Create a simple wedding day timeline for an outdoor wedding in Spokane with these helpful tools
Looking to create a simple wedding timeline for your outdoor wedding in Spokane? That is awesome! And congratulations to you on your upcoming wedding! Even if your ceremony or reception is the only thing that will be outside, this is a good place to be. A useful place to start to create a simple wedding day timeline for your Spokane wedding is to determine when you would like your ceremony in consideration of the photos you desire, your venues closing time and sunset times. Here in Spokane County, the sun sets between 7:30 and 8:45 during our typical outdoor wedding months (May – September) and as early as 5:30 at the end of October. Why do I include sunset times? Because your most beautiful pictures will likely occur within 1-2 hours before sunset and I want that beautiful light reserved for your husband and wife couples photos.
As a Spokane wedding photographer who loves photographing weddings throughout the Pacific Northwest, I am happy to share with you a simple tool to create your wedding day timeline and an example timeline for the two most popular 8 hour wedding photography types. Could you hire a photographer for more or less time? Absolutely! But this is a great place to get started.
Both of my examples are made specifically for Spokane County wedding venues like those found in Deer Park but you can easily shift start/ end times to fit your location.
8 Hour Wedding Day Timeline
One Location + First Look
45 minutes Photograph bride’s details and final touches of hair & makeup
45 minutes Photograph bride lacing up dress, groom & groomsmen getting ready
15 minutes Walk to first look
10 minutes First look
20 minutes Bride & groom portraits
15 minutes Bride with bridesmaids
15 minutes Full bridal party
15 minutes Groom with groomsmen
15 minutes Immediate family photos
30 minutes Bride & Groom Hide, Rest & Retouch, Photograph Ceremony Décor
30 minutes Wedding Ceremony
30 minutes Bride & Groom Join Cocktail Hour, Photograph Guests & Reception Décor
30 minutes Husband & Wife Sunset Portraits 30 minutes to 2 hours before sunset
15 minutes Guests Seated & Grand Entrances
90+ minutes Reception (Per Spokane County code, weddings must end by 9pm)
Example:
1:00 – 1:45 Photograph bride’s details and final touches of hair & makeup
1:45 – 2:30 Photograph bride lacing up dress, groom & groomsmen getting ready
2:30 – 2:45 Walk to first look
2:45 – 3:00 First look
3:00 – 3:30 Bride & groom portraits
3:30 – 3:45 Bride with bridesmaids
3:45 – 4:00 Full bridal party
4:00 – 4:15 Groom with groomsmen
4:15 – 4:45 Immediate family photos
4:45 – 5:00 Bride & Groom Hide, Rest & Retouch, Photograph Ceremony Décor
5:00 – 5:30 Wedding Ceremony
5:30 – 6:00 Bride & Groom Join Cocktail Hour, Photograph Guests & Reception Décor
6:00 – 6:15 Guests Seated & Grand Entrances
6:15 – 9:00 Reception
7:00 – 7:30 Husband & Wife Sunset Portraits Sunset at 8pm
8 Hour Wedding Day Timeline
One Location + No First Look
If you choose to not to do a first look, here are two things to adjust: do as many photos as possible before the ceremony and consider stretching your cocktail hour to 90 minutes. The longer cocktail hour allows time for immediate family and full bridal party portraits, bride and groom portraits, and 30 minutes for cocktail hour and reception details.
45 Minutes Photograph bride’s details and final touches of hair & makeup
45 Minutes Photograph bride lacing up dress, groom & groomsmen getting ready
I do these all at once so the bride can hide and there’s no chance she’ll see the groom.
15 Minutes Bride portraits
15 Minutes Bride with bridesmaids
15 Minutes Bride with her family
I do these next so the bride has more time to rest and retouch before the wedding ceremony.
15 Minutes Groom individuals, groom with groomsmen
15 Minutes Groom with His family
30 Minutes Bride & groom hide, rest & retouch, photograph ceremony décor
30 Minutes Wedding ceremony
The bridal party is the fastest, because it’s just a few shots so I do them first.
15 Minutes Full bridal party
I do the immediate families next, so that even if someone tries to hijack family portraits with special requests that the bride and groom don’t want, I can use the time crunch to kindly deflect them.
15 Minutes Immediate family portraits with bride & groom
15 Minutes Husband & wife portraits
15 Minutes Bride & groom join cocktail hour, photograph guests & reception décor
15 Minutes Guests seated & grand entrances
90+ Minutes Reception
20-30 minutes Husband & wife sunset portraits up to 2 hours before sunset
Example:
1:00 – 1:45 Photograph bride’s details and final touches of hair & makeup
1:45 – 2:30 Photograph bride lacing up dress, groom & groomsmen getting ready
2:30 – 2:45 Bride portraits
2:45 – 3:00 Bride with bridesmaids
3:00 – 3:15 Bride with her family
3:15 – 3:30 Groom individuals, groom with groomsmen
3:30 – 3:45 Groom with his family
3:45 – 4:30 Bride & groom hide, rest & retouch, photograph ceremony decor
4:30 – 5:00 Wedding ceremony
5:00 – 5:15 Full bridal party
5:15 – 5:45 Immediate family portraits with bride & groom
5:45 – 6:00 Husband & wife portraits
6:00 – 6:30 Bride & groom join cocktail hour, photograph guests & reception décor
6:30 – 6:45 Guests seated & grand entrances
6:45 – 9:00 Reception
20-30 minutes Husband & wife sunset portraits up to 2 hours before sunset
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