Did you know that you can look up sunset time on google as far in advance as 2069? Probably farther than that, but you get the point! Carefully choosing a time of day for your ceremony is so important for a few reasons. 1. You don’t want your guests to be overheated in the direct sun. 2. You want your guests to be able to witness your marriage and they can’t do that if they are squinting at you. 3. You want your ceremony photos to be A M A Z I N G and squinty eyed free.
Now times of day lighting is going to be different at each and every venue so I suggest definitely taking a walk around the property and paying attention to where the sun is at the time you are considering. Please also keep in mind that the sun sets differently during each part of the year. In the winter, it sets as early as 4:30 and in the summer, it’s out at the latest, 9:30. Here are a few examples of each time of day. If the mood of your wedding day is crazy important to you, also consider that when choosing lighting times.
CLOUDY DAYS - I’m going to go ahead and ease your worries about cloudy days - I know there is NO way to plan for weather but if you luck out with a cloudy day, do not fret! The lighting is usually very flattering and did you know it’s actually good luck if it rains on your wedding day? I know, I know… it’s 2019 and no one believes that stuff anymore.
DIRECT SUN - As a photographer, this is the most challenging light. Only because we want to make you look your best but it’s challenging to find the best angle when there are so many harsh shadows hitting your face. Direct sun is easily avoided if your ceremony area is placed in the shade, or behind a building that blocks the light. Direct sun can be found at any time of the day but is harder to battle during those early afternoon hours (when the sun is highest in the sky 12-4:30 during the summer.) Here are a few examples of ceremonies that took place during mid-day sun. Also, I am not saying this is a bad thing at all, but something you should consider! I love natural lighting and do not discriminate against any type :)
RIGHT BEFORE SUNSET - Again, you will need to research your venue but typically the most photogenic, comfortable time of the day is about 1-2 hours before sunset. It’s cooler, because the sun isn’t beating directly down, and if the sun is behind your ceremony, you have a gorgeous backlight in your photos. If you do a first look, I 100% recommend hosting your ceremony AT sunset because we’ve already gotten all the photos we need and you can go straight to partying at dark!
I hope this helps my brides who are debating their ceremony time. I am totally open to help you in any way I can :)
Thanks for reading guys!
-Taylor