Photos then venue?
We are loving Lyrebird Falls for a venue but at this stage am unsure if we are getting married in a church or garden (my partner has been married before). I was wanting to have a ceremony then bridal party goes to the CBD for photos then off to the reception. What would be the best way to tackle this? im stressing big time as I don't want to inconvenience anyone.
Question Asked: 21/02/2018
Wedding Date: 9/08/2018
Most Helpful Response
(14) · Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast, servicing all of South East Queensland.
Posted: 26/06/2026
Answered by: 4 Experts
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Just make sure you leave adequate time between the ceremony and reception to get to the CBD, have your photos, then get to the venue. The order of events that you've described is pretty much the normal order of a wedding.
Hi,
You have selected a great venue that has lots of amazing spots for photography. As discussed by Jennifer, driving down to the CBD can be exhausting and unpredictable with traffic so you have to ask yourself if it's worth adding that extra stress on your wedding day. Did you consider having a post-wedding photo shoot in the CBD or otherwise doing your engagement photos in the CBD? Another option is having a ceremony in the city and reception in the Dandenongs but then you will have to spend additional $$$ on the cost of hiring a church in the CBD.
Feel free to give me a call on 0479 057 827 if you want like to have a quick chat over the phone or in person. Otherwise, good luck with everything and no reason to stress! :)
Hello! Lyrebird Falls is a gorgeous location- are you considering it for both your ceremony and reception? I'm only asking this as you will need to consider the fact that driving to the CBD for your photographs will be at least a two hour round trip, possibly more when taking into account traffic. This is also dependant on where about's in the CBD you are wanting your photography. Some CBD locations are difficult for parking one car let alone two, so I'd suggest including your photographer in your bridal car to save time and the stress of car park hunting. You would need to allow at least one hour for your actual bridal photography, so if you are wanting to go to more than one location in the CBD you will need to factor in additional driving time between locations. All up, that would equate to at least 3.5 hours' needed between the ceremony and the reception which is quite a while for your guests to wait around. It wasn't unheard of in the past for ceremonies to be held in the late morning, then for guests to return to a late afternoon/early evening reception. This would be the best way to approach your desire for a ceremony/reception location in the Dandenongs and your official photography in the CBD. However for those guests who can't return home in between, its a good idea to provide suggestions of cafes etc where they can go in between your wedding day events. Ultimately it is your wedding day so don't fret about being an inconvenience to anyone. So long as you provide your guests with options to fill their time (if it is a long amount of time) while you are off having photographs taken, people really won't mind at all; they are your friends and family after all ;-) Do keep in mind however, that your photography and/or videography team will be with you throughout; you don't just pay them for the actual time spent capturing your event, you will be paying for their time even while they are passengers in a car for a couple of hours. So this is something you will need to take into account when confirming your photography/videography packages- you will need to factor in additional time to cover their travel between the Dandenongs and the CBD. Hope this helps :-)
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First things first, breathe. This is such a common timeline puzzle and it is absolutely solvable, so you are not inconveniencing anyone. Lyrebird Falls in the Dandenongs is stunning, and honestly it already gives you ferns, light through the trees and those green backdrops that a lot of couples drive into the city hoping to find. So my first question back to you is whether you genuinely need the CBD at all, or whether it is the idea of a few city shots you love. If it is just one or two specific looks, an engagement shoot or a post wedding day shoot in town gets you exactly that without holding up your whole wedding party.
If your heart is set on the CBD on the day itself, the cleanest way to handle it is to keep your ceremony and reception together at the venue and treat the city run as a separate bridal party mission. Build in a realistic two to three hour gap, send only the wedding party in the cars, and keep your guests happily occupied at the venue with drinks, canapes and music rather than asking them to wait around or self organise. The other thing worth knowing as the people shooting it: city light is harsh and flat in the middle of the day, so late afternoon, roughly that hour or so before sunset, is when those laneways and rooftops actually look their best. In a Melbourne winter that golden window comes early, so the season you marry in really shapes the run sheet.
My honest advice as someone who edits every frame in house and sees how these days play out: an extra hour of round trip driving is an hour you are not relaxed, not with your people and not soaking it in. The couples who look back happiest are usually the ones who picked one beautiful location and gave themselves room to breathe in it. Whatever you choose, get your photographer and videographer involved early on the timing, because we plan the run sheet around the light and the travel so you never feel rushed and your guests never feel forgotten.