of photography you’ll want to book. Your photographer will also help you figure out how much coverage you’ll need on your wedding day, and your wedding planner or day-of coordinator are fantastic resources for helping to plan your day in a way that keeps it fun and stress free for your and your partner.
The top eight parts of your day that will impact timing:
Traveling in between locations.
Getting ready.
Deciding whether or not to have a first look.
How many group photo combinations you want.
How long you want to spend on couple portraits.
Dinner and number of speeches.
Whether or not you’re doing table photos.
What activities you have planned for your reception and whether or not you’re having an end of the night send off.
1. LOCATION LOGISTICS
If your wedding day is all going to be at the same location starting with your getting ready moments all the way through your reception, then you can enjoy the extra time you’ll save from not having to travel in between locations. If, on the other hand, your wedding day involves more than one location (as most weddings do), it’s important to factor in travel time between locations.
Some considerations when traveling between locations:
Give yourself enough time to gather all the things you need to bring with you.
Give yourself enough time to gather all the people who are coming with you. (You know your people best, certain folks may need more time than others.)
Look up how long the drive time is and factor in potential traffic.
Assign someone to drive and make sure their car is ready to go and nearby.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Photographers and other vendors are typically booked for consecutive hours, meaning if you book someone for eight hours starting at noon, then they’re finished at 8pm; time spent traveling between locations is included in those eight hours.
Another element to consider is where you’ll be going within your venue. If your wedding is at a larger venue like a resort or a golf course, be sure to factor in the extra time needed to head to the specific area for your celebration. Some larger venues have golf carts to travel in between different areas so talk to your planner or venue coordinator to confirm if those will be available and how much lead time the venue will need to have those carts ready for you. If you know the venue needs at least a few minutes to get you a ride, you can enjoy those minutes with your guests rather than waiting around.
SAMPLE TIMELINE: ALL IN ONE LOCATION
01:00pm Getting ready moments + details
02:30pm First look + couple portraits
03:00pm Wedding party photos
03:30pm Immediate family photos
04:00pm Couple tucked away before guests arrive
04:30pm Ceremony
05:00pm Cocktail hour begins, larger group photos
06:00pm Guests invited to sit for dinner
06:15pm Couple announced in, welcome speech, dinner begins
06:45pm Speeches
07:10pm Cake cutting
07:20pm First dances followed by open dancing
07:40pm Golden Hour couple portraits
08:00pm Sunset
08:30pm Photography ends, party continues!
SAMPLE TIMELINE: TRAVELING BETWEEN LOCATIONS
12:30pm Getting ready moments + details
01:45pm First look + couple portraits
02:15pm Wedding party photos
02:45pm Immediate family photos
03:15pm Leave for ceremony location
04:00pm Ceremony
04:30pm All group photos (family, friends, wedding party), guests travel to reception venue
05:00pm Cocktail hour begins
06:00pm Guests invited to sit for dinner
06:15pm Couple announced in, welcome speech, dinner begins
06:45pm Speeches
07:10pm Cake cutting
07:20pm First dances followed by open dancing
07:40pm Golden Hour couple portraits
08:00pm Sunset
08:30pm Photography ends, party continues!
2. GETTING READY PHOTOS
Getting ready photos are an important part of your wedding day. They set the stage for the full story of your wedding gallery, they give you time to warm up in front of the camera, and they’re a great opportunity for your photographer to capture all of your beautiful details.
The question often asked is, “how much time do I need for getting ready photos?” Your photographer will typically start photographing your wedding at the tail end of your getting ready. That means you’re almost done with your hair and makeup, but not fully in your wedding clothes yet. Coverage of your getting ready moments can be anywhere from thirty minutes to over an hour. How much time you need depends on a few things like:
Are you getting ready alone or with your wedding party?
Do you want posed photos with your wedding party? (Maybe you’d like some group photos because folks are wearing matching robes or pajamas.)
Do you have a lot of details you’d like captured? Do you want photos of your wedding clothes before you put them on?
Are you doing a first look with your friends or family before you see your partner?
3. Are You Having a First Look?
Deciding whether or not you and your partner will see each other before the ceremony is a personal choice — it’s totally up to you. There’s no one way to plan your wedding day and you should do whatever feels good to you. Within the framework of planning your day, below are the pros and cons of having a first look.
IF YOU HAVE A FIRST LOOK:
When you and your partner see each other before the ceremony, you’re able to do group photos and couple portraits earlier in the day. This gives you more time to spend enjoying your own party. If you do a first look, you can take couple portraits, wedding party portraits, and family photos all before your ceremony, which in turn gives you the opportunity to go straight from your ceremony to your cocktail hour and reception.
Also, couples who did a first look have often told me that they felt a huge sense of relief seeing their partner before their ceremony and that they felt more relaxed afterwards. They also appreciated having a more intimate moment with their partner instead of having all of their guests watching their reactions to seeing each other for the first time.
IF YOU DON’T HAVE A FIRST LOOK:
If you and your partner don’t see each other before your ceremony, this often means any posed photos you’d like to do will need to happen during your cocktail hour or later in the reception. This means less time attending your own party, but it also means your friends and family will all already be there and in one place.
Seeing each other for the first time at your ceremony does increase the anticipation and pressure so if you’re an introvert at heart, you may prefer the privacy of a first look.
SAMPLE TIMELINE: FIRST LOOK
01:00pm Getting ready moments + details
02:30pm First look + couple portraits
03:00pm Wedding party photos
03:30pm Immediate family photos
04:00pm Couple tucked away before guests arrive
04:30pm Ceremony
05:00pm Cocktail hour begins, larger group photos
06:00pm Guests invited to sit for dinner
06:15pm Couple announced in, welcome speech, dinner begins
06:45pm Speeches
07:10pm Cake cutting
07:20pm First dances followed by open dancing
07:40pm Golden Hour couple portraits
08:00pm Sunset
08:30pm Photography ends, party continues!
SAMPLE TIMELINE: NO FIRST LOOK
01:30pm Getting ready moments + details
03:00pm Wedding party photos (separate)
03:30pm Leave for ceremony
04:00pm Couple tucked away before guests arrive
04:30pm Ceremony
05:00pm Cocktail hour begins, all posed photos: family, friends, wedding party, and couple portraits
06:00pm Guests invited to sit for dinner
06:15pm Couple announced in, welcome speech, dinner begins
06:45pm Speeches
07:10pm Cake cutting
07:20pm First dances followed by open dancing
07:40pm Golden Hour couple portraits
08:00pm Sunset
08:30pm Photography ends, party continues!
4. HOW LONG DO GROUP PHOTOS TAKE?
For group photos, there are a few things that will help keep this part of the day streamlined:
Make a list ahead of time of all of the group photos you would like to have.
Share your list with your families so they know what to expect and you can address any concerns or additional requests in advance — you don’t want to be fielding those on your wedding day in the middle of taking group photos.
Tell your friends and family when and where they need to be for the photos. You know your people best — if anyone needs extra time, request they come a few minutes ahead of schedule.
Ask a close family friend or a relative on both sides of your families to help organize the groups. It’s great to give your photographer a list, but having someone on hand who knows everyone by sight is super helpful when you’re trying to get folks lined up.
As for how much time you need to set aside for group photos, it depends on how long your list is. Roughly speaking, I usually estimate about two minutes per group. If your list is starting to look long, think about how much time you want to spend posing and smiling at the camera. For most folks I’ve photographed, twenty minutes is about their limit and then it’s not so fun anymore. This can be one of the most stressful parts of the day so going into it organized and with expectations set will go a long way to make it easier and more enjoyable.
5. Couple Portraits
One of the most common questions I get asked is, “how long should we spend taking couple portraits?” As with most aspects of your wedding, it really depends on what you and your partner want to do. My main goal is to make sure you’re enjoying your wedding day so if you prefer to keep the portraits to a minimum so you can get back to your party, we can spend as little as fifteen minutes. If you and your partner are really into portraits or have multiple locations in mind, we can spend more time on them.
WHAT ABOUT GOLDEN HOUR?
When planning the timing of your day, be sure to factor in what time the sun sets — don’t miss out on taking portraits during golden hour as it’s the best lighting of the day! Even if you’ve done couple portraits earlier in the day, taking a few minutes right before sunset is totally worth it. It’s a great excuse to step away from your party and enjoy some quiet one on one time with your partner. You can take a short break together, capture some gorgeous shots, and rejoin your party refreshed.
6. DINNER + SPEECHES
One very important factor in whether or not you enjoy your day is very simple: remember to eat! Be sure to leave yourself enough time to enjoy your meals on your wedding day, especially your main meal at the reception. I’ve seen it happen so many times where the wedding couple gets continuously pulled away from their food and doesn’t get to enjoy their meal. And I get it, sometimes there’s a lot going on and you’re excited to see your people, but keep in mind your wedding is a very full day and you’ll last longer and enjoy it more if you have some food in your tummy.
SPEECHES
Speeches happen most often during the meal. There are no hard and fast rules — sometimes there will be a speech before food is served, sometimes speeches happen during the meal or in between courses, and sometimes there are speeches at the end of the meal. There’s no one way to plan it. The most important thing is to make sure you let the speech givers know how much time they have and then include some extra time just to be safe. Keeping speeches under five minutes per person is usually the sweet spot.
7. TABLE Photos
A very popular tradition for wedding receptions is for the couple to visit each table and take a photo with them. It’s a great way to ensure you get a photo with all of your guests, but there are some logistical considerations when deciding if you want to do table photos or not. First, you’ll want to consider how much time you’ll have during dinner and how many tables you’ll have to visit. There are some ways to speed things up, but generally you’ll need at least a few minutes for each table.
You’ll also want to keep in mind when the caterers are bringing out food to make sure there’s no interference with the servers. If everyone is up and out of their seats, it can be challenging for the waitstaff.
From a photographer’s perspective, table photos can be tricky for a few reasons: dirty dishes on the table, tall centerpieces blocking line of sight, working around the servers, and the logistics of moving half of the table out of their seats so that everyone is on the same side and can fit in the photo.
An enjoyable alternative to the couple visiting each table is having each table come to the couple for a photo instead. The photo location can be free of distractions and in a pretty spot which makes for a beautiful keepsake for everyone. This often works well if there’s a buffet so that when each table is out of their seats, they can come visit with the couple first before picking up their plates.
8. RECEPTION TIMING
When it comes to your reception, it’s usually the most customizable part of your wedding day. There are so many different activities you can choose to do or not do (bouquet toss, cutting the cake, etc.) and their timing can depend on how late into the night your venue lets parties go.
Once the main events of the reception are captured, photo coverage usually wraps up about thirty minutes to an hour after open dancing has begun. The exception is if you have a special send off or exit planned that you’d like to have photos of. If you have a big finale planned, your photographer will usually stay for the full reception to make sure you get great shots of your send off.
BONUS: BUFFER TIME
The most important part of any timeline is to include buffer time so you don’t feel rushed or fall behind schedule.
Give yourself a few extra minutes of padding for these key times:
getting ready — it can take longer than you think
when you’re traveling in between locations — unexpected delays can pop up
your ceremony — guests will be running late and you typically won’t start right on time
posed portraits — couple portraits, wedding party photos, family and group photos
the main meal — catering can run behind
speeches — even when you ask folks to keep their speech short, sometimes they go long, so give yourself some extra time here!
IMPORTANT NOTE! DON’T FORGET TO MAKE TIME FOR:
breaks/down time — take a breather and pace yourself so you can keep your energy up for when you need it
snacks and meals — stay fueled and hydrated throughout the day
some moments alone with your partner — with friends and family all wanting to spend time with you, sometimes you and your partner can get pulled in opposite directions so be sure to make a point to come back together just the two of you
periodically looking around and taking it all in — don’t forget to pause and appreciate everything that’s happening and who you’re sharing the day with!
spontaneous photos with friends!
WHEN TO FINALIZE YOUR TIMELINE
When you’re booking your first vendors like the venue, your photographer, or your planner, that’s a great point to have a rough timeline. Maybe you know when the ceremony will be or when you’d like your reception to end. Your early vendors can help you create an initial timeline if you’re not sure where to start.
As your wedding plans become more finalized, you book the rest of your vendors, the day-of details start to come together, and your timeline will get more flushed out.
A great time to finalize your timeline is about a month before your wedding day. All of your vendors should be booked by that point and most of the final details will be decided on.
Check in with your vendors about a week before your wedding day to confirm any last minute changes and make sure everyone has the most up to date version of your day-of timeline. If you’re working with a planner, they’ll likely take care of this for you, and many of your vendors will probably be reaching out to confirm final details themselves.
With your perfect timeline ready to go and all of your details organized, you’re in great shape to have a beautiful and unforgettable day!
ONE FINAL NOTE
Lastly, keep in mind that no wedding day is ever perfectly on time. The best you can do is make a great timeline, include some buffer time to give yourself wiggle room, and stay flexible for when plans need to shift. If you start off with a great plan and keep a positive attitude then you’ll be sure to have a wonderful day!