A wedding photography checklist for before, during and after the day
A wedding has more moving parts than any other job you'll shoot, and most of the stress comes from the small things: the family list nobody sent, the flat battery, the backup you meant to do on Sunday. Here's a checklist with timings that work for most weddings, and a way to turn it into dated tasks that remind you.
Before the wedding
Timings count back from the wedding date. Stretch them for a destination wedding, squeeze them for an elopement booked six weeks out.
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| At booking | Contract signed by both of you, deposit paid, date blocked in your calendar |
| 6 weeks before | Timeline call with the couple |
| 4 weeks before | Family formals list in, with names |
| 2 to 3 weeks before | Scout the locations you haven't shot before |
| 1 to 2 weeks before | Brief your second shooter |
| 1 week before | Confirm the final timeline with the couple or their planner |
| 2 days before | Gear check: charge, format, clean |
Contract and deposit. Don't treat the date as taken until both are done. If either is still outstanding a week after the couple said yes, a friendly nudge now saves an awkward one later.
Timeline call. Walk through the day hour by hour: getting ready, ceremony, family photos, couple portraits, reception. Ask about traditions, the no-phones moments and sunset time. Build in buffers, since hair and makeup almost always run late.
Family formals list. Ask for groups with names, not "Mom's side". Ten to fifteen groups at two or three minutes each is a realistic half hour. Ask who'll help you round people up.
Location scouting. Visit at the same time of day as the shoot if you can, so you see the real light. Note a wet-weather spot.
Second shooter brief. Send arrival time, addresses, the timeline, the family list, the shot list, dress code and how you want files handed over.
Gear check. Do it two days out, not the night before, so there's time to replace anything that's broken.
On the wedding day
Gear.
- Two camera bodies, so a failure never stops the day
- Lenses for wide, standard and long, plus a macro for rings if you use one
- Flash and triggers for the reception
- Charged batteries, more than you think you need
- Formatted cards, plus a card wallet to keep used ones safe
- A printed timeline and family list
- Water, snacks and a small kit with safety pins, bandages and stain remover
Timeline. Keep it on paper or your lock screen, with the planner's number at the top. Arrive 15 minutes before your first call time.
Shot list. Keep it to the must-haves and let the rest of the day happen:
- Details: rings, dress, shoes, invitations, flowers
- Getting ready, both sides if you have a second shooter
- Ceremony: processional, vows, ring exchange, the kiss, recessional
- Family formals, in the order on your list
- Couple portraits, ideally near golden hour
- Wedding party
- Reception: entrance, speeches, first dance, cake, the exit
After the wedding
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| That night | Back up every card to two places, one of them off site |
| 2 to 3 days after | Sneak peeks, 10 to 30 favorites |
| First week | First cull |
| 4 to 12 weeks after | Full gallery delivered |
| After delivery | Album picks, proofs from your album designer or lab, any print orders |
| 1 to 2 weeks after delivery | Thank-you note or small gift, and a review request |
Don't format a card until the backup is checked.
Setting it up in CoreHue
Each wedding becomes a project, and the checklist becomes tasks inside it with due dates.
- Create the project, with Project type set to Wedding. The easiest moment is when you send the proposal: choose More actions, then Add to project, and create it there. See Creating a project.
- Open the project's Tasks tab and choose New task for each line of the checklist, with a Due date counted back from the wedding.
- Open the tasks with several steps and add a Checklist.
- Give each task a label, so your views can pick them up.
Here's how the checklist above maps onto tasks:
| Task | Due | Checklist steps | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timeline call | 6 weeks before, with a time | Wedding prep | |
| Family formals list | 4 weeks before | Wedding prep | |
| Scout locations | 2 weeks before | Each venue, wet-weather spot | Wedding prep |
| Second shooter brief | 10 days before | Arrival, addresses, timeline, family list, shot list, dress code, file handover | Wedding prep |
| Gear check | 2 days before | The gear list above | Wedding prep |
| Shot list | Wedding day | The shot list above | Wedding prep |
| Back up cards | Wedding day | Card 1, card 2, off-site copy | Editing |
| Sneak peeks | 3 days after | Pick, edit, publish, send | Delivery |
| Cull and edit | 6 weeks after | Editing | |
| Deliver full gallery | 8 weeks after | Export, upload, check on phone, publish, send | Delivery |
| Album proofs back | 3 weeks after picks | Picks in, proofs sent, changes, sign-off, order from lab | Album |
| Thank-you and review | 2 weeks after delivery | Follow-up |
Create the Wedding prep label from any task's Labels menu by typing the name. Editing, Delivery, Album and Follow-up are already there. Checklists hold up to 100 steps, so a long shot list fits. You add steps once the task exists, by choosing Open on the note that appears. See Creating a task and Adding a checklist to a task.
Some tasks wait on the couple, like the family formals list or album proofs. Move those to Waiting once you've asked. They still go overdue, so you'll know if something hasn't come back. See Tracking tasks on a board or list.
For reminders, a good default is an email the day before and an in-app nudge on the day. Give the timeline call its own 1 week before reminder so you have time to book it. See Setting up task reminders.
Reusing the checklist for every wedding
CoreHue doesn't have task or project templates, so there's no button that copies this set into the next wedding. What works in practice:
- Keep a master list. Save the task table above in your notes app, or bookmark this page, and add the tasks when you create each wedding's project. Switch the project's Tasks tab to List and use Add a task at the foot of To do to type the titles one after another, then give each a date. Twelve tasks take about ten minutes.
- Paste the checklist steps from your note. Steps go in one at a time, but the field stays ready after each Enter, so a seven-step brief takes under a minute.
- Keep one standing gear check. Create a Gear check task with no project. After each wedding, reopen it, untick the steps and give it the next wedding's date.
- Save a Wedding prep view. Filter Labels to Wedding prep, group by Project and sort by Due date, and each wedding gets its own column of prep, nearest first. See Saving task views.
For how the wedding moves across your board, see the photography client workflow. For a whole season with weddings, commercial jobs and admin side by side, see Running your studio with projects and tasks. The family formals list is easiest to collect in a questionnaire, and Writing questionnaires clients actually answer has the questions.
Frequently asked questions
What should be on a wedding photographer's checklist?
Paperwork and payment, a timeline call, the family formals list, a second shooter brief, location scouting and a gear check before the day. A shot list on the day. Backup, culling, sneak peeks, gallery delivery, album proofs and a thank-you with a review request afterwards.
How far in advance should a wedding photographer plan the timeline?
Have the first timeline call about four to six weeks before, then confirm the final version a week out, once the venue and suppliers have settled their times.
What gear does a wedding photographer need?
Two bodies, lenses covering wide to long, flash with triggers, plenty of charged batteries and formatted cards. The second body matters most, since there are no retakes.
When should a wedding photographer send sneak peeks?
Within two or three days is common. A small set of 10 to 30 photos keeps the couple happy while you work on the full gallery.
How long does it take to get wedding photos back?
Four to twelve weeks is typical, depending on the season and how many weddings you're editing. Tell the couple a range in your contract and aim to beat it.