The timeline is probably the most important part of ensuring your day goes smoothly.  Here is a suggested timeline based on a 6:00 pm ceremony start time. This gives you a good idea of how much time each part of the day will take. This timeline is based on a first look which most of my couples opt for.  If you opt for a "down the aisle" unveiling your timeline would be rearranged accordingly.

Sample Timeline

After the details have been photographed, it’s time for the bride to get into her dress! This is a big moment! The bride will want to have hair and makeup completed by this point in the day, and I usually ask the mother of the bride and all of the bridesmaids be dressed by the time the bride is ready to get into her dress. This ensures that everyone will look nice in those images. After the bride is in her gown, she can put on her jewelry, veil, shoes, etc and I will shoot some additional bridal portraits!

Now it’s time for Bridal Party shots! I buffer in extra time throughout the day just in case we have some unexpected things that hold us up! One way to make sure we stay on schedule for bridal party portraits is to have someone put the boutonnieres on the guys BEFORE they arrive for portraits. During Bridal Party portraits, Paul and I will make sure to take some great shots of the guys and girls both separately AND together! After bridal party portraits are complete, the bride will go into hiding so that early guests don’t sneak a peek.

Every bride loves having those beautiful shots of her bridal details. It’s an important part of the story and I love having some time to shoot the dress, shoes, jewelry, invitations, etc. These shots allow me to get warmed up for the rest of the big day. I normally like to allow at least 45 minutes for this part of the day. While I’m shooting details, I’m also capturing some shots of the bride and her girls getting ready! If the groom is getting ready nearby, Paul will begin photographing the boys getting ready close to 40 minutes before the first look since it always takes them less time to get dressed!

This is one of my favorite parts of the wedding day! If you have a special location in mind, great! If not I will find the perfect spot for your First Look prior to the getting ready portion the day! Don’t stress about that one bit! I will make sure the location is private and as secluded as possible. 

After the bride and groom take their time with the First Look, I will begin taking a few romantic portraits of the two of them while the initial excitement is still present! I will find the locations for these shots as well! Remember, the LIGHT determines where we shoot.  So I can’t decide on specific portrait locations until the day-of. As we shoot these portraits, the bridal party can start making their way to us for Bridal Party portraits!

2 p.m. 
Photographer arrives
Bridal Details

2:45 - 3:15 p.m. 
bridal prep

3:30 - 4:15 p.m. 
First look and
couples' portraits

4:20 - 4:50 p.m. 
Bridal Party