Need help with time PLEASE?

Re: Need help with time PLEASE?

• ceh789 member

  

  April 2012

  Ceremony length totally depends on content.  You need to time what you have planned.  If you officiant wrote the ceremony, ask them. 

  
  

  You need to do your photos after your receiving line. You'll also need to host a cocktail hour or similar while you do your photos if you want them between the ceremony and reception.

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• calliopeia2013 member

  

  April 2012 edited April 2012

  Ceremony length- talk to your officiant.  A Catholic wedding mass can be well over an hour, a short civil ceremony can be under 15 minutes, and there can be anything in between.  If you're not having a ceremony in any particular church, your officiant will probably be willing to work with you to get your ceremony to the length you want, and half and hour would be perfectly realistic and probably pretty typical.
  
  Receiving lines should either be done immediately after the ceremony (before pictures), or, possibly, when you arrive at the reception site if you're having the reception at a different place (your guests can get there before you and you can have a cocktail hour waiting for them).  You wouldn't ask your guests to sit and wait for a receiving line while you did photos, and it would be rude if you did.
  
  I would allot more than 20-30 minutes for photos- probably closer to 45 minutes to an hour.  It takes longer than you think to get everyone organized.
  
  You should have something for your guests to do between the ceremony and the reception while you're taking photos- typically a cocktail hour at the reception site.  (The reason it's called an "hour" is because photos really do usually take that long.)

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• mellow08

  

  April 2012 edited April 2012

  Yea that makes since:   do the receiving line  then take pictures.  I already have a coaktail hour set up at reception, so while I'm taking pics at the church the guests can go to the reception.  I'm still wondering how that will flow together though

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• emidle2008 member

  

  April 2012

  Our ceremony will last about 30 minutes according to our officiant, includes 2 readings, short message on marriage, vows and sand ceremony. After we are announced and walk back through the church, our bridal party will follow us out. Then my mom's row will exit, followed by FMIL's row and then my dad's row. My hope is by doing this, my guests will follow the leader and exit on their own. If you are having ushers, the ushers can come in and dismiss the rows. As guests leave the church, we will do our receiving line then. As guests leave the receiving line, they will be handed bubbles for our grand exit. After the last guest leaves the receiving line, FI and I will go back into the church for a moment to ourselves, and the BP will get guests organized for our exit. Then we will make our exit and go to the park nearby until guests leave for the cocktail hour. After guests leave, we will do our pictures for about an hour with BP and family.
  
  Hope this helps.

  Love and Blessings
  September 2012 May Siggy: The Honeymoon!! Sandals Royal Caribbean in Montego Bay, Jamaica for New Years Eve
  

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