Wedding Photography Shot List for Minneapolis Weddings

Getting-ready

• □Dress hanging in window light
• □Rings + invitation + florals flat-lay
• □Perfume, shoes, jewelry detail
• □Zipping/buttoning dress with parent or wedding party
• □Wedding party candid getting ready together
• □First look with parent
• □Final mirror moment before leaving suite

Ceremony

• □Empty ceremony space wide
• □Guests being seated
• □Partner A walking down aisle
• □Partner B's reaction — tight and wide
• □Vows — hand-holding tight, wide with officiant
• □Ring exchange close-up
• □First kiss — wide and tight
• □Recessional aisle walk
• □Guest reactions during vows
• □Signing the marriage license

Family formals

• □Full family group (both sides)
• □Immediate family — each partner separately
• □Parents with couple
• □Grandparents with couple
• □Siblings with couple
• □Wedding party full group + individual pairs

Couple portraits

• □Wide environmental portrait at a Minneapolis landmark or along the river
• □Tight face-to-face portrait
• □Walking-together candid
• □Quiet moment — foreheads together, no smile
• □Golden-hour couple portrait
• □Full-length editorial fashion-style portrait

Reception

• □Empty room set with details
• □Table settings, menu cards, place cards
• □Cake and dessert table wide + tight
• □Grand entrance
• □First dance — wide, tight, from behind
• □Parent dances
• □Toasts — speaker + reactions
• □Cake cutting
• □Bouquet/garter toss (if doing)
• □Dance-floor candids
• □Sunset couple portrait outside
• □Sparkler exit / grand send-off

What should be on a wedding photography shot list?

A complete Minneapolis wedding shot list covers five sections: getting-ready (dress, rings, flat-lay details, parent moments), ceremony (aisle, vows, first kiss, recessional, guest reactions), family formals (grouped by side of the family), couple portraits (wide landmark + tight quiet moments), and reception (details, first dance, toasts, cake, dance floor, sunset portrait, exit). The checklist on this page has 41 shots across those five sections.

Should I send my Minneapolis wedding photographer a full shot list?

Send family-formal combinations (which people should be in which groups) and any specific must-have moments — grandparent portraits, cultural traditions, surprise element. Do NOT send a 100-item Pinterest shot list of poses; that overrides your photographer's judgment and produces stiff photos. Trust the photographer for creative shots.

How many photos will I get from my Minneapolis wedding?

With Honey Deww, about 75 hand-edited images per hour of coverage, or 100 per hour on Sapphire. That works out to about 300 for the 4-hour Emerald collection, 600 for the 8-hour Pearl, 750 for the 10-hour Ruby and 1,200 for the 12-hour Sapphire.

Do I need to plan every shot on my wedding day?

No — over-planning kills spontaneity. Give your photographer the timeline, the family-formal list, and any 3–5 non-negotiable moments (dad's toast, first look, grandmother's ring). Let them capture everything else naturally. That's how you get real moments instead of staged Pinterest recreations.