Photographer's Wedding Day Itinerary
Below are some of our wedding day asks of the couple to help us on your wedding day.
Items we need on the wedding day when we arrive.
Please provide us with two copies of your Invitation, Program, and Menu cards. (they will be returned)
Have the bouquet, dress, suit, shoes, and (rings) jewelry ready for us to begin photography.
Getting Ready Space
If your facility does not have a designated space, like a Bridal Suite and Groom's Lounge, I strongly recommend using a nearby hotel. The photographs tend to have a cleaner look than when using a classroom or an office.
When putting together your wedding day timeline, we strongly encourage you to share this itinerary with your event planner.
We will need sixty to ninety minutes for the pre-ceremony photography, starting at least two hours before the wedding's start time.
Pre-Ceremony (2-3 hours)
Hair and Makeup
The process of getting ready for your wedding takes a lot longer than you think - especially the hair and makeup part of the getting-ready process, so please consider that. You are often told it may take thirty minutes for your makeup and forty-five minutes for your hair. From our experience, we recommend you allocate at least two hours for the process. Add into that the unexpected light-hearted moments with your bridesmaids and near panic attacks because someone forgot something. The true allocation should be closer to three hours. However, you don't need the photography crew for that amount of time. Depending on your wedding party time and getting ready location in relation to the ceremony (we recommend no more than fifteen minutes apart), two to three hours should suffice.
To First Look or Not
We do not recommend a 'first look.'
You will need to get ready a lot earlier if you wish to do a first look. It means that you'd need to be in the location before your guests arrive; this could add another hour to your schedule. Our reasoning is simple if anything gets off schedule, as things often do on the wedding day. This will add to your stress load, and the last thing we need is to add more stress. We need you to be in a happy stressless mental space on the wedding day. However, we will work with you to make it happen if you decide to have a first look.
Formal Pre-Ceremony Wedding Party Portraits
We do not recommend a formal portrait session of the wedding party before the ceremony.
Our reason:
i: If anyone is late, it throws everything sideways. For us, this is about managing our couples' stress before the wedding when it's most stressful. This is the time period with the potential to cause the most disruption to the day's proceedings. So for us as photographers who have been to over six hundred weddings, we strongly caution to remove all unnecessary steps from the days' proceedings.
ii: You will need to start getting ready earlier.
However, if you wish to do so, please be prepared to get ready 1.5-2 hours earlier. And of course, we will be in the trenches with you to make it happen.
What Do We Do During the Pre-Ceremony period?
The pre-ceremony session involves photographing the bride and her party and the groom and his party getting ready in the dressing area; these are more documentary in nature. Detail pictures of the dress, shoes, suit, rings, flowers, boutonnieres, etc.. And candid photographs you the couple's interaction with their side of the wedding party. And, if time permits, a semi-formal group photograph of the bride with her bridesmaids and the groom with his groomsmen. As we get closer to the ceremony's start, the interaction in the dressing with the bride and escort and/or parents is a touching moment to capture at all weddings. How much we can cover depends primarily on the quality of the dressing area and the time the respective parties are available to our photographers. We suggest you have us start two hours before the ceremony begins. But, there are many caveats related to the wedding party size and the distance /time to the wedding ceremony.
Post-Ceremony Photographs (35-55 minutes, depending on the size of the party)
To expedite the post-ceremony photography session, we STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you request the following individuals DO NOT LEAVE the ceremony area. If these individuals are not available, we may not be able to get a photograph of them.
Immediate Family Members
Special guests
Parents of the Bride and Groom
(including step-parents),
Grand Parents,
Wedding Party.
Bride and groom portraits
We need about 15-20 minutes for photographs of the couple at the reception facility.
Please share any unique send-off plans with us so that we may prepare them.
Please send us a copy of your wedding itinerary ten days before the wedding (a rough draft will work)
The session will proceed with the couple and the listed as follows.
The Officiant
Hostesses and Ushers
Any other special request
Immediate Family Members
Extended Family
Parents of the Bride and Groom
(including step-parents) Grand Parents on both sides
Wedding Party
Bride and Groom
The schedule dictates the reception coverage. However, this is where we'd like to have the couple (only) for 15 minutes to create additional images around the facility.
First Dance
I strongly encourage you to practice a dance for your wedding and get your guests involved. An actual dance is much more engaging visually than a couple standing on the floor, patiently waiting for the song to end.Send-Off
Please inform us if there are plans for a unique send-off.
These are general guidelines. However, we realize your wedding is unique. So please share as much as possible to help us design the wedding day coverage you deserve.
We look forward to serving you.
Jaxon Photography | Atlanta Wedding, Portrait and Event Photographers | 659 Auburn Av., Ste G12 Atlanta GA 30312