How much wedding photography coverage do you actually need?
January 14, 2023
Now that you’ve got the ring on your finger, it’s time to plan that magical wedding day you’ve been dreaming about for years. Generally, the first steps in the process are nailing down the “big stuff” like the venue, caterer, photographer, DJ, etc. Those are the vendors that fill up the earliest so it’s important to get those squared away.
Depending on your photographer choice, you may be given different package options that have a variable of hours of coverage. My packages, for example, come in 6-hour, 8-hour, and 10-hour options as well as an option to book something shorter with a set hourly rate (which is great for elopements!). On the front end, especially if you are hoping to keep things within a certain budget, it can be easy to choose the shortest (and least expensive) option and just pray everything can be fit into that time frame.
Let me tell you from experience… photography coverage choices should never be a Hail Mary. When in doubt, always do more coverage than you think you may need. It’s actually possible to get a rough idea straight from the get-go about how much coverage you will want based on your “non-negotiables” as well as some of your “would be nice to haves”.
The first thing to do is to establish an anchor point of your day - the ceremony time. There are some photo opportunities that must happen pre-ceremony while others can happen either before or after. You will want to plan on a minimum 15-minute buffer before the ceremony to be finished with any pre-ceremony photos. This allows your photographer to get prepared for the ceremony and ensures you don’t feel rushed to walk down the aisle. It also can help you have a good idea of how long your post-ceremony gap will be which aids in knowing what you can fit in the gap time.
The few photo opportunities that must be (or at least should be) pre-ceremony are detail shots and getting ready shots. Detail shots are the photos of the details and accessories of the day including the dress, jewelry, flowers, veil, program, invitation, shoes, etc. before they are put on or used. Getting ready shots can include zipping/buttoning the dress, putting on the veil and accessories, and doing any last minute makeup touch-ups. For the guys, it usually includes buttoning the dress shirt, securing cufflinks, putting on the tie and donning the coat.
Detail shots usually take about 20 -30 minutes depending on how far your photographer has to walk to get to the chosen spot for the photos. To cut down on time it can be helpful to have everything pulled together in one bag/box and to also have a designated helper to help carry things for the photographer. For getting ready photos, you’ll want to allot about 20 minutes for the bride and 10-15 for the groom. If your package includes two photographers, obviously these shots can be happening simultaneously.
Many couples opt to do a first look. If this is something you hope to do, you will want to block off about 15-20 minutes. The last thing you want is to only have 5 minutes for a first look… this will make it feel rushed and takes away the true intimacy of the moment you see one another for the first time on your wedding day.
Wedding party photos are some of the most flexible in terms of timing. I’ve done weddings where they are all done prior to the ceremony because the couple opted for the first look anyway. Others do photos of the groom and his guys as well as the bride and her girls (separately) before the ceremony, then the full group after. There’s always the option, too, to do everything after the ceremony. A lot of this is dependent on how long of a gap there is between the ceremony and reception.
In my experience, the biggest factor couples do not take into account is that of a receiving line (if they opt to do so). Whether or not you want photos of the actual receiving line, it’s important not to underestimate how long it will take. The more guests you invite, the longer it will be, which pushes back available time to do photos.
Another common photo set during the gap (usually immediately following the ceremony/receiving line) is the family group photos. The length of this is entirely dependent on size of the families and the number of combinations. One thing to ensure this goes smoothly is to make a list ahead of time of all the combinations you want. It might feel tedious but I’ve been doing this for years with my couples and it is really easy for me to just yell out names of who’s up next.
If time allows, I love taking the couple out on their own for some sunset couple’s photos. It is very feasible to squeeze this into the dinner portion either before or after speeches while your guests are finishing up eating. Even if you don’t want to do these types of photos, it’s still important to be conscious of your time constraints of the evening as well.
Establishing the right amount of time between start of dinner and start of dancing depends on many factors. A buffet dinner will usually take longer than plated because everyone needs to go through the line. This is particularly true if you have a lot of guests but only one buffet line. Another thing to consider is whether or not there are tables on the dance floor. If there are, the tables cannot be cleared away until the guests at said tables are done eating. This takes extra time as well and can delay the start of dancing.
Bottom line:
Establishing those “must-haves” and evaluating when those happen is the easiest way to make a determination. For example, if you are wanting detail photos as well as photos with the bride and her girls while they primp, it would not be feasible for the photographer to show up only an hour before the ceremony starts. Or on the back end, if you know you want photos of the spotlight dances as well as some of your guests dancing, it wouldn’t be possible if the photographer needs to leave an hour after dinner starts.
It might sound silly, but sit down and make a list of all of the aspects you will want photographed as well as a rough estimate of how long each will take. You can find a list at the end of this post of the common things that are photographed during a wedding day. Then add things to the list that aren’t photographed but will still take time like traveling between ceremony and reception, eating dinner, general down time, etc. Finally, after adding all of those things together, increase it by about 20%. That increase gives a buffer for the unexpected like Uncle Jim talking your ear off when you’re about to go cut the cake or a groomsman who is MIA when it’s time to do bridal party photos.
I’ve been shooting weddings for over a decade now and I have never had a couple regret opting for more coverage than they anticipate needing. But I definitely have had couples regret opting for less. This one of the most important days of your life! As I always say, when all is said and done there are two things that remain: the marriage and the memories. Photos most definitely help with the latter!
Wishing you a beautiful wedding day!
Common Coverage Aspects
Disclaimer: every wedding is different and the times below are estimates based on my experience
