An Expert-Backed Wedding Timeline for a 4 p.m. Ceremony—With or Without a First Look

Creating a smooth flow for your wedding day starts with a solid plan. So, if you're planning a wedding timeline for a 4 p.m. ceremony, it's important to consider key factors, like when to schedule pre-ceremony portraits and whether or not to include a first look.

Regardless of your decision on a first look, a thoughtfully planned general wedding timeline ensures enough time for each part of your celebration—and the prep leading up to it—without feeling rushed. To help to-be-weds plan their wedding day with confidence, we tapped expert planners to share sample timelines and tips. Keep reading for the full rundown on a 4 p.m. wedding timeline—and learn how a first look impacts the overall flow of your wedding day.

In this article:

• Sample Wedding Timeline for 4 p.m. Ceremony With a First Look
• How Does a 4 p.m. Wedding Timeline Change Without a First Look?

Sample Wedding Timeline for 4 p.m. Ceremony With a First Look

Planning the flow of your wedding day is one of those behind-the-scenes details that make everything feel seamless, allowing you to tick off every item on your wedding day checklist.

While what time weddings typically start can vary by season and location, late afternoon ceremonies—like a 4 p.m. start—are a popular pick for good reason: They leave plenty of room for a relaxed morning and evening celebration.

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With this in mind, we tapped Carmen Hinebaugh, owner and lead event planner at Evermore Occasions in Herndon, Virginia, and Keith Willard, founder and lead designer at Keith Willard Events, in Oakland Park, Florida to provide insights for a sample wedding timeline for a 4 p.m. ceremony that includes a first look. To find a pro in your area to help you expertly plan your wedding timeline, visit the planner section of The Knot Vendor Marketplace.

8:30 a.m. Hair and Makeup Begins

"With a 4 p.m. ceremony start, hair and makeup will need to begin early and will likely need to happen at a hotel or private home to avoid venue time restrictions," Hinebaugh says. Keep in mind that this timeline accounts for five to six individuals receiving both hair and makeup services.

12 p.m. Photography Begins

Hinebaugh recommends having your wedding photographer arrive around noon to "capture detail flatlays, accessory shots and getting-ready candids while hair and makeup wraps."

12:30 p.m. Hair and Makeup Wraps

According to Hinebaugh, the goal is to wrap up hair and makeup services and touch-ups by 12:30 p.m. This provides a buffer time for portraits and transitions.

12:30 p.m. Begin Getting Ready Photos and Bridal Portraits

Immediately following the conclusion of hair and makeup at 12:30 p.m., it's time to take getting-ready photos with the wedding party, as well as portraits. Based on a 4 p.m. ceremony wedding timeline, the bride will typically get ready around 1:15 p.m., Hinebaugh explains. "This timing also allows for a short commute to the venue, if needed."

2 p.m. First Look and Couple Portraits

Hinebaugh advises couples to prioritize a full 30-minute window to ensure the first look feels intimate and unhurried. "This also helps relieve timeline pressure later in the day by completing the bulk of their portraits preceremony and before (most of) the crying."

2:30 p.m. Wedding Party and Family Photos

After capturing the couple's portraits, the photographer will then take photos of the wedding party and the immediate family. According to Hinebaugh, "Scheduling these in advance of the ceremony maximizes natural light and the time that the couple can spend at their cocktail hour," making it possible for everyone to enjoy cocktail hour sans distractions or lengthy photo sessions.

3:30 p.m. Final Touches and Hideaway

Hinebaugh likes to reserve the final 30 minutes before the ceremony to ensure all the details and final touches are squared away. Then, it's time to hide the couple and wedding party from arriving guests, who tend to show up about 30 minutes before the actual start time on the invites. That's why writing the date and time on invitations clearly—and matching that information to what's listed on your website—is so important. Similarly, when deciding what to include on your wedding website, it's a good idea to clearly list the ceremony's start time and any preceremony arrival details to help guests plan accordingly.

4 p.m. Ceremony Begins

Most wedding ceremonies last around 30 minutes, and this timeline is based on that assumption. However, "When nervous or excited, people tend to walk faster than normal," Willard says. So, even if you've rehearsed, it's likely that people will speed up. With this in mind, he recommends reminding each person walking to "take a deep breath, position the bouquet properly, smile and take their time."

4:30 p.m. Ceremony Ends, Transition to Cocktail Hour

After saying "I do," your wedding guests will soon move to the cocktail hour space, while the couple and wedding party may stay behind for post-ceremony shots. Additionally, the newlyweds may opt to take a moment for themselves before re-joining the festivities.

5 p.m. Couple Joins Cocktail Hour

After finishing portraits and/or having a quiet moment to reflect in private, the couple will join their guests to wrap up cocktail hour before the reception doors open. This is the perfect opportunity for the newlyweds to mix and mingle in a relaxed ambiance.

5:30 p.m. Reception Doors Open and First Dances

Around this time, the reception space will be ready to welcome guests. Soon after, the couple will make their grand entrance ahead of their first dance. Father-daughter and mother-son dances often take place following the couple's first dance, while all eyes are on the dance floor. There may also be a celebratory toast or welcome remarks from the couple, their family or wedding party members.

6:30 p.m. Dinner

Depending on your food options—buffet or plated dinner—meal service will begin a little after the first dance. This gives the guests and the couple time to recoup and refuel for more dancing.

7:30 p.m. Toast and Speeches

As dinner concludes, wedding toasts and speeches typically begin. However, this is completely optional; not all weddings have toasts or speeches.

8 p.m. Dancing

After all the formalities are completed, the party kicks into high gear as guests begin to groove.

9 p.m. Cake Cutting and Dessert

This fun and meaningful moment is one of many highlights of the wedding day, and it also serves as a brief respite from all the dancing, allowing guests to catch their breath. Dessert service typically begins after the cake is cut.

9:30 p.m. More Dancing

After indulging in sweet treats (who doesn't love wedding cake?), guests will once again make their way to the dance floor for the final stretch of grooving.

10:30 p.m. Last Dance and Grand Exit

As the evening winds down, the reception wraps up with one final dance. A festive send-off—also known as a grand exit—may follow, serving as a fun and memorable way to close out the celebration.

How Does a 4 p.m. Wedding Timeline Change Without a First Look?

If a couple opts not to have a first look but still wants a 4 p.m. ceremony, "the biggest shift is that couple portraits, full wedding party photos and many family formals all move to after the ceremony, which means the couple will not be able to join their cocktail hour," Hinebaugh explains. This also allows for a later start time, should you choose.

According to Janice Carnevale, owner of Bellwether Events in DC, everything can be pushed back by 30 to 45 minutes, allowing for some buffer time to be built into the schedule. Alternatively, instead of pushing back the start time, you can use the additional time for hair and makeup and getting dressed, Willard says.

While it's perfectly okay to pass on a first look, couples should carefully consider the first look decision-making factors, as opting against one adds more demand for the timeliness of photos after the ceremony. Per Willard, "A first look reduces the stress and time needed, and sometimes allows the couple to actually attend the cocktail reception, but not always." Usually, he says, it's 20 minutes of the cocktail reception. As a result, this will impact the wedding reception timeline. For example, the reception doors will likely open slightly later, pushing everything back by 15 to 20 minutes. However, the guest experience will remain largely unchanged.