How to be on Time on your Wedding Day

Weddings have a certain stigma attached to them: they never start on time.
That can be a good thing & a bad thing.
It can be good because if no one’s wedding starts on time, and we are running a few minutes behind? It’s fine! Because that’s completely normal! And expected! In fact, when a wedding does start on-the-dot right on time? It always feels like we missed something – the bride is wearing all the correct jewelry & we aren’t missing a bridesmaid, right?

We all strive toward having a wedding ceremony start on time though. The closer we can get to being right on time, the better! It’s less stressful, means that we have more time for the rest of the day’s activities, and your guests appreciate it! Most of them anyways – the ones who arrive late (and there are always a handful who do) are hoping that your wedding is running late so that they don’t miss anything!

Here are my top 5 tips on helping your wedding day stay on time!

Write A Timeline

There is nothing better than to have your day planned out and to be able to rest in the fact that you have time for everything you want to accomplish on your wedding day. Whether it’s having enough time to get ready in a relaxed & unhurried way, having time to greet & talk to all of your guests, having a little extra time for intimate bride & groom portraits, or having time to break it down on the dance floor, a timeline will outline the events of your day & help you stay on track! One of the things I do with my brides & grooms for every wedding I photograph is create that timeline of events. It is super helpful for me, as the photographer, to know where we need to be and when, but also to give the bride & groom that peace of mind that we are on time & have enough time for everything that’s important to them.

Give Out Copies Like Candy

Once you have that timeline written, it will be most helpful & useful when spread around! So, I always encourage my KAP Couples to print out copies to give to their other vendors, to their bridal party, to their parents, and even their close friends! That way, everyone can be on the same page in helping the day stay on track. If Mom & Dad know that we are going to do family formals immediately following the ceremony, they won’t have to worry, wondering when we are going to do those! And, they’ll stick around instead of getting caught up in the rush of guests! If your bridesmaids know that we are going to do some formal portraits prior to the ceremony, they’ll be dressed & ready to go by the time listed on your timeline, or at least, we hope so! If your other vendors can see an outline of your entire wedding day, it just acts as another verification of where they need to be and when.

Put Someone In Charge

We all have that one friend who is super punctual, right? She’s always on time (if not early) to every dinner party, movie date, or shopping trip. She’s your girl. Put her in charge of running the timeline on your wedding day! As your wedding photographer, I do my best to keep an eye on the time & how the day is flowing, however, sometimes before I even arrive, things get all off track. Everyone is relaxed and having a great time, and suddenly the photographer has arrived & everyone should be getting dressed, but hair & makeup hasn’t even been completed yet. Having someone (other than the bride) who can gently but firmly guide the day along and remind everyone to keep moving, can be super helpful!

Get Ready The Day Before

Okay, I don’t mean to do your hair or makeup the day before! Sleeping on 89 bobby pins is never comfortable! What I do mean is to lay everything out the day before so 1. you know you have everything & 2. everything is within easy reach. One of the most common “problem areas” on a wedding day is getting everyone dressed & out the door. So, do yourself a favor & the day before your wedding: hang up your dress in the space you are getting ready in, lay out your shoes, your jewelry, garter, and any other items you will be putting on. Also! Any bags or purses that will be traveling with you on your wedding day – prep all of that the day before as well! And this doesn’t just go for the bride! Bridesmaids! Help your gorgeous friend, our lovely bride, out by being ready & able to help her in any way she needs & not running around like a crazy person yourself.

Hire Experienced Vendors

A lot of your wedding day preparations ride on the shoulders of the vendors you hire. Your makeup artist and hair stylist really control the getting ready portion of your day. If they go over their time, suddenly the timeline train is off the track and we have to make the time up somewhere. Your photographer should be experienced in how a wedding day flows, as well as know the main events of your day well enough to make on-the-fly decisions in changing the timeline as needed. Your DJ will run your reception, and if he waits too long to introduce special dances, or the cake cutting, guests will begin leaving and miss out on key portions of your party! So, my word of advice when you hire your vendors, is to make sure that they have experience and are in your court as far as keeping your day on track.

Timelines Are Made To Be Broken

However, the bottom line is: we plan and prepare and set out to have the perfect wedding day with all the best of intentions. We can dot all of our i’s and cross all of our t’s, but sometimes wedding days simply get away from us! Things happen: traffic, detours, the weather, lost shuttle busses, wardrobe malfunctions – the list goes on and on. No matter how hard we try, things may (and probably will) simply not go as planned – but that’s okay. The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing: two very special people are madly in love and committing their lives to one another. No matter what – that’s all that matters.