Too long?

I think it depends how much of the reception you want them to get photos of. I think I would plan out the events for the reception such as when the first dance happening or cake cutting then decide.

View Quoted Comment Well, the thing is, our reception is the next week. But we are doing ceremony and dinner on September 9, and the reception September 16.

View Quoted Comment What? This sounds super confusing. You are having two receptions but one is before you are actually married.

View Quoted Comment No. We are getting married, then a dinner that night, so you can call that a reception if you would like. And our “official” reception will be the next week because of having the wedding both on the West Side, and my fiancè’s anxiety.

View Quoted Comment So are you having your photographer come back again on the 16th?

View Quoted Comment No, two different sides of the state. We are having a different photographer.

View Quoted Comment Gotcha. In that case, I would probably see if you could reduce the photography coverage of the first celebration. 9 hours of photos is A LOT, especially if there is no reception. Will you be doing a first look before the ceremony?

We will be. That’s something my mom wanted. I am big into family. He lost his dad 10 years ago, so we have adopted his mom so much into the whole planning thing. Also he doesn’t have any biological sisters. But thankfully him and my dad get along, actually my dad knew him first.

If you were going to do a first look prior to the ceremony, I would have your photographer there at maybe 10:00am. That’s plenty of time to get getting ready photos, photos with your wedding parties, and first look photos. Then I would probably have them stay 1-2 hrs after the ceremony, max. That gives more than enough time to take formal photos after and photos of your guests mingling. I don’t see any reason to have hundreds of photos of people eating. Not to mention it’s super awkward and uncomfortable having your photo taken while you’re trying to eat.

View Quoted Comment Given that information I think it depends on if you plan on doing anything special at the dinner such as speeches, dancing or a grand introduction. If you just plan on having everyone gather at a restaurant to eat and drink then there's no real reason the photographer needs to be there. You don't need a bunch of photos of guests just eating and drinking and trust me they won't want those photos taken of them either.