What should my timeline look like?
I get asked this by almost every couple I work with here in Minnesota and across the Midwest. Some of you already know you want a full hour of just the two of you, hopping between locations and creating those epic, artful portraits. Others lean more into a documentary style, focusing on the real moments of the day with less structured photo time.
But the same questions always come up. How many photos will we get for the time we book? What parts of the day need the most time? And yes, can we actually photograph the entire family in 20 minutes?!
So I dug into it. I looked back at real weddings I’ve photographed throughout Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the greater Twin Cities, compared timelines, final gallery sizes, and how each part of the day flowed. Then I did some math (fine, Google helped a little).
Now I’m able to give you a realistic breakdown of how your wedding day timeline directly impacts your final gallery. Below, you’ll find typical time recommendations for each part of the day, along with the average number of images you can expect.
I’ve also included sample timelines (just for photos, not for your actual schedule) for my 4, 6, 8, and 10 hour wedding photography packages, so you can see how your coverage can flow depending on what matters most to you.
If you’re in the middle of planning your wedding timeline and feeling overwhelmed, this is meant to make it all feel a lot more doable. And if you need more time, you can always add an extra hour of coverage!!!
Bonus, I turned it into a clean, easy-to-save chart so you can screenshot it and keep it handy while planning.
