How To Stop Time On Your Wedding Day

One of the biggest comments our Special Moments Event Planning team hears from couples after their wedding is how quickly the day goes by.

We understand that comment. The truth is that many of our couples have spent months planning their wedding day, and it’s over in a flash.

Today’s blog post offers suggestions on how to ensure the most enjoyment possible from your wedding day.

 

Smile For The Camera

It’s no secret that wedding photography can take up a good portion of your wedding day. However, it has less to do with how quickly your photographer works and more with your wedding photo list.

The photo lists are getting longer and longer—family, extended family, work friends, college friends, bowling friends, and neighborhood friends. The lists are never-ending, and all of these groupings take time.

 

 

Beyond seriously considering which groups are essential, we recommend assigning a wrangler. This would be one or two people from your close friends who know most of the people in your family. 

These responsible people, preferably with solid voices, will follow the photographer’s group lists and help organize people for the upcoming group photos. This allows the photographer, who realistically knows no one in your family, to focus on capturing images and moving on to the next group.

 

Slightly Controversial

Next comes the topic of to see or not to see. Seeing each other before the wedding ceremony is still a hotly debated topic.

 

 

Stepping away from superstition and emotion and focusing on the practicality of this discussion, we see that couples who see each other before the wedding can take many photos before the ceremony, leaving them the rest of the day to enjoy their reception, friends and family.

If you choose not to see each other, work with your photographer to start early and take as many individual, wedding party, and family photos as possible for each group. This is known as split formals, and you can take photos of each of your close friends, wedding party, and individual family members without your spouse.

After the ceremony, you can quickly add your spouse to family groupings and gather the entire wedding party for large group photos.

 

To Cocktail or Not To Cocktail

We see a trend toward the newlyweds wanting to attend cocktail hour. Traditionally, this was a time when many photos of the family and wedding parties were taken.

If you take these photos earlier in the day, you could have free time to attend your cocktail hour. 

We frequently hear from couples who want to attend cocktail hour to greet as many guests as possible so they don’t have to move from table to table to chat during their reception.

This is a good plan, in theory. Unfortunately, most couples make it about two yards into the cocktail hour before hitting a wall of wedding guests. They seldom reach more than a third of the guests.

We suggest using this time for portraits of the two of you, with as little interference as possible. Keep the entourage to your photographer and videographer – they know how to reach us if needed. 

This gives you time together and some fantastic photos.

 

 

 

Breaking Bread

One special touch we love is when a couple skips cocktail hour and the caterer places an assortment of the hors d’ oeuvres on the sweetheart table to enjoy when you are seated. After all, you probably picked some of your favorite foods to serve at cocktail hour!

But let’s take this one step further.

When space at the reception venue allows, we love for a couple to sneak off after their photos to a private space, a table for two, your hors d’ oeuvres, and your first course or salad. 

This lets you have some genuinely private time while guests sit and settle in before your introductions. You can also make a quick pass through the dining room, visiting guests while they enjoy their first course.

Rest assured, anyone you might have missed will find you during the evening!

 

DO NOT Divide and Conquer 

We could be rich if we had a dollar for every time a couple said, “The night went so fast. I feel like we didn’t have any time together.”

Yes, it starts with one of you visiting with your family and vice versa, then conversations with friends. Before long, it’s time for the cake cutting, and you’ve been apart all night!

Stick together, keep the conversations brief, and move through the reception together. It will give you more time together, and guests will be more respectful of your time.

 

 

Because in reality, it’s not that your wedding day goes so fast; it’s that you and your spouse are apart for so much of the day that it appears to go by so quickly.

So, stay together, plan for quiet moments alone, and enjoy your wedding day!

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Cover Image: The Portos