Wedding photo checklist
The shots you would
regret not having.
A good photographer knows their job. What they cannot know is which cousin flew in from Perth, or that the ring was your grandmother's. Build the list of things only you know, and hand over one clean page.
Sections to include
43 shots on the list
Wedding photo checklist
For our photographer
Tap any shot to drop it from the printed list.
The details
Getting ready
The ceremony
Group photos
The reception
Wedding photo checklist
For our photographer
The details
- The dress, hanging
- Shoes, rings and jewellery together
- Invitation suite and stationery
- Flowers before anyone touches them
- Something borrowed, something blue
- The venue, empty and set
Getting ready
- Hair and make-up in progress
- Buttonholes going on
- Helping with the dress
- The first look in the mirror
- A parent seeing them ready
- The wedding party, all dressed
- A quiet moment before leaving
The ceremony
- Guests arriving and being seated
- The partner waiting at the front
- The walk down the aisle
- The face of the person waiting
- Vows being read
- Ring exchange, hands close
- The first kiss
- Signing the register
- The walk back out, together
- Confetti
Group photos
- The two of you, alone
- With each set of parents
- With both families together
- With grandparents
- With siblings
- The full wedding party
- Each side of the wedding party
- The whole guest list, one frame
The reception
- The room before guests come in
- Table settings and place cards
- The cake, whole
- Entrance to the reception
- Speeches — the speaker
- Speeches — the reaction
- Toasting, glasses raised
- Cutting the cake
- The first dance
- Parents dancing
- The dance floor at its fullest
- The last song
And afterwards
The list ends where the guests begin
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Good questions
- What should be on a wedding photo checklist?
- The details you chose, the getting-ready hours, the ceremony beats, your group combinations, and the reception set pieces. The part worth your time is the group list — a photographer can guess that you want the first kiss, but not that your grandmother should be in a photo with all seven grandchildren.
- How long should a wedding shot list be?
- Long enough to cover what you would regret missing, short enough that nobody is reading a page during cocktail hour. Around forty lines is comfortable; past sixty you are buying a spreadsheet rather than a wedding.
- How long do group photos take?
- Plan three to five minutes per group once everyone is assembled — and remember that assembling them is the slow part. Eight groups is roughly forty minutes of your drinks reception, which is why a short, specific list beats a long one.
- Should I give my photographer a shot list?
- Yes, for the family combinations and anything sentimental — those are facts they cannot know. Do not hand over a list dictating every angle and moment; that is their craft, and a photographer working through a script stops noticing the day.
- Do I need to name people in the group shots?
- Name them, and nominate someone from each side who knows the faces to round people up. A list that says 'with grandparents' is only as fast as the person who can point them out.
- Is this checklist free to print?
- Yes — no sign-up and no watermark. Press Print and choose "Save as PDF" if you would rather email it to your photographer.