Tips on Crafting the Perfect Wedding Day Timeline

As a wedding photographer, believe me when I tell you that your wedding day is going to FLY by! There is so much excitement, joy, and energy that goes into a wedding day that it is simply unavoidable.

That’s why having a wedding day timeline to keep your day on track is so important. It helps you make sure that you fit everything you envision your day to be without stressing you out by having to make split second decisions the day of that honestly should have been made months ago.

But how exactly do you make a wedding day timeline that works best for you? That’s what we’re here to answer today.

This blog covers:

• First look or no first look?
• The importance of buffer time
• Group photos in your timeline
• Three REAL timelines from past RMP couples

Map Out Your Day

As you start to plan out our wedding day timeline and what it will look like you’ll first want to really map out what exactly your wedding day is going to look like. I like to think of wedding day timelines almost like a game of Tetris!

Each part of your wedding day is a different “piece” of the game, so don’t be afraid to move your pieces around to create a day that flows and feels how YOU want it to!

Hard Set Times

When planning out where your pieces of your wedding day, you’ll have to take into account any and all hard start and end times that you are given.

• Does your dinner start at a certain time?
• If you’re having the ceremony & reception in two different places? Do we need to be out of the ceremony space at a certain time?
• Does your reception space have a set time you need to be out of there by?

All these times that can’t be changed are the framework that you’re going to have to build your day around.

NOTE: If you’re planning something like a backyard wedding celebration where there aren’t really hard set times, plan some of your own in.

First Look or No First Look?

Next up on our list, we need to consider whether or not you want to have a first look on your wedding day. Luckily there are no wrong answers here, it all comes down to your preference! It will greatly impact the layout of your wedding day timeline though, so let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of each so you can get an idea of which will fit best into your day!

First Look

I am ALL about first looks for a wedding day timeline! They give you so many options for how you want to structure out the rest of your day, and as a bonus they’re a sweet and intimate moment for you two to share together at the start of your wedding day.

Having a first look on your wedding day means that we’re able to fit so many of your photos earlier in the day, giving you more time to enjoy being with your guests and celebrating the rest of your wedding.

No First Look

If you don’t want to have a first look for your wedding day, no worries! There’s a lot of excitement and anticipation that builds up as you two wait to see one another at your ceremony for the first time which can make for SUCH a cool experience for your wedding day.

Just know that this will leave you having to get family photos, wedding party photos, and couples photos all between your ceremony and your reception. This is definitely doable, but will come at the cost of you having more time to spend with your friends and family relaxing and enjoying their company before the reception begins.

Of course you don’t have to include all these different groupings if you don’t want to, but it is something you’ll have to consider when planning out how your wedding day will flow!

Wedding Party Photos and Family Photos

No Wedding Party and Family Photos

Working off the idea of not including family photos or wedding party photos into your timeline, let’s take a look at how that affects your wedding day. With no family photos or wedding party photos it’s true that you will have more time in your day and more time to spend with those people, but you’ll also receive less photos when your final gallery is delivered. While it’s true your photographer will capture a lot of candid moments throughout the night with you together with these people, it’s not a guarantee that you’ll get a photo with each and every one of them.

My honest opinion? I love nearest & dearest group photos on wedding days. When are you ever going to have all these people together to celebrate something like this again? It’s so special to be able to have these photos with everyone together and happy to look back on throughout the years! We’ll be sure to fit it into your wedding day timeline.

If You Do Have Wedding Party and Family Photos

If you are planning to take wedding party, family, and friend photos during your wedding day I HIGHLY recommend working with your photographer to make a list ahead of time. Going in blind to these photos with no list in hand it is going to be hectic and take up SO much more time than it needs to. People will wander off, you may miss a grouping that you would have loved to capture, and it’ll take more time and energy to wrangle the people you need to make the photos happen.

If you value these photos and value the time and effort your guests put in to travel and celebrate the love you share for one another, having this list done ahead of time is a must!

In my honest opinion- the more people you invite to your day, the more hours of coverage you should have to allow for a smooth day, not rushed with your people!

Plan in Some Buffer Time

Take it from a former teacher- your plans will still go a little askew. It’s apart of life.

Even with the most meticulously crafted timeline there’s always a chance that something will put you behind schedule. Google Maps could rerouting you multiple times on your way from getting ready to your ceremony! Or someone very important is late and we need to wait for them.

That’s why I always recommend my clients to plan some buffer time into their wedding day timeline. It accounts for these mishaps and lets us get back on schedule.

And hey, the worst case scenario is we don’t actually need the buffer time and you get to spend it with your friends and family instead!

Example Timelines

With all that in mind I thought it would be helpful to take a look at some of my previous wedding timelines so you can see some real world examples of what I’m talking about. When reading through these keep in mind that EVERY wedding day is different, and that is what makes them so cool! If you like some of these timeline ideas and want to mismatch them together I say go for it!

Madison + Austin’s Wedding Day

What was different about Madison + Austin’s day: they had NO wedding party! That make the day much more flexible. We chose to have their first look outside Vrooman Manison. This gave them a unique space for their first look. Afterwards we all made our way to Reality on Monroe for their ceremony. When we got there we immediately had family photos. Once their ceremony was done, the two could enjoy the rest of their evening together with their guests! Which included many board games, and meant they didn’t need dance floor coverage.

Hours of coverage? 6.

Fun had? 10/10

• 2:00pm getting ready photos at Airbnb with Maddie
• 2:45pm drive to Mansion for first look with Austin
• 3:00pm first look & private vows
• 3:50pm drive to venue
• 4:00pm family photos before ceremony (the short list)
• 4:15pm family photos done
• 4:30pm chill before ceremony
• 5:00pm ceremony
• 5:30pm ceremony over
• 5:40pm remainder of family photos (other list)
• 6:00pm causal reception start
  • first dance, dance with parents
• 6:15pm dinner/reception starts
  • board/card games // UNO matches
• 7:30pm photos during golden hour w/ softer lighting
• 8:00pm photos done

Allie and Dylan’s Wedding

What a good day! Allie + Dylan got ready separately and then met up outside of their venue, the Bloomington Country Club, for a first look. This let them get through all of their formal portraits (wedding party, couple photos, family photos), aside from their extended family photos, which were incredibly easy to knock out once their ceremony was over. This let them enjoy basically all of cocktail hour with their guests and then head directly inside once it was time for their reception to begin.

Their day needed 8 hour of coverage.

• 12:30pm Rachael meet with Allie at AirBnB
• 1:10pm wedding parties show up at venue
• 1:30pm Dylan + Allie’s first look 
• 2:30pm all wedding party photos   ////  14 people in wedding party
• 3:00pm family photos
• 3:30pm done with photos, buffer time to chill, drink water 
• 4:00pm ceremony starts
• 4:40pm ceremony ends
• 4:45pm extended family photos
• 5:00pm Allie + Dylan hang out with wedding guests
• 5:45pm garden cocktail hour ends- guests move into reception area
• 6:00pm dinner everyone in their seats 
• 6:15pm wedding party & couple announcement 
• 6:30pm tables are released for dinner 
• 7:15pm speeches
• 7:30pm Dylan & Allie cut cake and then flow into dances
• 8:00 pm DJ Gets everyone on the dance floor for large group photo 
• 8:15 pm a few sunset photos 
• 8:30pm Rachael done photographing 

Alysa + Adam’s Chicago Wedding Day

This was a HUGE wedding day. We started at the Kinzie Hotel in Downtown Chicago. We were bussed over to The Wrigley Building for stunning Chicago views. Then to Assumption Catholic Church for the ceremony. Then bussed to The Lytle Auditorium in Downer’s Grove for couple photos, family photos, and wedding party photos. Last stop: the reception at The Crawford in Naperville.

I get tired just thinking about it again. It was a great day! But we had a lot to plan for. No first look, no “together” photos done before hand, and lots of travel.

But we made it work, with 9 hours of coverage!

• 12:00pm start with flat lay detail photos at Kinzie Hotel
• 1:00pm Alysa getting ready photos
• 1:30pm Adam’s side // wedding party photos 
  • .2 mile walk   //  410 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
• 2:00pm Alysa’s side // wedding party photos
  • bus will drive us
• 2:30pm arrive at church done with photos
• 3:00pm ceremony
• 4:00pm ceremony over 
  • LEAVE Assumption for The Lytle Auditorium // second photographer heads to The Crawford 
• 5:00pm combined wedding party photos 
• 5:15pm family photos 
• 5:45pm couple photos 
• 6:00pm SUNSET // leave The Lytle Auditorium for The Crawford
• 6:00pm guests allowed in dinner room at The Crawford
• 6:30pm announced into the reception 
  • Dinner, speeches, dances, cake cutting, etc
• 8:15pm open dance floor with live band
• 9:00pm photographer coverage ends

As you can see, wedding day timelines deserve a TON of care and consideration in order to make them work for your wedding day.

Thankfully, when you hire me as your photographer I’m able to use my years of experience to help guide you through all the ins and outs as you begin to put your wedding day together.

If we need to move things around I’ll let you know and work with you to find a plan that fits everything you want into your wedding day!

Head to my contact page to send me an inquiry and we can start planning your day!