Last updated: 3 June 2026
Jewish wedding traditions hold some of the most meaningful and visually striking moments in all of wedding photography, from the quiet intimacy of the veiling to the roar of the hora. Norman Yap Photography is the personal wedding photography label of Norman Yap, a Perth, Western Australia wedding photographer specialising in full-day, upper-tier and luxury weddings, and we have had the privilege of documenting these celebrations across the city. Norman brings a dual perspective to this guide, both as a photographer who has worked across more than 300 weddings in Western Australia and as a groom who planned his own day. What follows walks through what happens at a traditional Jewish wedding, the order the ceremony tends to follow, and the practical considerations that matter most when you are deciding how the day will be captured. Whether you are marrying soon or attending your first Jewish wedding, the aim is to help you understand the rhythm of the day and why each part carries such weight.
Definition: Jewish wedding traditions are the customs that shape a Jewish marriage ceremony and celebration, including the chuppah canopy, the signing of the ketubah, the seven blessings, the breaking of the glass, and the hora chair dance. The specific customs observed vary across Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and secular weddings.
Understanding Jewish wedding traditions matters because each ritual carries meaning that deserves to be recognised and captured with care. Photography is consistently ranked among the top three priorities for Australian couples (ABIA Supplier Sentiment Report, 2025), and around 92 percent say their photos become their most treasured keepsake from the day (wedding industry surveys, 2024). At a Jewish wedding, the moments that matter most often happen quickly and in low light, the veiling, the breaking of the glass, the first lift of the hora. At Norman Yap Photography, we plan around the order of the day so a photographer can be in position before each moment arrives, rather than reacting once it has already passed.
This guide is most useful if you are planning a Jewish wedding, marrying into a Jewish family, or attending one for the first time and want to understand what you are seeing. It will also help if you are weighing up how many photographers your day needs. If your ceremony is more secular or blends traditions from more than one culture, you may observe only some of the customs described here, and that is entirely usual. There is no single correct way to hold a Jewish wedding, and many couples choose the elements that feel right to them. If you would like help thinking through how your day might be captured, you are welcome to reach out to the studio.
A traditional Jewish wedding ceremony tends to follow a clear sequence, beginning with separate pre-ceremony receptions and ending with the couple sharing a private moment alone. The exact customs vary between Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and secular weddings, but the structure below reflects the order most couples recognise. Knowing this sequence is what lets a photographer anticipate each moment rather than chase it.
The day often opens with separate receptions for each partner, known as Kabbalat Panim. In many communities the groom holds a tisch, a gathering with singing and toasts, while guests greet the couple before the ceremony begins.
The bedeken is the veiling, when the groom lowers the veil over the bride's face. It is one of the most emotional moments of the day, traditionally the first time the couple see each other before the ceremony, and it carries the idea that character matters more than appearance.
The couple then stand together beneath the chuppah, the wedding canopy that gives the ceremony its visual centre. Open on all sides, the chuppah symbolises the home the couple will build together. In many ceremonies the bride circles the groom, or the partners circle each other, before the betrothal blessings are recited over the first cup of wine.
The ketubah, the Jewish marriage contract, sets out the commitments of the marriage and is signed by two witnesses, often before the ceremony and read aloud beneath the chuppah. The marriage becomes official when the groom places a plain ring on the bride's finger and recites the declaration of marriage.
The Sheva Brachot are seven blessings recited over a second cup of wine, often shared among family and friends who are each honoured with a reading. The blessings move from gratitude for creation to joy for the couple, linking their union to something larger than the day itself.
The ceremony traditionally closes with the breaking of the glass, when a glass wrapped in cloth is shattered underfoot. Guests call out "Mazal tov", and the moment is read in many ways, from a reminder of fragility and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem to a wish that the marriage lasts as long as the glass stays broken.
Immediately after the ceremony, the newlyweds retreat together for yichud, a short period of seclusion away from guests. It offers a rare quiet pause in a busy day, a chance to be alone, take in the moment, and often share a first bite to eat together before the celebration begins.
The hora is the high point of a Jewish wedding reception, a fast, joyful circle dance set to traditional music. Guests lift the newlyweds into the air on chairs while the crowd dances around them, and the couple often hold opposite ends of a napkin or handkerchief between their chairs. At many weddings parents and other honoured guests are lifted too. At a recent Joondalup Resort celebration we documented, the dance floor filled with circle after circle of guests, and the energy of the room barely paused for hours. The average Australian wedding has 80 to 100 guests (ABIA, 2025), but large Jewish weddings often run well beyond that, which turns the hora into one of the most demanding and rewarding moments to photograph.
Large Jewish weddings usually call for more than one photographer, because so much happens at once and across a long day. Norman's clearest piece of advice for couples planning a big cultural celebration is to resource the day properly, since a single photographer cannot cover the ceremony, the dancing, and the quiet candids all at the same time. A wedding of more than 200 guests has several things unfolding in the same minute, a grandparent's reaction in one corner and a circle forming in another. Across more than 300 weddings in Western Australia, we have found a second photographer is what turns full coverage from a hope into a certainty, especially during the hora.
A Jewish wedding day in Perth is typically long, often running from morning preparations through to a late-night reception. Many Jewish weddings are not held during Shabbat, which runs from Friday sunset to Saturday nightfall, so couples frequently marry on a Saturday evening after sundown or on a Sunday. That timing shapes everything that follows. A recent celebration we covered began with hair and preparation in the morning and carried through to a reception that ran close to midnight. Because much of the celebration happens indoors and after dark, reception lighting needs planning rather than assumption. Perth's golden hour shifts by roughly two and a half hours between winter and summer (timeanddate.com), so any outdoor portraits need to be timed to the season. We always work alongside the couple's rabbi, celebrant, and planner, since they set the order of service and any guidance on photography during the ceremony.
The most common mistake is under-resourcing the day with too few photographers for the scale of the celebration. Across more than 300 weddings, these are the issues we see most often, and what to do instead.
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A Jewish wedding moves through a sequence of traditions that are by turns intimate and exuberant, from the stillness of the bedeken to the roar of the hora. Understanding that rhythm is the difference between documenting the day and simply reacting to it. Each ritual has its own meaning, and each deserves to be captured with care.
For couples, the practical takeaway is simple. A large cultural celebration rewards proper planning, a clear order of service shared with your team, and enough photographers to cover a day where several beautiful things happen at once.
If you are planning a Jewish wedding in Perth and want to talk through how your day might be captured, we would love to hear from you. You can enquire with Norman Yap Photography to start the conversation, or explore more in our journal.
Norman Yap is the founder and principal photographer of Norman Yap Photography, his personal wedding photography label based in Perth, Western Australia. With over 300 weddings photographed across Western Australia and his own experience planning a wedding as a groom, Norman brings both technical expertise and personal understanding to every piece of advice he shares. Norman Yap Photography is known for its editorial, intentional approach to wedding photography, and for documenting large cultural celebrations where the moments come quickly and the days run long.
Ready to talk through your wedding photography and see if we are the right fit?