At this point, it’s become common knowledge that 8am is ‘the time’ to enter San Francisco City Hall. 8am is when the doors open, and being so early in the morning, naturally, there are fewer people who want to go through the hassle of getting ready at the crack of dawn.
Truly, it IS undoubtedly a lot more effort preparing for photos at 8am than any other time of day. It’s a unique experience. In this article, my aim is to share with you the many ins and outs of what it’s like starting your wedding photos at 8am so you can decide if it’s worth it to you.
Table of Contents
Why 8am for your photography start time?
A 8am, the building is likely the emptiest it will be all day, which can’t be beat. It’s like you paid for a private buyout but instead of that high price tag, you just chose careful planning. So yes, the doors have just opened, the crowds haven’t arrived, and you can get shots without anyone in the background. It’s practical: security lines are shorter, logistics are smoother.
One thing most people don’t know is that in recent years, San Francisco City Hall has become overrun with quinceañera photoshoots. They tend to come out in droves – when they’re out, there tends to be as many as 6 at a time on the Grand Staircase, plus others dotted around the building. However, they seem to be there during afternoons only (at least right now) and proliferate more and more toward the end of the day. I rarely see them there during the early mornings. I’m sure many are there after school hours.
A huge bonus that I offer to couples that work with me personally is this: because I always arrive super early, I’d encourage photos in the trees as early as 7:15, 7:30 before we’re able to step inside the building. You’re getting sunrise photos – that’s where the light is magical. Here’s an example:
To recap the benefits:
- Emptiest building possible – (with some caveats I’ll get into!) fewer people means fewer distractions in photos and less waiting time for others to be done.
- Faster logistics – security and elevators move quickly.
- Outside photos at sunrise – this is when the light is best – and it’s a bonus!
Even with all of that, it’s not without challenges. Early mornings at City Hall are a big ask, and some couples realize that only after walking through the process.
The whole process requires effort, planning, and, sometimes, a little flexibility. This isn’t a simple “just show up” situation. There are a lot of moving parts, and if any of them go off schedule, your carefully planned morning can get derailed in ways that aren’t obvious until you experience them.
Let’s find out why 8am is an opportunity, not a guarantee. The TikTok video linked below goes into more of the ins and outs:
What timeslot should I book if I want to start photos at 8am at City Hall?
Civil Ceremonies
You could book a 9am timeslot for your civil ceremony, but given that you’d have to check in 15 minutes before, that would only give us 45 minutes of active shooting time within City Hall. After the ceremony, it’s formal groupings, or onto outdoor locations in lieu of formal groupings for eloping couples.
9.30 could be a better timeslot to choose, as that would give us from 8am – 9.15 to play around at City Hall. Though that may sound like a lot, the time it takes is a lot because of both the extensive ground to cover and the fact that there may be some waiting time involved.
The more time we have, the better photos usually are, because it takes folks time to warm up in front of the camera, and truly get creative, beyond the basics. Therefore, with a 9.30am ceremony slot, your overall timing could be 8 – 10.30am (as your ceremony would only be getting done around 9.50am, and then we’d have the group formals to do. Bear in mind, this requires an extra half-hour to be booked, but it is optimal. For more about the timeline, read the article below:
And my civil ceremony guide is linked below if you’re still trying to figure out the basics of the ceremony types and how it all works.
Private 1-hour ceremonies
For private ceremonies, the optimal time is 9am if booking the 4th Floor. This gives us around 55 minutes if you’d like to head up to the ceremony space a little before 9.
You could consider a 10am ceremony time on the Mayor’s Balcony, meaning you’d contract from potentially 9.15 – 11.15am, or to get more out of the early part of the day, you could add some time onto the front end.
Why 8am Is Hard
There’s so much that people don’t think about from the obvious ones like hair & makeup and traffic, to the ones that most people miss like dresses that need to be steamed, forgetting your bouquet in the hotel room, and the fact that Ubers sometimes cancel.
Not allowing enough time for hair & makeup
I interviewed San Francisco City Hall HMUA Christina Chen (linked above) about the realities of early mornings. Her timeline for a bride starting at an 8am shoot looked like this:
- 3:30 am: Wake up (in your hotel in San Francisco)
- 3:30 – 3.45 am: Shower, eat/drink; prep hair and face (already washed & dried, skin exfoliated the day before)
- 3.45 am: Arrival of HMU, chit chat before starting
- 3:45 – 6.45 am: Full hair & makeup session (~3 hours)
- 6:45 – 7:00 am: Get into dress & touchups
- 7:00 – 7.20 am: Uber to City Hall in rush-hour traffic
Hair and makeup can take longer than expected for a variety of reasons. Here are just some of the scenarios that commonly arise which eat into the time that’s been allocated for the HMU process:
- No trial so HMUA tries different styles day-of to see what works
- Bride is distracted by phone so HMUA can’t work
- Bride is eating/drinking while services are taking place
- Bride changes mind on style
- Bride has breakout/skin issue that takes longer to address
- HMU arrives late (missed alarm, can’t find parking etc)
- Time estimate for services was not accurate
Note: your style choice, as well as your choice of HMUA, affects how long prep takes, so check with your HMUA rather than relying solely on general averages.
Not staying in San Francisco the night before and after
You’ll notice I said HMUA arrives at your hotel, not your home (unless you live within SF). I strongly recommend staying in San Francisco the night before and after your wedding — yes, even if you live elsewhere in the Bay Area! Morning rush hour is no joke, and the time and stress you’ll save is significant.
Why do I say before and after the wedding? The night before the wedding, the benefits are obvious: you wake up already in the city, ready for one of the popular SF City Hall makeup artists to come to you (or you can head to their studio, many of which are conveniently close to City Hall).
Staying after the wedding helps too. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck checking out of the hotel with all your luggage right when you’re supposed to be leaving for your ceremony. This is a day to enjoy and indulge a little. A hotel stay lets you slow down, enjoy, and add a touch of luxury to make the whole experience feel more special and memorable for you and your partner.
My recommendation is the Fairmont Hotel where the photo below was taken, but I have an extensive selection of ideas in my guide:
Not allowing a realistic estimate for driving
Traffic is unpredictable. I commute from Oakland, less than 15 miles away, but on bad days it’s taken me an hour and a half. Yup, an hour an a half.
Even if it seems unlikely, don’t wing it — plan for the maximum possible delay, not the average. This is one event you absolutely can’t be late for.
I always allow time for accidents that literally haven’t happened yet. GPS estimates are misleading, too, because checking it from home versus checking it mid-route are two very different things. During rush hour, even leaving just a few minutes later can add more than half an hour to your arrival.
Parking isn’t easy either, if you don’t know where you’re heading to. I recommend the Civic Center Garage (355 McAllister) because spaces are always available (pro tip: don’t worry about trying to find a spot on the 1st level. All levels require an elevator, even the 1st. Instead, drive right down to the 2nd or 3rd level. Spots are much easier and it’s more spacious).
Even so, it can take 10–15 minutes find your spot, park up, ensure you’ve grabbed everything you need, and walk into City Hall.
Not allowing a realistic estimate for ridesharing apps
Rideshares will definitely mitigate a lot of the stress of driving, but even they are not a perfect solution. Not only is there sometimes a shortage of drivers, they can be pretty unreliable – Uber/ Lyfts cancel, sometimes multiple times (it’s happened to past clients!). That alone can add 10–20 minutes of stress if you’re not ready for it.
Waymo is hardly any better, in fact, it can be a worse option. That’s because Waymo is more limited in terms of where it can safely stop. For example, I know from my experience with couples it will not pick up from the front of City Hall, where you enter/exit the building.
Therefore, couples have had to walk to Van Ness and MacAllister just to be picked up! It may be the same for drop-off, but I’m not with couples for that part usually. Waymo has trouble navigating where it can safely pull in, which a human driver does not.
An additional issue with Waymo is that it seems to avoid freeways. One time, while traveling with a couple from their getting-ready location to their wedding venue, this easily added 10 minutes to the journey, increasing the time from 30 minutes to 40 minutes. When everyone is waiting for you to arrive at your ceremony, and your planner is wondering where you are, that’s a lot of extra time!
Retrieving forgotten items
This one happens more than you’d think: bouquets, rings, marriage licenses, or other essentials are often left behind. To be honest, it’s always the bouquet! I think because it’s usually in a vase doing its own thing, away from the other items you’ve already packed away in a bag.
Couples sometimes have to run back to their hotel room, losing the lead time they’d put so much effort into. It sounds small, but that equates to a lot of lost photo time as traffic builds up even more by the time they’re on the road again. Such is rush hour in San Francisco.
Not allowing time for entry and security
Even at 8am, City Hall is not always quiet. Security lines, other couples, and elevator waits all take time. Walking in your dress or formal shoes isn’t as quick as in sneakers. Add in gathering your items, touching up makeup, and final adjustments, and those extra 20–30 minutes add up.
Notice how small delays—traffic, Uber cancellations, late HMUA—compound quickly and eat into what should be your core photography time.
Real-Life Unpredictability
One phenomenon I’ve noticed lately is that everyone seems to know the ‘secret’ that 8am is the best time to enter San Francisco City Hall! One day in August 2025 I saw around 20 people all entering the building at this supposedly ‘quiet’ time.
There were different groups, not just one big party. I was there with my couple super early (well before 8am) hoping for a near-empty Staircase, though admittedly it was a Friday.
It quickly became apparent that all these people had arrived with the same idea to get on the Staircase first. One couple and their photographer began using the staircase, shoo-ing others away. I made the decision with my couple not to wait, but to use other areas of the building first. However, another couple that would’ve been ahead of us, I noticed, were still waiting for their turn a whopping 30 minutes later, when I happened to glance down!
And, in the same half-hour, someone actually flew a drone inside City Hall, which was promptly shut down by the sheriffs. It was a crazy day! And you never know when the next crazy day may happen.
Moral of the story: 8am can be amazing, but it’s not a guaranteed private experience. The truth is, you need to be prepared for it all. Even if you do everything perfectly, nothing is guaranteed. I shared more about in the TikTok video linked below:
Bonus Time & Photographer Perks
I always give bonus time to couples who work with me personally. Meaning whatever time we’ve contracted for, plan to arrive around 30 – 45 minutes before that. Even 1 hour – I’m always there freakishly early, just in case somehow it happens that I get hit with unholy delays on the Bay Bridge, I still shouldn’t be *actually* late, whatever happens.
I always make couples aware of this, and have them ensure they’ve planned accordingly for their pre-ceremony portion.
But remember: if you’re late, that’s lost photography you can’t recover. This bonus time is offered as an incentive to arrive on time (early), so won’t be offered at the end instead! However, if I have no subsequent weddings right after yours, the offer is there to extend time with me at my regular rate for a la carte hours (in half-hour increments).
Wrap-Up
8am photography is fantastic for some couples, especially if you love early mornings, want the outside sunrise light and a shot at the empty and quiet City Hall feeling. But it’s a lot to ask: hair, makeup, hotel stays, travel, parking, security, forgotten items, and logistics all stack together.
If mornings stress you out, or you’d rather sleep in, no worries at all about choosing a later start. You’ll still get beautiful photos, but with a lot more people around.
Book your San Francisco City Hall wedding photographer
If you’re looking for a wedding photographer for your San Francisco City Hall ceremony that brings a high level of detail to every aspect of planning your photography, get in touch! I love helping my couples with anything I can, and I offer a high level of customized assistance so you can be sure your big day goes off without a hitch, despite all the unknowns of the process of getting married in a busy public building.
I do recommend ensuring you have your ceremony booked first before reaching out so you’re ready to move forward with the process, but either way, I’d love to hear from you!
Zoe Larkin
I’m Zoe, a wedding photographer based in San Francisco! My style is candid, capturing authentic moments for my couples all over the Bay Area and Northern California. Creating content is my passion! Follow along on the blog, Instagram, TikTok & YouTube!
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