Rehearsal Dinner Photography: The Complete Guide

I've been shooting weddings for over fifteen years, and I can tell you this with certainty: some of the most emotional moments happen at the rehearsal dinner, not the wedding. The wedding day is packed. It's scheduled down to fifteen-minute blocks. There's a timeline, a coordinator, and 200 guests watching. At the rehearsal dinner, it's just your closest people, a glass of wine, and time to breathe.

The candid factor is completely different. During the wedding, people know cameras are everywhere. They smile, they pose, they suck in their stomachs. At the rehearsal dinner, your college roommate is laughing so hard she's crying into her breadsticks. Your grandmother is holding hands with the groom under the table. The best man is nervously practicing his speech in the corner, mouthing words into his phone.

There's also a practical angle. The rehearsal dinner is often the only time you'll see certain people. Your great-aunt who flew in from Phoenix but can't stay for the reception because of her flight. The groom's buddies from his first job who drove four hours just for Friday night. Out-of-town guests mingling with locals for the first time. These interactions only happen once.

Honestly, if a couple tells me they can only add one extra event to their photography package, I'll push for the rehearsal dinner every time over a next-day session or any other add-on. The moments are that good.

Here's the honest debate. Using your wedding photographer for the rehearsal dinner has real advantages: you get consistent editing, the photographer already knows your style preferences, and most importantly, they get a trial run with your family. That last part is huge. By the time the wedding day arrives, your photographer isn't a stranger. They know Aunt Margaret talks too much, Uncle Steve hates cameras, and your mom cries at everything. That familiarity translates directly into better photos on the big day.

The downside is budget. If your wedding photography package is already stretching your finances, adding $800-$1,500 for rehearsal coverage might not make sense. And that's okay. I'd rather a couple invest in a great second shooter for their wedding than spread their photography budget thin across too many events.

There's a middle ground that works well. Many photographers, myself included, will send an associate or second shooter to cover the rehearsal dinner at a reduced rate. You still get consistent editing and someone who understands the studio's style, but at 40-60% of the lead photographer's rate. The associate gets valuable experience, and the lead photographer reviews and edits the final gallery to maintain quality. Ask your photographer about this option before assuming you can't afford rehearsal coverage.

One more thing: if you do hire a separate photographer for the rehearsal dinner, make sure you see a full gallery from a similar event they've shot, not just their five best images. Restaurant and low-light work is hard. Plenty of photographers who are brilliant outdoors in golden hour fall apart at ISO 6400 in a dim steakhouse. You want proof they can handle it.

The rehearsal dinner shot list is shorter than a wedding day but the moments carry serious weight. I think of them in three categories: details, moments, and people.

Details come first because they disappear fast. You want to photograph the venue while it's still clean and perfect, before guests arrive and move the centerpieces to make room for their elbows. Table settings, place cards, menu cards, floral arrangements, signage, gift tables, the welcome area. Spend fifteen quiet minutes documenting everything. I shoot details at f/2.8 on a 50mm or 35mm, getting close enough that the background goes soft. These images give the couple a complete visual story of the event they planned.

Moments are the heart of it. Every toast, every speech, every surprise. And don't just shoot the person talking. The real photo is almost always the reaction. Position yourself where you can see the couple's faces while someone is giving a toast. I typically stand across from the couple and off to one side, shooting at f/1.8 on an 85mm so I can isolate their expressions from the clutter behind them. Gift exchanges are another big one. If the couple is giving wedding party gifts at the rehearsal dinner, catch the handoff and the reaction in the same frame. Parent moments are gold. The quiet hand on a shoulder, the whispered "I'm so proud of you," the lingering hug.

People means group shots and candids. Get at least one good group photo of the entire rehearsal dinner party while everyone's still sober and put together. Then work the room for candids throughout the night. The laughing, the storytelling, the old friends catching up. These photos often become the couple's favorites because they capture relationships, not just poses. I'll also pull the couple outside for five minutes near the end of dinner for a few portraits together. Even in a parking lot, you can make something beautiful at f/1.4 with some distance from a streetlight. It gives them one polished image from the night.

Restaurant lighting is, without question, some of the most difficult lighting you'll encounter as a photographer. I don't care how many weddings you've shot. A dim restaurant with mixed color temperatures will humble you fast. Here's what you're up against.

Most restaurants use multiple light sources that are all different colors. You've got warm Edison bulbs overhead, cool-toned recessed LEDs in the ceiling, flickering candles on the table (orangey-yellow), and whatever ambient light bleeds in from the bar or kitchen (usually harsh fluorescent). Your camera's auto white balance doesn't know what to do with this. It picks one temperature and everything else goes either orange or blue. The fix is to shoot in raw format (always, but especially here) and set your white balance to the dominant light source manually. I usually go with 3800-4200K as a starting point in most restaurants and adjust in post.

Then there's the brightness issue. Or lack of it. Restaurants are designed for ambiance, not photography. That moody, romantic atmosphere your couple loves? It's giving you about two stops less light than you need. You're going to be wide open on your lens and pushing ISO higher than you'd like. That's fine. Modern cameras handle it. But you need to know your gear's limits. My Sony A7IV is clean up to ISO 6400 and usable at 12800 in a pinch. Older bodies might start looking rough above 3200. Know your ceiling and plan accordingly.

Overhead spotlights create another headache. Some restaurants have track lighting or recessed spots that create harsh pools of light on the table while leaving faces in shadow. The food looks amazing. The people look like they're in a witness protection program. When I scout a restaurant before the event, I check whether the spots are dimmable or adjustable and ask the manager if we can tweak them. Most restaurants are happy to accommodate a small lighting change, especially for a private event.

Candles are tricky but beautiful. If you can get close enough and shoot wide open, candlelight on faces is gorgeous. I'll use an 85mm f/1.4 at ISO 3200, let the candle be slightly in frame or just out of it, and focus on the person's nearest eye. The warm glow on their skin looks incredible. Don't fight the candlelight. Embrace it.

Let me be specific about what I bring to a rehearsal dinner and how I set it up. No vague "use fast glass" advice. Here are real settings from real shoots.

My primary body carries a 35mm f/1.4. This is my workhorse for restaurant work. It's wide enough to capture table scenes and tight enough for individual portraits when I step closer. I shoot it at f/1.4 for most of the night, stopping down to f/2.0 only when I need a bit more depth of field for two or three people talking together. ISO sits between 3200 and 6400 depending on the restaurant's lighting. Shutter speed stays at 1/125th minimum for handheld work. If toasts are happening and people are relatively still, I'll drop to 1/80th and brace against a wall or doorframe.

My second body gets an 85mm f/1.4. This is strictly for candid moments and tight emotional shots. During toasts, I switch to this lens and find a spot where I can frame the couple's faces while the speaker is slightly out of focus in the foreground. At f/1.4 on an 85mm, the background melts into beautiful bokeh even in an ugly restaurant. ISO 3200-6400, same shutter speed range.

For details before guests arrive, I sometimes switch to a 50mm f/1.4 and work at f/2.8 so the table settings are sharp but the room behind them softens. If the restaurant has any window light during setup, use it. Even indirect window light is better than overhead spots for detail shots.

Here's what I don't bring: a flash. Ninety percent of the time, flash at a rehearsal dinner is overkill and ruins the mood. The only exception is if the restaurant has white ceilings under about ten feet. In that case, I'll have a speedlight on one body set to TTL with minus two stops exposure compensation and a quarter-cut CTO gel. Bounced off the ceiling at that low power, it adds just a kiss of fill light without anyone noticing. But honestly, I'd rather push to ISO 8000 and keep the ambient feel than blast flash and make it look like a news conference.

As for the full gear rundown, bring two bodies, no exceptions. If one dies at a rehearsal dinner, you've lost the evening. Bring more memory cards than you think you need and a fully charged battery in each body plus one backup. Restaurant shoots eat battery faster than outdoor work because of high ISO and constant autofocus hunting in low light.

Here's a typical rehearsal dinner photography timeline that works. I've refined this over hundreds of rehearsal dinners, and it keeps you efficient without being intrusive.

Arrive thirty minutes before guests. This is non-negotiable. You need time to shoot details, test your settings in the actual lighting, find your angles, and talk to the restaurant manager about where you can and can't go. I always introduce myself to the service staff and let them know I'll be moving around. Restaurants have tight spaces between tables, and servers carrying hot plates don't appreciate a photographer backing into their path.

Coordinate with the host or planner before the event. Find out if there's a receiving line, what order the toasts are in, and whether any surprises are planned (slideshows, gift presentations, video messages from guests who couldn't attend). I also ask who the VIPs are. Not just the couple and parents, but the grandmother who's 94 and might not make it to the wedding, or the college friend who flew in from London. These are the people I prioritize for candids.

During the cocktail and arrival period, I work fast and wide. The 35mm stays on and I'm capturing the energy of people arriving, hugging, finding their seats. This is pure photojournalism. Don't stage anything. Just be ready. Keep your shutter speed at 1/160th or faster because people are moving.

Once everyone's seated and eating, I switch between the two bodies and move slowly around the room. I try to get at least one good candid of every table and every guest. In a private dining room, I'll position myself in corners and doorways rather than walking between tables during courses. The service staff has a rhythm, and you should work around it, not against it.

Stay through dessert or the final toast. I wrap up after the last planned speech and pull the couple aside for those two-minute portrait I mentioned earlier. If the couple wants me to stay for an after-party or bar session, that's a separate conversation and usually additional time on the contract. Most rehearsal dinner coverage is 2-3 hours total, and that's plenty if you're working efficiently. Check our wedding planning timeline for how rehearsal dinner photography fits into the bigger picture.

Outdoor rehearsal dinners are a completely different beast, and honestly, they're usually easier to photograph. You've got natural light (if the timing's right), more space to move, and a less restrictive environment. I shot a gorgeous backyard rehearsal dinner in Savannah last spring where the couple set up a long farmhouse table under string lights in their parents' garden. The light at sunset was stunning, and by the time toasts happened, the string lights gave everything a warm glow.

Timing matters more outdoors. If the dinner starts at 6pm in summer, you've got golden hour working in your favor for the first hour. I'll shoot at ISO 200-400, f/2.0, with the setting sun backlighting everything beautifully. By 8pm, you're in the same low-light situation as a restaurant, just with string lights instead of chandeliers. The transition period around blue hour is actually the most beautiful window for outdoor event photography, so use it wisely.

Backyards, patios, rooftops, farms, wineries. I've shot rehearsal dinners at all of them. The advice is the same: scout it if you can, plan for the light transition from day to night, and bring a speedlight as insurance even if you don't plan to use it. One tip that has saved me multiple times outdoors: bring a small LED panel like a Lume Cube or Aputure MC. Set it on the table during toasts aimed at the speaker's face. It's subtle enough that nobody notices, but it throws enough fill to keep your ISO reasonable and ensure sharp eyes. Set it to 3200K to match the warm string lights.

The biggest challenge with outdoor rehearsals is wind. Menus blow off tables, napkins take flight, hair goes everywhere. There's nothing you can do about it except shoot through it. Some of my favorite rehearsal dinner photos have wind-blown hair and candlelight struggling to stay lit. It looks real because it is.

Let's talk money. Rehearsal dinner photography pricing varies a lot depending on your market, but here's what's typical across the industry for $2026.

In major metros like New York, DC, LA, Chicago, or San Francisco, expect $800 to $1,500 for 2-3 hours of coverage from an experienced professional. Mid-size cities run $500 to $1,000. Smaller markets and rural areas might be $400 to $700. These rates usually include editing and delivery of 100-200 final images within 2-4 weeks. If your wedding photographer offers a bundled add-on rate, it's almost always the best deal. I typically discount rehearsal coverage by 20% when it's bundled with a full wedding package.

Regarding what's included, most rehearsal dinner packages are straightforward: a set number of hours with one photographer, professional editing, and an online gallery for downloading. Some photographers include prints or an album option, but that's rarer for rehearsal dinners. I deliver rehearsal dinner galleries faster than wedding galleries because the volume is smaller and I want the couple to have them before they leave for the honeymoon if possible.

The editing style for rehearsal dinner photos should be warmer and slightly more relaxed than your wedding-day edits. I push the warmth up a touch, soften the shadows a bit, and aim for an intimate, candlelit feel even if the actual lighting was harsher. The goal is photos that look and feel like how you remember the evening, not a clinical representation of a restaurant. Check the wedding photography pricing guide for how rehearsal coverage fits into your overall budget.

For casual versus formal coverage, there's a real difference. A casual rehearsal dinner at a pizza place with the wedding party needs documentary-style coverage. No posing, no detail obsession. Just capture the fun. A formal rehearsal dinner at a private club with 80 guests and six toasts needs the full treatment: details, formals, candids, speeches, the works. Price your coverage accordingly and make sure your photographer knows which type of event to expect. Walking in thinking it's casual and finding a black-tie affair is a nightmare I've seen happen to younger photographers.