You see, us wedding photographers are rare suppliers as we get to see the whole day. Not only the shiny bit the guests see but all the background prep before.
In this article I will focus on the timings of the day – from the morning, through the ceremony, onto the afternoon and finishing in the evening.
A little guide on how to keep things on track for a smooth, hassle free wedding day!
Everyone who has ever been married will say “The day goes by so fast”. This is so true!
It really does, so its important to have enough time to get the pictures that you want. You have paid a lot of money for your day so you don’t want to feel rushed.
I have divided the timings of a typical wedding into sections of the day to help you out.
If the Groom, all the ushers, best man etc can be at the venue or church at least half an hour before the ceremony starts then this is ideal.
It gives me plenty of time to photograph the Groom with everyone and good candid shots of the guests arriving.
It is helpful if the bride can arrive on time, contrary to the urban legend of the bride always being late! If you are too late then it can hold things up and you might not have the time to get all the pictures that you want.
As a reportage photographer, capturing the ceremony is very important to allow the story of the day to be told through pictures.
The majority of celebrants welcome the ceremony being photographed but there are still some churches who can frown upon it. This may be because they had an intrusive photographer in the past. It is best to just check if photography is allowed, and please inform the celebrant that I work in an unobtrusive way!
I am happy to sit in the one place if that is required but photographing the ceremony is important to my style of work.
If you have small children at your ceremony and they decide to just do what they want then go with it. Most of the time it can make for the best pictures!
For the timings of your ceremony best to chat to your celebrant for this. Most ceremonies are from 30-40 minutes long. If you are having hand fasting or a few readings this will add to the time of your ceremony. A full Catholic mass is usually an hour long.
The time from when the ceremony is finished to the call for dinner is the most important for the photographs.
You must take into account any travel time from church to the venue.
The ideal drinks reception time is an hour and a half. I find this works well. It gives plenty of time for pictures and time for the bride and groom to spend time with their guests which is so important.
As a rule the time it take for the following pictures are –
You can read all about my photography for couple shots and group shots in my approach to wedding section of my website.
Click on the link below ro read more –
The speeches and dancing are pretty much photographed in a candid way so no set up shots here.
With regard to the speeches, best to have them lasting 30 minutes as that is most peoples attention span for listening.
If the speeches last too long your food will have to be kept warm and your evening guests will arrive before you have finished your meal.
What I can suggest, if couples fancy, is for some sparklers shots or fireworks which work well in the winter.
Also, sunset shots or last light pictures look amazing in the summer months. The sun in summer is lower and warmer in the early evening and is great for pictures of the Bride and Groom. This only takes around 5 minutes and can be so worth it!
You will normally have an hour from when the meal and speeches are finished until they turn the room around and it is ready for the evening reception. So this gives plenty of time for these kind of pictures before any of your evening guests arrive.
Most bands will take an hour to set up and do a sound check.
So hopefully some of this information may be of use to you when orginizing your wedding.
I always say to my couples to contact me at anytime if they have any queries about timings for the day.
Enjoy your planning!
This was my first visit to the amazing Cow Shed at Crail, and it did not disappoint! I love this area of Scotland and I have now found a new favourite venue of mine in my favourite place, what could be better!
Emma and Stuan’s wedding was, like many others. meant to be in 2020. After several attempts at trying to get a new date they decided to leave the planning for a while. After things were looking a bit back to normal they got their date in April 2022.
The Cow Shed is really a blank canvas for couples to have their wedding exactly how they want. So many choices of beautiful interior spaces to use for the ceremony and drinks reception. Furniture is hired in so no wedding ever looks the same. I loved the rusic feel of the place and the grounds were amazing for pictures.
Stuan and Emma were so laid back on the day and they were fantasic to photograph. They really did just laugh all day and it think it really shows in the pictures.
Here is how the day went.
Other fantastic suppliers-
Planning – Fin Flükra
Venue – The Cow Shed
Film – Edinburgh Wedding Videos
HSS Celebrant – Kathryn Ross
Catering – Spitting Pig Scotland
Bar – The Campber Bar Company
Pianist – Andy Lucas
Piper – Euan Anderson via The Piping Experience
Florist – Blue Poppy Florist
Decor/Styling – Frill Factory
Furniture – Virginias Vintage
Linens – 88 Events
Cake – Cake Couture by Caroline
Transport – Classic VW St Andrews
Hair – Nichë Salon
Make up – Bang Bang Beauty
Evening food – Dough Man’s Land
Evening band – Bahookie
Lynsey and Paul’s wedding was one of the first to be cancelled beacuse of Covid way back in March 2020. I was so glad that they got their day all 18 months later in the beautiful Friars Carse hotel near Dunfries. They were lucky enough to get a beautiful sunny day for their wedding which allowed their ceremony to be outside.
I had never been to the hotel before and was amazed at the grounds which were right beside the river Nith and backed onto a beautiful woodand area.
Here is how their beautiful day went. G x
The beautiful wedding of Emma and Michael at Western House hotel in Ayr.
Jusy an amazing day for this lovely couple. I talked them into going to Ayr beach after dinner for 10 minutes for some pictures and I am so glad they aggreed. Great location, great couple!
At last Lesley and Alistair’s big day came along almost a year after the date it should have been on because of Covid.
The ceremony was at St Mary’s Parish Church in Lanark and then onto Cornhill Castle near Biggar.
It really was such a perfect day from start to finish. Lesley looked amazing in her dress and I loved the colour of the bridesmaids dresses and the wee flower girl.
It was one of the first weddings to have no Covid restrictions and it was so lovley to be at at wedding which felt normal again. What a great day!
The incredable wedding of Hazel and Derek at The Busby hotel.
The couple were planning on getitng married abroad but because of Covid they would have a small ceremony first in Glasgow for close family and friends.
I knew that Hazel would wear something special as she is the owner of Avalana Design an amazing bespoke hand printed design company . She didnt disapoint. Her wonderful trouser suit, wings and head dress was perfect. Hazels’ creativity could be seen everywhere from the table decorations to the room set up.
The couple were married in the function room and then outside for pictures. There I met “The Boys”. This was Hazel and Derek’s three dogs. They looked perfect in their wee bow ties and they were very well behaved for pictures!
It was a joy and a privelage to photograph such a unique wedding of such a lovely couple. G x
It took Lindsey and Nick 4 attempts to get married but they eventually got there on their lucky date – Friday 13th!
The couple had booked their wedding in April 2020 but because of Covid restrictions they re-arranged for August. Lindsey called me a few weeks before the August date saying she had to re-arrange again as her Dad needing a life saving operation. They picked a new date in October. I contacted Lindsey before the date to get the details but again disaster struck. Nick and Lindsey both had Covid! It was caught through their work as Nick worked as a Police Officer and Lindsey was a nurse. They had picked a 4th date- Friday the 13th. Well it couldn’t be any more unlucky for them, could it?
Finally their day went ahead with out any hiccups . Have a look at how their intimate beautiful wedding went at Fruin Farm, near Loch Lomond on what turns out to be their lucky day!
Venue – Fruin Fruit Farm
Hair – Adele Houston Hair
Cake – Liggy’s cake company
Flowers – Loch Lomond Weddings and Events
Dress – Aimee Bridal Couture
I was back to my favourite Scottish Island, Arran, for Mhairi and Simon’s wedding in October 2020.
With so much uncertainty about weddings this year we were lucky that this beautiful wedding got to go ahead.
They got married at St Molis Church and then onto the Kinloch Hotel in Blackwaterfoot. On the day though the winds were gale force so we couldn’t really go outside for any pictures. It was so windy you were struggling to stand up and all the ferries to and from the island were cancelled!
I was so glad when the couple agreed to my suggestion to get on their wedding outfits again the next morning and we went out to several points on the island for pictures. It made all the difference and we got some great shots!
Here is how their lovely day went. G x
It was a rainy July day in Glasgow for Mariuca and George’s wedding at the Botanic Gardens in Glasgow. That wasn’t going to be a problem though as their small intimate wedding was going to be held in The Kibble Palace within the gardens. I LOVE this place.
Thanks to George and Mariuca for allowing me to be a part of their special day. G x