Editing Weddings Efficiently: My 1-2 Rule for Cutting Down Post-Production Time

Let’s be honest—editing is one of the most time-consuming parts of being a photographer. If you're anything like me, you probably love the excitement of shooting a wedding day… but the post-production part? Not so much (at least at first!).

When I started my photography business, editing felt like this endless black hole. I’d shoot a beautiful wedding and then procrastinate for days—sometimes weeks—before diving into the thousands of RAW images waiting for me. I was constantly playing catch-up, and it started to take a toll on both my business and my personal life.

But here’s the truth I had to learn the hard way:
If you want to be a full-time creative, you have to treat it like a full-time job.

💡 Mindset Shift: From Dreading Edits to Owning My Workflow

We photographers are lucky—we get to be our own boss. But with that freedom comes responsibility. Just because I worked an 8-hour wedding doesn’t mean that counts as a full work week. Editing, marketing, client communication... it all adds up.

So instead of viewing editing as a chore, I reframed it as a challenge—like a game.
How quickly, efficiently, and beautifully can I complete this next project?
Game on. 🎮

📷 It All Starts In-Camera

One of the biggest game-changers for me?
Realizing that editing starts before you ever sit down at the computer.

Wedding days are full of lighting curveballs—dark prep rooms, golden-hour portraits, moody reception halls. But I realized if I could shoot consistently within each lighting scenario, my editing would become 10x easier.

So I focused on getting it right in-camera:

• Correct exposure

• Intentional white balance

• Clean compositions

• Shooting in manual 100% of the time

Once I made this change, my Lightroom edits required way fewer adjustments—and I could fly through galleries with much more consistency.

🖥️ Culling: My Secret Weapon = Photo Mechanic

I used to cull by hand in Lightroom… and it took forever.

Switching to Photo Mechanic was one of the BEST decisions I ever made. It’s insanely fast, and I can cull a full wedding in a fraction of the time. No more lag, no more waiting for previews. Just a super streamlined process that gives me a clean set of selects ready for editing.

🚀 My 1-2 Rule: The Post-Wedding Power Move

Here’s the system that completely changed my turnaround time and stress level:
I call it my 1-2 Rule, and yes—it’s totally made up, but so effective.

Step 1: The Night Of

When I get home from a wedding (even if it’s 11 PM), I:

• Back up all of my SD cards to multiple drives

• Cull the images with Photo Mechanic

• Start editing while I’m still on that “wedding high”

Yes, sometimes I’m editing until 1 AM—but it’s a super productive use of time while I’m still excited about the images.

Step 2: The Next Day

I finish editing the gallery the next day while everything is still fresh in my mind. I do my final polish, upload the gallery to Pixieset, and get it ready for delivery.

🎉 Result?
One wedding = two days of focused work = 5 days of freedom. I can breathe, reset, and not feel like I’m drowning in a backlog of editing.

💭 Final Thoughts

If editing feels like a struggle right now, know that you're not alone—and it doesn't have to stay that way. The trick is finding a workflow that works for you, getting consistent in-camera, and changing your mindset.

When I stopped dreading post-production and started owning my workflow, everything changed. I now feel proud of the entire process—from the moment I click the shutter to the second I hit “send” on a finished gallery.

And guess what?
You can get there too.

Have questions about editing, workflow tools, or backup systems?

Let’s chat! Drop your questions below or shoot me a message at hello@rebeccamusayev.com.