Wedding Workflow: 10 Things To Do After You Photograph A Wedding

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Do you have a wedding workflow for your photography business? When I was shooting weddings full time I would have my clients’ photos edited to perfection and back to them in less than a week.

I know this is shocking to a lot of photographers—some of my friends would take 8-12 weeks in their turnaround… And then ask me how I did it in just a week (or less)!

But it really shouldn’t take that long… and if you turn photos around quicker, you’ll have much happier clients—I’m talking clients that will be bragging (about you!) to all of their friends and family!

Sound awesome? It is—that’s why I’m going to share my post-wedding workflow with you today:

1. Back Up All Wedding Photo Files

Yes! Back them up. As soon as you get home from the wedding.

And then back them up again.

This should go without saying but those wedding photography files are precious and they’re priceless to your clients. So save yourself the head ache, and save your clients the heart ache of lost images by backing them up ASAP.

2. Cull Photographs

After the photos were backed up, the next step in my wedding workflow was to go through and cull all the photos. [This means you’ll cut out all duplicates, blurry or bad shots, and anything that you don’t want to deliver to your client].

I used Lightroom for this, and I’d give myself a max of 3 hours. I’d “star” every photo I liked, then go back through and give a second star to every photo I loved.

Then I’d go through a third time (only looking at 2-star photos), and knock a star off for anything that I didn’t need to keep (meaning I didn’t absolutely love it, it was similar to another photo, etc.).

And that final group of 2-stars were the only photographs I’d keep.

3. Mark Your Favorite Photographs

After culling the photos, the next step in my wedding workflow was to go through and give a 3rd star to my “favorite” photographs.

These were anything I wanted to feature on social media or use in the blog post. Mostly these were my highly stylized images of the couple and detail shots—but I also wanted to make sure that I was telling a cohesive visual story with the images I chose.

4. Edit Favorite Wedding Photos

After making my 3-star list, I’d go through and edit them all, only using Lightroom.

By doing these first (and typically within the first 24 hours following the wedding day), I’d have done two things:

1. I’d get a beautiful collection of social media-worthy images that I could begin sharing while my clients and their guests were still caught up in the wedding festivities and excitement.
2. I’d give myself a guideline for how to edit the rest of the images (which was sometimes as easy as batching them in sets! Thank you, Lightroom!).

5. Schedule and Post to Social Media

Once the 3-star photos were edited (50 max.), I’d select my favorites (yes, favorites of my favorites 😂) and schedule those to post to my social media accounts throughout the week.

Doing this through out the week following my clients’ wedding day helped to build excitement while the event was still fresh on everyone’s mind—and is one of the most important parts of a post wedding workflow!

How To Be Effective And Efficient With Your Social Media

I highly recommend using scheduling apps instead of trying to post “in the moment.”

That way you’ll ensure an even release of images through out the week, at prime times! Because let’s be honest, we all know how crazy your week can get—especially when you’re trying to edit an entire wedding!

So do yourself a favor and spend an hour scheduling everything as soon as you’ve got those “favorite” 3-star images edited. (And yes! You can have this done within the first 24 hours… so do it! You’ll thank me later—I promise!).

Take Your Social Media Next Level

My favorite scheduling apps are Planoly for Instagram and Tailwind for Pinterest! You can learn more about how I’ve used these two apps (and social media platforms) to grow my business like crazy in these videos:

• Instagram Tips: 5 Steps To Grow Your Account For Your Business
• Small Business Marketing: How To Book More Clients With Pinterest

And if you’re finally ready to turn your ho-hum social posts into a successful social media marketing machine—then check out my new Social Media Course!

6. Write and Schedule The Wedding Blog Post

After scheduling all of the social media, I’d work on the blog post.

Now hopefully I don’t need to tell you how important blogging is for your wedding photography business. But if you still need convincing check out: Why You Need To Be Blogging For Your Photography Business

Remember that collection of 50-ish 3-star images I mentioned before? Well, those were my blog post images.

I’d export all the 3-star images from Lightroom choosing the proper resolution, and adding a watermark. (Again, thank you Lightroom!)

Then I’d write and schedule the blog post. I’d always have the post go live Wednesday or Thursday morning, after the couple’s wedding. [These days seem to get the most traffic and exposure].

7. Email the Wedding Couple

Once the social media and blog posts were scheduled, I’d email my clients and let them know to look for sneak peeks (social media) throughout the week, and their full wedding (blog post) that Wednesday (or Thursday).

I’d also thank them again for choosing to work with me, let them know how fabulous their photos were turning out—and just get them excited to see more!

8. Finish Editing Wedding

After the 3-star images were finished, I’d go back to my 2-star photos and start editing. I’d use the 3-stars to batch a lot of my editing (this saves a ton of time! And it helps ensure that your editing is consistent).

9. Email Other Vendors

On Wednesday or Thursday (when the wedding blog post goes live), I’d email the other vendors and give them a link to check it out.

If you caught my last post (10 Things To Do Before Shooting A Wedding), you’ll remember I mentioned emailing them before the wedding to see if there were any photos they’d want.

So now is when I’d also send those photos (usually 5-10 that featured their work). I’d also thank them for their hard work, and mention collaborations or styled shoots if it was someone I wanted to work with again.

10. Upload Final Files To Client Gallery

After I got the blog post up, I’d spend the rest of the week getting all of the wedding photos edited. As soon as they were done I’d upload them to an online gallery for my clients (usually via PASS), and email the client that they were ready for viewing!

And that’s it for my post-wedding workflow!

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Is it kind of crazy to edit a wedding in a week? Maybe…. But I can’t tell you how many of my clients reached out saying how surprised and excited they were to have their entire wedding back before they’d even returned from their honeymoon!

Totally worth it!

Your Turn!

So what do you think of my wedding workflow? Are you going to start turning around photos in a week? If you do, let me know in a comment below! I’d love to know about your experience!

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Well, this concludes this month’s series, The Ultimate Guide To Being A Wedding Photographer. I hope you’ve enjoyed it—I’ve certainly enjoyed sharing some of my knowledge and experience with you!

But I’m also ready for a little break… blogging everyday has been a little crazy! I’ll be returning to my normal once-a-week routine, and back to all things business and branding for all creative female entrepreneurs, next week.

And just in case you’ve missed a few posts and would like to get caught up…

1. A Basic Guide To Equipment For Wedding Photographers
2. How To Photograph Your First Wedding (Tips for Second Shooting)
3. How To Book Clients You Love — That Love You Back! (Finding Your Ideal Client)
4. How To Build A Portfolio That Will Get You Booked
5. 3 Steps To Turn Website Visitors Into Clients
6. How To Elevate Your Brand With Styled Shoots
7. 19 Ways To Get More Wedding Photography Clients
8. What Every Photographer Needs To Know About Marketing
9. The Simple Guide To Pricing For Your Wedding Photography Business
10. How To Rock Your Client Consultations
11. How To Protect Your Business | The Legal Side Of Photography
12. How To Stay Inspired As A Creative Entrepreneur
13. How To Create An Epic Brand Experience
14. Tips For The Perfect Client Welcome Kit
15. 5 Things To Do After You Book A New Client
16. Why You Need To Be Blogging For Your Photography Biz
17. How To Use Your Blog To Grow Your Photography Business
18. 39 Blog Post Ideas For Wedding Photographers
19. What To Do When You’re Not Booking Clients
20. 3 Tips For Shooting Engagement Photos Your Clients Love
21. Creating The Perfect Wedding Timeline | Pt.1 First Look
22. Creating The Perfect Wedding Timeline | Pt. 2 Without First Look
23. How To Create A Website That Makes Brides Fall In Love | Pt. 1 The Homepage
24. How To Create A Website That Makes Brides Fall In Love | Pt. 2 The About Page
25. How To Create A Website That Makes Brides Fall In Love | Pt. 3 The Portfolio Page
26. How To Create A Website That Makes Brides Fall In Love | Pt. 4 The Services Page
27. How To Create A Website That Makes Brides Fall In Love | Pt. 5 The Contact Page
28. 10 Things To Do Before You Shoot A Wedding

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