The Irish wedding family photo list
Irish weddings have bigger families, longer days and less reliable weather than most guides assume. Here’s a list that works with that.
6 min read · Updated 7 October 2026
Generic family photo lists are written for small families and sunny gardens. An Irish wedding often means a church ceremony, a drive to a hotel or country house, a drinks reception with a lot of people you’re related to, and weather that changes three times before dinner.
Church steps or the hotel?
Many Irish couples do the biggest group on the church steps, while everyone is still there and before cars start leaving. Then they do the smaller family groupings at the reception venue, where there’s more space, better light and somewhere to shelter if it rains.
- Church: one or two big groups, maybe the whole congregation if the steps allow it.
- Hotel or venue: the family groupings, in order, during the drinks reception.
A typical Irish wedding family photo list
At the church
- 1Couple with everyone on the church stepsAsk your photographer whether there’s a raised spot to shoot from
At the venue: first family
- 1Couple with Nana or GrandadChair ready, first shot of the day
- 2Couple with the whole family, aunts, uncles and cousins included
- 3Couple with immediate familyParents, siblings, their partners and children, grandparents
- 4Couple with parents and siblings
- 5Couple with parents
- 6Couple with godparentsOften forgotten, often wanted
Second family
- 1Same order as the first family
To finish
- 1Couple with the wedding party
- 2Couple with both familiesIf there’s space and appetite
When the family is very big
If one side has ten aunts and uncles and forty cousins, don’t try to photograph them in separate family units. Do one extended family group per side and let your photographer catch the smaller combinations during the reception and the afters. See wedding photos with a very large family.
Name a wrangler for each side
Pick one person from each family who knows everybody and isn’t shy. Give them the list. They’ll find the missing uncle in the bar faster than any photographer can.
Plan for rain
Ask your venue where family photos happen if it rains: a covered porch, a big entrance hall, the staircase. Tell your photographer in advance and keep your list short enough to work indoors. Check sunset and golden hour for your date too: it’s past 9.30pm in June, but just after 4pm in December.
Make your family photo list with faces, so your photographer knows which one is Auntie Bernie.
Make my family photo listQuestions people ask
Where are family photos usually taken at an Irish wedding?
Often one big group at the church after the ceremony, then the family groupings at the hotel or venue during the drinks reception.
Should godparents be in Irish wedding photos?
Many Irish couples include a photo with their godparents. It’s easy to forget, so add it to your list if it matters to you.
How do you photograph a very large Irish family?
Do one extended family group per side, then the smaller groupings. Use a raised position like steps or a balcony for the big group.