A run sheet is the single most useful document you’ll create during wedding planning. It’s a timed schedule shared with every vendor, family member and anyone with a job to do on the day.
Here’s how to build one that actually works for a Sydney wedding.
what goes in a wedding run sheet
Start with ceremony time and work backwards. Include hair and makeup start times, photographer arrival, when the florist delivers, and when transport needs to be where.
Then map forward from the ceremony. Canapés and drinks, formalities, meal service, cake cutting, first dance, speeches if they’re after dinner. Be specific with times, not vague blocks.
Add contact numbers for every vendor at the top. Include your celebrant, venue coordinator, florist, band or DJ, and your Sydney wedding photographer. When something shifts, people need to communicate quickly.
timing the photography schedule
Most couples allocate 90 minutes between ceremony and reception for family portraits, bridal party shots and couple photos. In summer that’s plenty. In winter when light fades by 5pm, you may need to shoot before the ceremony or skip the extended couple session.
If you’re working with documentary wedding photographers in Sydney who favour a less structured approach, you might only need 20 minutes for immediate family after the ceremony. The rest happens as it happens.
Build buffer time around transport. Sydney traffic between a city ceremony and a northern beaches reception can add 30 minutes you didn’t plan for.
coordinating vendor arrival times
Your florist needs access before you arrive to dress the ceremony space. Your videographer may want to capture getting ready moments earlier than your photographer. Your celebrant will usually arrive 20 minutes before guests.
List these in sequence on your run sheet with venue access times confirmed. If your reception venue has restrictions on bump-in hours or noise curfews, note those clearly.
For venues with multiple events in one day, timing is tighter. Your run sheet becomes a contract of sorts, so be realistic about what you can achieve in the windows available.
who receives the final run sheet
Send it to every vendor two weeks out, then again three days before with any updates. Your venue coordinator, celebrant, photographer, florist, caterer, band, hair and makeup artist, transport company and anyone else you’ve hired.
Parents and bridal party members need it too, especially if they’re responsible for specific tasks. A shared Google Doc works well if details are still shifting.
At Super 35 we receive a run sheet for every wedding we shoot. It’s referred to constantly, even when the day unfolds differently than planned.
sample timeline for a sydney wedding
Here’s a workable structure for a 4pm ceremony and 6pm reception start:
- 1.00pm – hair and makeup complete
- 2.00pm – photographer arrival
- 2.30pm – florist delivers to ceremony venue
- 3.15pm – couple dressed, final details
- 3.30pm – guests arrive, pre-ceremony drinks
- 4.00pm – ceremony begins
- 4.30pm – ceremony ends, canapés and lawn games
- 5.00pm – family and couple portraits
- 6.00pm – reception doors open
- 6.30pm – entrances and first dance
- 7.00pm – entrees served
- 8.00pm – speeches during mains
- 9.30pm – cake cutting
- 11.00pm – venue curfew
Adjust for your season, location and formality level. Ceremonies before 3pm in summer let you use natural light for portraits without rushing.
building in contingency time
Delays happen. Makeup runs over, traffic snarls, a bridesmaid’s zip breaks. Add 15-minute buffers before major moments.
If your ceremony is at 4pm, aim to be ready by 3.30pm. That window absorbs small dramas without pushing the entire day back.
Share a contact person with your vendors who isn’t you. A day-of coordinator, a trusted friend, or a family member who can troubleshoot so you don’t field logistics questions while getting dressed.
A good run sheet removes ambiguity. Everyone knows where to be, when to be there, and who to call if plans change.
