From Delivery to Heirloom: A Guide to Receiving Your Wedding Gallery
Your wedding day comes and goes in what feels like a blink — but your photos are what allow you to return to it again and again. When your gallery arrives, it can feel equal parts exciting and overwhelming. Hundreds (sometimes thousands) of images, moments you didn’t see, emotions you forgot you felt.
This guide is here to help you slow down, take it all in, and truly experience your wedding photos — not just scroll through them.
When You’ll Receive Your Gallery
Wedding galleries are delivered within an approximate timeframe quoted after your celebration. This window allows your photographer to carefully curate and edit each image with intention, ensuring the final collection reflects the day honestly and beautifully.
Editing isn’t about rushing to the finish line — it’s about honoring the story. Every image you receive is thoughtfully selected to represent the full arc of your wedding day, from the quiet moments to the loud, joyful ones.
How to View Your Gallery (This Part Matters)
Before you dive right in, here’s my biggest piece of advice: don’t rush it.
Set aside intentional time. Sit together. Pour a drink. Watch the gallery like a film instead of flipping through it like a checklist. The first time you view your photos should be about feeling, not choosing favorites to share right away. Take the time to enjoy them together.
You’ll notice things you didn’t see on the day itself — expressions, small gestures, moments unfolding in the background. Let yourself experience those without pressure.
What Your Gallery Includes
Your gallery is designed to tell a complete story, not just highlight the “big” moments.
You can expect:
A mix of candid, documentary moments and gently guided portraits
Emotional in-between moments you may not remember happening
A balance of color and black & white images
A cohesive visual narrative from start to finish
No two galleries are the same, because no two weddings are the same. Your images reflect your people, your energy, and your day as it unfolded naturally.
Choosing Favorites Without Overwhelm
It’s normal to feel a little overwhelmed when choosing favorites, especially when everything feels meaningful.
A few tips:
Start by marking images that immediately spark emotion
Take breaks and come back with fresh eyes
Focus on moments, not perfection
Favorites don’t have to be the most polished photos — often, they’re the ones that feel the most true.
A Note for Our Couples
As you move through your gallery, I encourage you to take your time — and to notice not just the moments, but how everything feels to you.
I spend many hours carefully curating and editing each gallery, and I intentionally share a generous collection of images so your story is fully told. With that said, weddings are layered, emotional, and beautifully human — and if there’s an image you love that you’d like refined, or something that feels slightly off to you, I truly want to know.
This experience doesn’t end at delivery. My goal is for you to feel completely confident and at ease with the final gallery you receive, and I’m always happy to make thoughtful adjustments when something matters to you.
Your photos are a legacy — and they deserve that level of care.
Sharing Your Photos
Your gallery is easy to share with friends and family, which makes reliving the day even more special. When posting on social media, be mindful of image quality and resizing so your photos look their best.
If you’re sharing publicly, crediting your vendors is always appreciated — weddings are a collaborative effort, and it helps support the creative teams who brought the day together.
Printing Your Photos (Please Don’t Skip This)
This might be the most important part of the entire guide.
Your photos are meant to live beyond your phone. Printing your images preserves them in a tangible, lasting way — one that can be revisited years from now without needing a password or a screen.
Professional printing ensures:
Accurate color and tones
Longevity and archival quality
A finished product worthy of your memories
Whether it’s an album, framed artwork, or keepsake prints, turning your photos into something physical transforms them into heirlooms.
Albums: Telling the Full Story
An album isn’t just a collection of favorites — it’s the story of your day, told intentionally from beginning to end.
While individual images are powerful, albums create context. They allow moments to breathe, unfold, and connect in a way highlights alone can’t. Years from now, this becomes one of the most meaningful ways to revisit your wedding day.
Backing Up Your Gallery
Once your gallery is delivered, download it as soon as possible and store it in multiple places:
Your computer
An external hard drive
Cloud storage
Treat these files as irreplaceable — because they are.
One Final Thought
Your wedding photos aren’t meant to be consumed quickly and forgotten. They’re meant to be revisited on anniversaries, shared with future children, and pulled out on quiet evenings when you want to remember how it all felt.
Slow down. Sit with them. Let them bring you back.