Your wedding day moves fast; moments that feel big, and ones that pass in a blink. Choosing the right amount of photography coverage ensures you don’t just experience your day, you get to relive it in full.

Whether you’re planning an intimate celebration or a multi-location event, this guide will help you understand how much time you really need for the story you want captured. We’ve broken it down by the three most common coverage options so you can find the right fit for your timeline, priorities, and pace.

A Guide to Choosing your hours of coverage

6 Hours 
8 Hours
10 Hours

Quick overview

Covers the essentials
Covers almost everything
Covers the full story from start to finish

6 Hours: Covers the essentials
8 Hours: Covers almost everything
10 Hours: Covers the full story

6 HOURS: The essentials

Six hours of coverage is a great fit for smaller weddings or elopements, or for couples with a streamlined timeline and fewer events. It can include getting ready, your ceremony, family and wedding party photos, couple portraits, and the beginning of your reception (entrances, a first dance, and a toast or two). This option covers the most important moments, but it can feel fast-paced, and there may not be time for sunset portraits or relaxed candid coverage.

If you’re getting married at one location and skipping a grand exit, this may be the right choice. Just know that we’ll need to be efficient with the timeline and plan carefully to make sure nothing essential is missed.

Sample 6 Hour Timeline
1:30 Photographer Start Time
1:30 Details
2:00 Bride gets dressed
2:30 First Look, Bride & Groom Portraits
3:00 Wedding Party Portraits
3:30 Bride & Groom tucked away
4:00 Ceremony
4:30 Family Photos & Cocktail Hour
5:30 Reception
7:30 Photographer End Time
**Please note that this is just a sample timeline. Timelines vary greatly based on your priorities and a variety of factors relating to your wedding. Our event coordinator will work closely with you to create a timeline personalized to your event.

8 HOURS: the sweet spot

Eight hours is our most popular coverage choice, and with good reason, it provides a full, well-rounded view of the day without being overkill. With this option, we’ll typically start during your getting ready time, capture the first look (if you’re doing one), the full ceremony, portraits with your wedding party and family, a golden hour photo session, and all the major reception moments like toasts, dances, and cake cutting. There’s also time to capture a few dancing photos once the party gets started.

This amount of coverage offers the flexibility to slow down and breathe, without missing a moment. For most traditional timelines, 8 hours is the perfect balance between relaxed and complete. 

If you are uncertain about how many hours, we recommend that you start with 8 hours. When creating your custom timeline, our event coordinator will reach out to let you know if we recommend adding on additional time.

Sample 8 Hour Timeline
12:45 Photographer Start Time
12:45 Flat lay & Details
1:30 Bride gets dressed
2:00 First Look, Bride & Groom Portraits
2:30 Wedding Party Portraits
3:00 Family Photos
3:30 Bride & Groom tucked away
4:00 Ceremony
4:30 Cocktail Hour
5:30 Reception
8:00 Sunset Photos (Sunset timing varies on location & time of year)
8:45 Photographer End Time
**Please note that this is just a sample timeline. Timelines vary greatly based on your priorities and a variety of factors relating to your wedding. Our event coordinator will work closely with you to create a timeline personalized to your event.

10 HOURS: the Full Story

Ten hours gives us the ability to truly tell your story from start to finish—with no rush, no compromises, and plenty of space for all the quiet, candid, and emotional moments in between. This option allows us to cover your full getting ready time, including robe photos, flat lays, and the behind-the-scenes moments that often become favorites. It’s ideal if you’re planning a first look, getting married at more than one location, or including cultural or religious traditions that require additional time.

We’ll be there through sunset portraits, your full reception, and your grand exit—without needing to stage anything early or trim anything down. If you want a gallery that feels complete, immersive, and true to the full scope of your day, 10 hours is the way to go.

Sample 10 Hour Timeline
12:30 Photographer Start Time
12:30 Details, PJ Photos, Etc.
1:30 Bride gets dressed
2:00 First Look, Bride & Groom Portraits
2:30 Wedding Party Portraits
3:00 Family Photos
3:30 Bride & Groom tucked away
4:00 Ceremony
4:30 Cocktail Hour
5:30 Reception
8:00 Sunset Photos (Sunset timing varies on location & time of year)
10:30 Grand Exit
10:30 Photographer End Time
**Please note that this is just a sample timeline. Timelines vary greatly based on your priorities and a variety of factors relating to your wedding. Our event coordinator will work closely with you to create a timeline personalized to your event.