Carefree Couples’ Guide to Creating a Relaxing Wedding Day Timeline

Planning a wedding is tough work, isn’t it!? As a Southern California wedding and couples’ photographer (and recent bride), I know just how daunting the wedding planning process is in its’ entirety. When it comes to the day-of, your wedding day timeline is make or break kinda thing. Add too much time to your day, there are unnecessary gaps that leave guests twiddling their thumbs and feeling board. Schedule too many things close together, you are rushing around throughout the day. So here it is: the carefree couples’ guide to creating a relaxing wedding day timeline.

With a little guidance and organization, you can create a wedding day timeline that aligns with your vision to ensure a stress-free, relaxed day. Because after all, you deserve to soak up each and every second, without worrying about where you’re supposed to be and how much time you have allotted for each portion of your day. Let’s dive in, friend!

How to Create a Relaxing Wedding Day Timeline

Why Wedding Day Timelines are Important

I am a HUGE believer that your wedding day should reflect what YOU and your partner want. Before you even start to think about a timeline, make sure you sit down with your partner to talk about your priorities together! When planning my wedding, my husband and I knew that our priorities were 1) spending time together 2) spending time with our community. We found so much comfort and peace in building out our wedding timeline around those 2 priorities.

Timelines are a way for everyone (and I mean everyone) to stay on track. Wedding day timelines ensure that each person involved, vendor, family, bridal party, knows exactly where they have to be and when.

Beyond managing expectations from guests and vendors, your wedding day timeline helps take the stress off you and your partner! By laying out your wedding day’s schedule of events, every party is aware of the flow. The more people in the know = less stress for you. What a win-win!

How to Start Planning your Wedding Day Timeline

1. Know the “Non-Negotiables”
   
   Talk with your venue. Do they have certain times for the ceremony? A specific dinner time? Sometimes you only have access to your venue for so long on your wedding day, so there are some things that can’t be moved. Also, the time of year plays a huge role in this! If you’re having an outdoor ceremony, a ceremony that starts at 4:30 pm in July is WAY different from 4:30 pm in November when the sun will practically be set already. (Learn more about outdoor weddings on the blog!)
   
   If you’re envisioning those dreamy, golden hour portraits with your spouse on your wedding day this Fall or Winter, this one’s especially important for you!! The hardest thing about Fall/Winter weddings, especially in Southern California, is the early sunset. In early December, the sun can be gone by 4:45 pm. When when planning your schedule of events, prioritize the photos you want in the beautiful daylight. It’s not impossible to get all the photos you want during the daylight, it just takes proper planning.
   
   **Your wedding photographer will help advise you on the best time for portraits based on the time of year and what your vision is.
   
2. Communicate with Vendors
   
   Your wedding vendors are there to help you create a day that is true-to-you. We are there to help! If you have a wedding planner, they definitely will help you get a head start on your timeline. They will likely sit down with you to chat through the specifics of your day which is incredible!
   
   But check with some of your other vendor about your timeline too!! As a wedding photographer, I love working with couples or directly with their coordinators to plan the perfect timeline. So much of the wedding timeline revolves around photos, so it needs to make sense to the photographer. Every photographer is different. Many wedding day timelines I’ve seen have SO much time for family photos; nearly 45 minutes! Personally, I typically allot 15-20 minutes for family portraits (with my couple’s insight + wishes taken into account, of course). That’s 25 minutes that could be spent with your partner or your guests.
   
3. Share your Vision
   
   Make sure your vendors understand your vision! Let your DJ know how much of your first dance song you want played, or what songs you don’t want played. Let your photographer know you want to make sure you get quality time with your girls in the morning. Make sure your photographer and/or coordinator know if you want to spend some quality time with your spouse between the ceremony and cocktail hour.
   
4. Trust your Vendors
   
   I don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but trusting your wedding vendors is key to a creating a relaxing wedding day timeline. Look, you hired them for a reason. You likely hired them because of their experience, expertise, and professionalism. Your wedding vendors know how weddings flow and can anticipate timeline snafus before you can. If you find yourself having any reservations about trusting your vendor team, I want to encourage you to touch base ahead of time to communicate expectations.

Relaxing Wedding Day Timeline Outline

Below, I have outlined how much time is allotted for each specific “event”. **Please note that this is generic; not every wedding day will look like this! Please consult with your vendor team.

Detail Photos: 30-45 minutes (Pro tip: tell your hair/makeup artist to be finished about 15 minutes into detail photos so your photographer can get those ‘final touch’ photos and there is some time to relax before getting into your dress)
Bride Getting Ready Photos/Getting into Dress: 30 minutes
Groom Getting Ready Photos: 15 minutes
First Look: 15 minutes
Romantics/Bridal Portraits: 20-45 minutes depending on size of venue and how many photos you want
Bridal Party Photos: 30 minutes (this includes full bridal party, just groomsmen, just bridesmaids, and individuals)
Ceremony: 30 minutes + 10 minutes after ceremony to sign marriage license/celebrate
Family Photos: 15-20 minutes
Reception: Until you decide to shut it down, or if your venue has an end time!! Typically plan for at least an hour of open dancing if you want dancing.
Sunset photos: 20 minutes unless there was a lot less time earlier

Bonus Tips for Creating a Relaxing Wedding Day Timeline

To ‘First Look’ or ‘Not to First Look’

A lot more goes into deciding if a first look is right for you than one might think! Is tradition super important to you? Do you want to join your guests for cocktail hour? Do you want to have alone time with your spouse before the reception?

A first look is a great option if you don’t have your heart set on that “aha!” moment when walking up the aisle to your partner. Opting for a first look frees up time after the ceremony, rather than taking all photos at that time. With a first look, you’re able to snag the wedding party photos, some romantics, and even family photos allllll before the ceremony!! Which means: more time to celebrate!

Schedule in Buffer Time

Buffer time is your best friend. Work with your coordinator and photographer to figure out where buffer time is appropriate. Buffer time is super helpful when it comes to scheduling time to have a quick snack, go to the bathroom, or even to sit down for a second.

Beyond buffer time, I also want to encourage you to allocate time for spontaneous moments. While that may sound like an oxymoron, you’ll be thankful you had that extra time added to your wedding day timeline.

Factor in Travel Time

If you’re traveling from your getting ready location to your ceremony venue, or from ceremony to reception venue, add 10 minutes onto your travel time to account for the time it takes to get back/forth from wherever you are to your car and walking and all that. This is a great place to have some buffer time!

Couples’ Guide to Creating a Relaxing Wedding Day Timeline Wrap Up

Planning your wedding day timeline is a part of the wedding planning process that should not be taken lightly. While it may seem like a lot of work upfront, you will reap the benefits when it comes to your big day. The idea of creating a relaxing wedding day timeline is that you will enjoy a stress-free, enjoyable day alongside your partner. From the second you sit down in the salon chair in the morning to the moment you bellyflop onto your hotel room’s bed after spending the night dancing your hearts out, you will rest easy knowing that each minute of your day has been accounted for.

Remember to trust your wedding vendors. I can assure you: we care about your day just as much as you do. Utilize them as the resources they are! By relying on your vendor team to help build out your wedding day timeline, you are taking actionable steps towards a peaceful day. What more could you ask for!?

Still searching for your wedding day photographer to document your special day? I’d love to CONNECT and learn more about your love story. Your story deserves to be celebrated.

Head over to the BLOG for more wedding planning resources. And as always, be sure to follow along on the ‘Gram (@lauraburnsphotography)!