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.

Your wedding day timeline helps you make sure that you fit everything you envision your day to be without stressing you out. Then you don’t have to make split second decisions the day of. Take it from a former teacher- you should always have a plan.

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:

• Number of locations
• First look or no first look?
• The importance of buffer time
• Group photos in your timeline

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!

How Many Locations?

How many locations are you going to the day of your wedding? That number can build, fast! If you’re getting ready at an Airbnb, then traveling to a photo location, then to your ceremony? That will add time onto your day.

If your venue is all inclusive, where you can get ready on site, have photo spots you love, ceremony and reception in the same place, then that will be a factor in your day.

Venues that have gorgeous getting ready spaces along WITH the ceremony and reception space include:

• The Barn at Fairview Acres in Biggsville
• The Legacy Building in El Paso
• Allerton Mansion in Monticello
• Three Pines Petersburg in Petersburg
• The Pasfield House in Springfield

Check out more venues around Illinois here.

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 the venue needs to store tables in another room, one that we might use for photos?
• 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.

Madison + Austin didn’t have a wedding part on their day- see how their day turned out!

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.

Check out Gilly + Eli’s family photos in this blog!

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.

I wrote an entire blog post, showcasing 5 real wedding days, with the coverage amount and the specific timeline we created for each wedding day.

Check out the past wedding timelines and coverage here!

---

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!

Send me an inquiry and we can start planning your day!

⚡️Inquire Here⚡️