What Family Photos Should You Capture at Your Wedding?
(Updated: 10/07/2026)
What Family Photos Should You Capture at Your Wedding?
One of the questions I'm asked most often is:
What family photos should we actually take at our wedding?
Do you really need family photos? How many should you take? And who should be in them?
I love capturing family photos as part of your special day! I have such fond memories of crawling under my parents' bed as a kid and pulling out their shoebox of wedding photos. I always went straight to the family portraits asking, "Who's that? Who's that?"
Those photographs become part of your family's history. They'll be printed, shared, loved and looked back on by future generations for many years to come.
That said… Family photos can end up being one of the more stressful parts of your day. Often couples expect that they can just knock them off quickly and get back to their couple portraits and/or party. For some families though, it can be a little bit like herding cats. Family members need to pee, they need a drink, they’re excited to catch up with old friends, they’re excited for you! They can be hard to round up. So here are a few tips to help your family photos go well.
Step 1: Have a list
Every family looks different. Whether yours is blended, chosen, traditional, beautifully complicated or somewhere in between, the most important thing is capturing the people who matter most to you.
It can really help to create a list of family groups you’d like to photograph before your day arrives. This is great for your photographer, as it helps them to capture all the important photos. It’s great for you, so when mum says “what about Auntie Judy” you can say, “don’t worry, we have a list”. Or you can say: “Sorry mum, time’s tight right now. But please gather her up for a portrait with us during the reception”. (You can even run your list past your mum, etc in advance of the day).
To help you get started with your family photo list, here are a few templates you can use:
(Recommended)
Couple with your immediate family (with partners/spouses)
Couple with your partner’s immediate family (with partners/spouses)
Couple with your grandparents
Couple with your partner’s grandparents
Couple with your parents
Couple with your partner’s parents
Couple with both sets of parents
Couple with all your siblings (with partners/spouses)
Couple with all your partner’s siblings (with partners/spouses)
(Optional complicated/divorced parents)
Couple with all parents (not including new partners)
Couple with all parents (including new partners)
Couple with your (or your partner’s) Mum
Couple with your (or your partner’s) Mum and partner
Couple with your (or your partner’s) Dad
Couple with your (or your partner’s) Dad and partner
(Optional)
Any of the above groups without partners/spouses
Couple with both immediate families (with and without any partners/spouses)
You with your parents
Your partner with their parents
You/Yourpartner with mum
You/Your partner with dad
You/Your partner with your grandparents
Couple with both grandparents
Three generations
Couple with your extended family
Couple with your partner’s extended family
Chop and change the list above to whatever suits you and your family! You can also add lists of friends groups that you’d like to capture like family photos. Friends are family too. Don't hesitate to add any friendship groups that are important to you.
Step 2: Organise your family in advance
Once you have your family photo list, make sure you contact everyone on that list to tell them they will be required for family photos. Tell them when and where, and ask them to please not wander off during that time so that you can get back to enjoying your day sooner. Generally, I recommend having your photos done straight after your ceremony (and the following hugs, of course). If your family photos are directly following the ceremony, you can also ask your celebrant to remind family members that they will be required for family photos and to stay close by.
It can also be helpful to nominate one person from each side of the family who knows everyone and can help gather people when it's their turn.
Step 3: Think about timing
Family photos will take as long as you want them to. The more photos you want captured, the longer your family photos will take. You don’t have to spend an hour taking family photos on your wedding day. It’s your wedding day after all; there’s chatting to guests, canapés to enjoy, dancing to be done and cake to eat. Capture the most important photos, maybe one larger extended family group and then straight on the immediate family. If aunts and uncles and cousins want extra photos, you could tell them that they’re more than welcome to organise these themselves during the reception. I’m always happy for people to grab me during the quiet moments of your reception for their own group shots.
If you want to spend less time taking family photos, make sure your list is short and sweet. Once you have your list, check in with your photographer and see how much time they will need to allocate for your list in your photography timeline.
Step 4: Think about Location and Style
Family photos don't have to feel stiff or overly formal.
Most photographers (myself included) will usually photograph these in one location so everything runs smoothly and your guests can get back to celebrating. We'll absolutely capture the traditional "everyone looking at the camera" portraits because those are often the photographs grandparents print and frame.
But that doesn't mean every image has to feel formal.
If you'd like a few more relaxed interactions, hugs or laughter mixed in, let your photographer know. I'd love to capture those too—it simply helps to allow a little extra time in your schedule.
Conclusion
Family photos might not be the most exciting part of your wedding timeline, but they're often the photographs that become more valuable with every passing year.
A little planning beforehand means less time organising people on the day, and more time celebrating with the people you love.
