Wedding timeline for a 4 pm ceremony
Computed for Saturday, June 19, 2027 in New York (sunset 8:31 pm). Hair and makeup at 12:10 pm, photographer at 1:55 pm , cocktail hour 4:45 pm, dinner 6:05 pm, golden-hour portraits 8:10 pm.
Why this order
Four o’clock is a popular summer start because it lines up with the light: family photos during the cocktail hour, then golden hour falls between dinner and the dances.
The squeeze is the cocktail hour. Recessional, family groupings, wedding party and couple portraits all have to fit before the grand entrance. More than about 10 family groupings and it overruns — the tool stretches the cocktail hour and tells you by how much.
From October onward a 4 pm ceremony in the northern hemisphere often ends after sunset. If you want daylight portraits, add a first look; if not, plan blue-hour portraits with off-camera flash.
The numbers behind it
- Hair and makeup: 5 people × 45 minutes ÷ 2 artists = 2 h 15 min, finishing 15 minutes before getting dressed.
- Travel: a 20-minute drive is planned as 25 minutes (20 % padding).
- Cocktail hour: 1 h — long enough for 8 family groupings, the wedding party and quick couple portraits.
- Dinner: plated, 1 h 45 min including three 5-minute speeches between courses.
- Photographer: about 9 hours from 1:55 pm to cover every key moment.
Sample order of the day
- 12:10 pm Hair & makeup (5 people, 2 artists)
- 1:50 pm Sam gets ready
- 2:25 pm Touch-ups, a snack, breathing room
- 2:40 pm Alex gets dressed
- 2:50 pm Sam travels to the ceremony
- 3:10 pm Breathing room before leaving
- 3:20 pm Alex travels to the ceremony
- 3:30 pm Guests arrive and are seated
- 3:45 pm Arrive and wait out of sight
- 4:00 pm Ceremony
- 4:30 pm Recessional, hugs and confetti
- 4:45 pm Family photos (8 groupings)
- 4:45 pm Cocktail hour
- 5:05 pm Wedding party photos
- 5:20 pm Quick couple portraits (more at golden hour)
- 5:45 pm Grand entrance
- 5:55 pm First dance
- 6:00 pm Welcome and blessing
- 6:05 pm Plated dinner
- 6:45 pm Speeches and toasts (3)
- 7:50 pm Parent dances
- 8:00 pm Cake cutting
- 8:10 pm Golden-hour portraits
- 8:10 pm Open dance floor
- 10:10 pm Last dance
- 10:15 pm Sparkler send-off
The same 4 pm ceremony through the year
Where 20 minutes of golden-hour portraits land with a classic, no-first-look day, mid-month Saturdays in 2027.
| Month | Place | Sunset | Golden-hour portraits | First look? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | New York | 7:38 pm | a 20-minute slip-away during dinner | Optional |
| April | London | 8:00 pm | a 20-minute slip-away during dinner | Optional |
| June | New York | 8:31 pm | between the reception formalities | Optional |
| June | London | 9:22 pm | between the reception formalities | Optional |
| September | New York | 7:03 pm | a 20-minute slip-away during dinner | Optional |
| September | London | 7:12 pm | a 20-minute slip-away during dinner | Optional |
| October | New York | 6:17 pm | during cocktail hour, straight after family photos | Optional |
| October | London | 6:08 pm | during cocktail hour, straight after family photos | Optional |
| December | New York | 4:32 pm | over by the end of the ceremony: needs a first look | Recommended |
| December | London | 3:53 pm | over by the end of the ceremony: needs a first look | Recommended |
Other start times: 1 pm · 2 pm · 3 pm · 5 pm · 6 pm · Guides: timeline examples, first look or not.
Frequently asked questions
What time should hair and makeup start for a 4 pm ceremony?
About 12:10 pm for five people with two artists at 45 minutes each and a 20-minute drive, so everyone is dressed and out of the door with a buffer. Each extra person per artist adds 45 minutes.
When does the photographer arrive for a 4 pm ceremony?
Around 1:55 pm for detail photos, about 2 h 5 min before the ceremony. To cover the day through the exit, book about 9 hours.
When is golden hour for a 4 pm wedding?
In mid-June in New York golden hour starts at 7:50 pm and the sun sets at 8:31 pm; the sample day schedules 20 minutes of portraits at 8:10 pm. It moves earlier through autumn — see the season table on this page.
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