I’m a wedding photographer so I’m always going to push for the maximum time spent with you on your day getting you beautiful, candid wedding photos. But I also know your wedding day isn’t all about me. So the one time of day I really push for getting photos (other than the first look which you should read all about here) is sunset photos.

If you didn’t know, the two best times of the day to take photos are one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset. The sun is at its lowest in the sky and creates gorgeous soft light that makes everyone look amazing. Now obviously nobody is having their wedding at sunrise (unless it’s an elopement specifically for that purpose) so the only time on your wedding day that works, would be sunset.

In the summer this usually works out perfect as the sun sets later on and you can sneak away after doing all your other wedding day duties to get some photos. I like to think of it as a second first look, a quiet moment with just me and the couple giving them some time together after all the busyness of their wedding day. You probably don’t realize this now but you don’t actually get to spend a whole lot of time with your spouse on your wedding day, so I like to give them a moment to themselves with some gorgeous soft light and the click of my camera.

Hopefully I have managed to convince you of the positives of etching out some time on your wedding day to do sunset photos, but if I haven’t, here are some examples from weddings over the past couple of years. All of these were taken at sunset on wedding days.