What's the minimum amount of hours

Question Asked: 20/11/2025

Wedding Date: 9/08/2018

Most Helpful Response

She Said YES Wedding Film & Photography

(12) · Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast, servicing all of South East Queensland.

Posted: 26/06/2026

There's no single right number, and honestly any photographer who insists you need a set minimum without asking about your day first is doing it backwards. The real question is what you actually want to remember. If it's just the ceremony and a few portraits, one to two hours can be plenty. If you want the story to flow from getting ready through to the dance floor, that's usually where six to eight hours lands.

The thing most couples underestimate is how much time the in-between moments eat up: travel between locations, family group shots, and the natural lulls while guests move from ceremony to reception. Here in South East Queensland the light is also a big factor. In summer the harsh midday sun is unflattering, so we often time the couple portraits for late afternoon when it softens, which can stretch your coverage longer than you'd expect just to catch the best of the day.

My honest advice is to map out your rough run sheet first, even loosely, then work backwards. Tell us your ceremony time and the moments that genuinely matter to you, and we'll tell you the hours you actually need rather than the hours that pad a package. We'd much rather you book the right amount than pay for coverage sitting around waiting, or worse, have us pack up right before the speeches you'll want to watch back for years.

Answered by: 7 Experts

Sort by:

Images for Life

(31) · Victoria

Posted: 22/01/2026

3 hrs

but eacha and every wedding is different and we are happy to accomodate every bride and couples requets.

It is Passion from the Heart

Bliss Photography by Michaela

(2) · Gold Coast and Surrounds

Posted: 8/12/2025

I do Elopements so I start at 1 hour up to 8 hours for wedding photography but I love to make packages that are right just for you.

Michaela 

Bliss Photography 

International Woman of Filmstery

(3) · Hunter Valley, Newcastle, Central Coast, Sydney

Posted: 22/11/2025

It really depends on your day and what you want captured. Some weddings only need 1 hour, for example, a simple ceremony and portraits, while others run 6, 8, or even 10+ hours depending on the schedule and what moments matter most to you.

If you share your ceremony time and the key parts of the day you’d like covered with your chosen photographer/videographer they can recommend the perfect amount of hours to capture everything you need. 

Tonita Photo & Video

(53) · All areas of Perth - Albany to Port Hedland!

Posted: 21/11/2025

It really comes down to the couple and what they want and how long the ceremony goes for, some full Italian Weddings can go for a good hour, some even more! Some local park weddings are 20 minutes, the Tonita Silver package (ceremony Only) covers the ceremony in full no matter how long it runs for, so we have no minimum hours, in fact, none of our packages have minimum hours, it's all relative to the time of the ceremony :) Our Gold Package (ceremony up to and including the first 2 hours of the reception) can start at 1pm if thats when the ceremony begins or from 4pm if thats when the ceremony starts 

David Madden Photography

(16) · Sydney, Blue Mountains, Gosford and Central Coast

Posted: 21/11/2025

Good question and it probably depends on a number of elements, such as the indiviudal photographers policy, distance to the wedding etc. If say there was a short mid week ceremony around the corner from me and t hat was all the couple wanted  photocoverage of, I would shoot for a single hour.

However if it was a Saturday in September on the other side of Sydney then the likelihood of securing a much large wedding along with the travel involved v hourly rate would make it untenable to shoot such a small wedding.

Hope this helps......

Whimsy and Wonder Photography

(5) · Photographing across Australia

Posted: 21/11/2025

Hello :) 

It is honestly up to you and your situation. I have brides only needing 2 hours and only want the ceremony covered, family pictures and some of the couple that are more artistic. Then there are others wanting a day and a half coverage. All I can advise is do what feels right to you ??

Didn't find what you were looking for? Ask your own question and we'll have our experts answer it.

Ask a question