I get this same question every week in my inbox… What time should I put on my wedding invitation for the start time of my sunset beach wedding. My personal and professional opinion from my photography style standpoint is about1.5 hours before sunset. This will vary between photographers depending on how they actually handle family and bridal party portraits. I know there are a ton of photographers that want you to allow 1 to 2 hours for family and bridal party portraits after the ceremony. I personally feel that this is crunch time to get these portraits done and out of the way. I don’t like to take over 30 to 45 minutes for all portraits, there is no need to keep your guests waiting over 1 hour for you to arrive at the reception. My personal itinerary for a Pensacola Beach Sunset Wedding would be to finish up at least 15 minutes before sunset:
If the sun is scheduled to set at 6:30 my schedule would look like this:
5:00 - 5:30 ceremony
5:30 - 6:00 family portraits and bridal party portraits
6:00 - 6:15 bride groom portraits
6:15 - 6:30 travel to reception
So from the end of the ceremony to you arriving at the reception is generally around 1 hour.
Yes… I really can get ALL your family portraits and bridal portraits done within 45 minutes. After the ceremony the wedding party and the Bride and Groom are ready to take a breather and get the reception started, so I don’t keep you waiting. The most favorite part of my job is capturing you in a natural state, sharing intimate moments together after the ceremony, guests congratulating you high fives from the wedding party…. The family portraits that follow the ceremony DO NOT FALL into a “Favorites” category…lol But it is something that must be done, I must take endless family portraits, and you must smile for endless family portraits… so why make you stand there any longer than necessary? I have a very tedious guideline that I have followed for many years and have a great approach to getting portraits done efficiently and quickly.
Reference: a great site for sunset times for your wedding planning: TimeandDate.com
Can’t wait to be a part of your big day | Love you guys ….. Jen
I brought the red bucket for Hannah to sit on… she is so on the go that that lasted about 2 seconds…lol but she did want to sit IN IT while dad was holding it… hey whatever works …lol
I think this last one is my favorite… this was the end of the session, Hannah is TIRED OF ME… tired of smiling… her face is wind chapped and pink (so cute) … but I LOVE IT !!!! Hannah, take care of you mom and dad, you are one lucky gal to have so much love pouring over you every second of the day ;-) Love you guys….. Jen 
I think this is one of my all time favorite family pics ;-) Ray intentionally wore his work clothes to the session because he WAS NOT going to be in the pics, but I bet Shannon was smiling ear to ear when she noticed he was going to be wearing a dark gray shirt….lol Gray blends in really nicely with black and white…lol Sorry Ray !
Photographe Pour Mariage: It was cool! When I saw those pictures, it feels like those picturesque had taken me away to another side of heaven.