A large extended family needs its own block of time, a written list built before the day, and an order that starts with the biggest and most senior group and works down to the small pairings.
The extra hours go to the morning: tea ceremonies, door games, travel between family homes and outfit changes.
The warning signs that matter most are no written plan if the photographer cannot shoot your date, no cancellation or rescheduling terms, a demand for the full payment up front, and evasiveness about who will actually photograph your wedding.
Ask any photographer you are seriously considering for one complete gallery from a single real wedding, not a selection.
Documentary coverage means the photographer works continuously and reactively for most of the day, reading what is about to happen and being in place before it does.
The biggest thing that blows out a formals timeline is people who are not where they are meant to be.
The questions worth asking are the specific ones: who exactly will photograph your day, what happens if they cannot, how many photos you will receive and when, what a full gallery looks like, and how they would handle your particular timeline.
Looking natural comes from giving your attention somewhere else, not from being told to relax.
Rain moves or shortens outdoor portrait time and swaps harsh light for soft, even light, which flatters faces and groups.
Mid-June in Sydney has 9.91 hours of daylight, against 14.16 hours in mid-January.
