What Family Photos Should You Capture at Your Wedding?

I love capturing family photos as part of your special day! So many family members have traveled to be with you, put on their best outfits, and are just excited to celebrate with you. Your wedding family photos will be printed, shared, loved and cherished by you and future family members for so many years.

That said… Family photos can end up being one of the more stressful parts of your day. Often couples expect that they can just knock them off quickly and get back to their couple portraits and/or party. For some families though, it can be a little bit like herding cats. Family members need to pee, they need a drink, they’re excited to catch up with old friends, they’re excited for you! They can be hard to round up. So here are a few tips to help your family photos go well.

Step 1: Have a list

Create the list of family groups you’d like to photograph before your day arrives. This is great for your photographer, as it helps them to capture all the important photos. It’s great for you, so when mum says “what about Auntie Judy” you can say, “don’t worry, we have a list”. (You can even run your list past your mum etc in advance of the day).

To help you get started with your family photo list, here are a few templates you can use:

(recommended)

Couple with your immediate family (with partners/spouses)
Couple with your fiancé’s immediate family (with partners/spouses)
Couple with your grandparents
Couple with your fiancé’sgrandparents
Couple with your parents
Couple with your fiancé’s parents
Couple with both sets of parents
Couple with all your siblings (with partners/spouses)
Couple with all your fiancé’s siblings (with partners/spouses)

(optional complicated/divorced parents)

Couple with all parents (not including new partners)
Couple with all parents (including new partners)
Couple with your (or your fiancé’s) Mum
Couple with your (or your fiancé’s) Mum and partner
Couple with your (or your fiancé’s) Dad
Couple with your (or your fiancé’s) Dad and partner

(optional)

Any of the above groups without partners/spouses
Couple with both immediate families (with and without any partners/spouses)
You with your parents
Your fiancé with their parents
You with mum
You with dad
Your fiancé with their mum
Your fiancé with their dad
You with your grandparents
Your fiancé’s with their grandparents
Couple with both grandparents
Three generations - women (grandma, daughter & granddaughter)
Three generations - men (grandpa, son & grandson)
Couple with your extended family
Couple with your fiancé’s extended family

Chop and change the list above to whatever suits you and your family! You can also add lists of friends groups that you’d like to capture like family photos. Friends are the family your choose.

Step 2: Organise your family in advance

Once you have your family photo list, make sure you contact everyone on that list to tell them they will be required for family photos. Tell them when and where, and ask them to please not wonder off during that time so that you can get back to enjoying your day sooner. Generally, I recommend having your photos done directly after your ceremony (and the following hugs of course). If your family photos are directly following the ceremony, you can also ask your celebrant to remind family members that they will be required for family photos and to stay close by.

Step 3: Think about timing

Family photos can take a long time. The more photos you want captured, the longer your family photos will take. You don’t have to spend an hour taking family photos on your wedding day. It’s your wedding day after all, there’s dancing to be done, cake to eat and celebrations to be had. (You could schedule in a longer family photo session on a separate day for the long and complicated wish lists).

If you want to spend less time taking family photos, make sure your list is short and sweet. Once you have your list, check in with your photographer and see how much time they will need to allocate for your list in your photography timeline.

Step 4: Think about Location and Style

Photographers will generally capture all of your family photos in one location. With the members of your the group looking at the camera and smiling.

They generally use one location as this helps the family photos to go smoothly and quickly. And they capture the traditional smile at the camera in a little group style, because that’s generally what is expected of family photos.

If you want to use more than one location, or have a more candid feel to your family photos, you need to tell your photographer this. A photographer’s default will be to get your family photos done as efficiently and smoothly as possible. But if you want something different, let your photographer know so that they can schedule in extra time for more locations and/or a more candid feel. (Candid photos can actually take more, not less time).

Conclusion

You can make your family photos as short and sweet or as long and loving as you personally like. The main thing is to be realistic about how long everything will take, stay organised, and communicate with your photographer.