Cocktail hour has been a long standing part of the typical wedding day timeline. It’s a chance for the guests to relax and unwind after the ceremony as they wait for the reception to start. This tradition was put into place as for a number of years couples had no time other than between their ceremony and reception to have their portrait photos taken. While this timeline layout is definitely still present, in modern times couples have gotten much more creative with their wedding day timelines! One thing that I love from this, and the topic of today’s article, is the somewhat recent trend of couples attending their own cocktail hour! But why do couples want to attend their own cocktail hour, and how is it possible to do so without missing out on portrait photos? Let’s find out!

5 Reasons Why I Encourage My Couples to Attend Their Cocktail Hour

1. You Can Spend More Time with Friends and Family

The first and probably most important reason couples choose to attend their own cocktail hour for their wedding day is to spend more quality time with their guests. Without attending cocktail hour, couples are left with just their reception time to say hello and chat with their guests. This becomes especially challenging for larger weddings as it feels like there just isn’t enough time to talk to everyone there without it being a rushed “Hello, thank you so much for coming!”, and then moving on to the next guest.

By attending cocktail hour couples are able to spend more time mingling with their guests, and even have actual meaningful conversations with them! Plus, with this taking place immediately after their ceremony everyone will be riding on the high of excitement which makes this time all the more fun to greet and thank everyone.

2. SO MANY CANDIDS

The main concern of attending cocktail hour for most couples is they think they’ll have to miss out on newlywed, wedding party, and family photos because of it. This definitely isn’t the case, which we’ll talk about later, but another factor to take into consideration is just how many more candid photos you’ll receive in your wedding album when you do attend cocktail hour! As I mentioned above, everyone will be on cloud 9 in terms of excitement after your ceremony, so all of your interactions are going to be ones of pure and profound joy! This creates so many fun and memorable interactions between the couple and their favorite people, all of which will be documented for the couple to enjoy for YEARS to come!

3. Allows You to Enjoy Dinner

Yet another benefit of attending your own cocktail hour is the freedom it gives you to ACTUALLY enjoy your dinner! Without attending cocktail hour you’re likely to feel pressured to finish your food as quickly as possible so that you can start making your rounds to all of the different tables. By attending cocktail hour though you’ve already done a fair share of your socialization for the night, so sit back, relax, and enjoy that delicious meal! You deserve it!

4. You Can Enjoy the Cocktail Hour Food

This is probably the most overlooked benefit of attending your own wedding’s cocktail hour! Not only are you able to relax and enjoy your meal during your reception, but you’re actually able to eat the finger foods and hors devours you chose for your cocktail hour. Anyone that’s attended a wedding can attest that the finger foods served at cocktail hour are often some of the best, and are usually something the couple completely misses out on. Don’t let that happen to you! 

5. Have Portraits Earlier in the Day

Finally, let’s talk about your newlywed, wedding party, and family portraits! With cocktail hour being the usual time for portraits, that of course means that couples have to do these photos at a different point in the day. This is where having a first look comes into play. A first look is another relatively new wedding tradition, and is as the name suggests a first look between the soon to be newlyweds prior to their ceremony. This newer wedding tradition came about as a means for couples to share an intimate and emotional moment with one another prior to their ceremony.

A huge benefit that came about from this tradition is that with the couple having seen one another they were now able to have their newlywed portraits done. This then extended to including wedding party photos into this timeframe, which in turn gave couples a lot of flexibility with their wedding day timeline.

Taking advantage of this flexibility is what has allowed couples to now start to attend the cocktail hour of their wedding day! Immediately after their ceremony the couple will likely take family portraits, but that’s it! They can then head to cocktail hour and enjoy themselves, and still have time later on in the day for some portraits at sunset if they’d like as well. The only downside then is that there isn’t that big reveal moment when the bride first walks down the aisle. You still get that big reveal with a first look, though it is a much more personal moment which can be even more appealing for some couples!

Should You Attend Your Wedding’s Cocktail Hour?

Ultimately, the answer comes down to what you want! If you want that big reveal of seeing your soon to be spouse as they walk down the aisle of your ceremony, then that is totally fine and you’re sure to still love your wedding day. If the reasons I’ve listed above all sound great to you though then you may want to talk with your partner about having a first look in order to attend your wedding’s cocktail hour. Again, the choice is completely yours to make and the answer is different for everyone, but I do strongly recommend you consider the option for your day!

Thanks for reading along, and I hope this article made you consider the possibility of attending cocktail hour for your own wedding! For a look at more of my work be sure to check out my blog and Instagram, and if you’re ready to book me as your photographer you should send me an inquiry via my contact page!