WEDDING WEDNESDAY | The Timeline

If you have ever been married or a part of a wedding day, you probably already understand how hectic the day can get.  There's a lot of different moving parts, a lot of people to keep track of, places to be, etc.  It can get incredibly overwhelming really quickly, and combined with a day that is already full of anxiousness... it can get ugly pretty fast.  One of the things I do with all my bridal clients is work with them to create a timeline, which in my experience helps to soothe the minds of the couple... and that is why I am there!

I am fairly confident you could ask any one of my ANP bridal couples, and they would tell you I have said to them a number of times that my goal is to be the least stressful part of their day.  I am there to document, not to ruffle feathers or cause scheduling disasters.  This is why for me it is absolutely crucial that a timeline for the "scheduled pictures" are in place at least a few weeks before the big day so everyone who needs to be aware (namely myself, bride, groom and my second photographer) know what is going on and have time to review, prepare, and make their own mental game plan for the day.

For the most part, the bride & groom rely on me as their hired professional to delegate the day.  I am watching the clock, making sure bridesmaids are getting dressed, that groomsmen are wrapping up their drinks for pictures, and that everything is running like a well oiled machine.  So I bet after all of this there is at least one of you reading this and going, "well this all sounds great, but what the HECK is a timeline and why do I care?!"

Well, let me make it easy.  For ANP bridal couples, each package I offer includes a set number of hours for which I am hired.  After that piece is determined, I work to take the timeframe selected while taking the happenings of the day and basically scheduling the photographs to fit within all of it so we don't miss a thing.  Once we get to the reception, I do tend to be more hands off and let the hired DJ or reception host to run the schedule of events, which is great for me because I just need to be around to capture those formalities!  :)

The timeline also includes a shot list for family photographs.  Wait, what?  Yes, I require that my clients get me a family picture shot list so on the day of we can get through family pictures as quickly as possible.  This is also to ensure that no one gets missed -- my couples review the timeline many times before the big day so they can add, remove, or alter any item, any family shot that they desire.  Plus, by a list being given to me from my couples, I know that they will get exactly what they are wanting and more importantly exactly what they paid for!

Timelines are incredibly important to my business and brand so I can keep a handle on what is going on.  I think you, my reader, could agree that when you know what's going to happen next you feel a bit more comfortable and at ease, right?  I thought so!

So that's the gist!  Did you have a timeline on your big day?  If not, how did it go?  I would love to hear from you all!