A classic wedding highlight that walks through the day milestone by milestone
A classic Highlight Reel uses its running time of about 5 minutes as a guided tour of the day in sequence. A typical shape gives the morning and the arrival a brief opening, spends the largest share on the ceremony from processional to recessional, then moves through the formal reception moments in the order they happened and closes on the last traditional milestone, often the cake, a send-off or the final dance. You write that running order in the preference questions, and WeddingEditor's AI editing builds the highlight from your footage in that sequence.
The ceremony usually takes the biggest share of a classic highlight. Decide in advance which reception milestones can be brief.
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Last updated October 2026
How to brief a classic highlight
- 1
Start a Highlight Reel project
Pick Highlight Reel when you create the project; it is that project's one edit. Upload the whole day from every camera, because a chronological film needs the in-between footage too, such as guests taking their seats or the couple leaving the church.
- 2
Write the day as a timeline
Set the priority to Ceremony & vows and the audio to Balanced speech & music. In the moments question, write the timeline with times where you remember them, from the first arrival to the final dance, and mark the three or four milestones that must have the most time.
- 3
Check it like a running sheet
Processing typically takes 24 to 72 hours. When the highlight appears in your project, play it with your timeline open and tick off each milestone. Download the 1080p MP4, and if the order slipped, email a revision request from the link in the app.
Moments a classic highlight must include
List these in the moments question in the order they happened. Classic highlights depend on that order more than any other style.
Arrival
"Open on the church exterior and the bride's car arriving, then her father helping her out."
Processional
"Each bridesmaid walking in, then the bride. Hold on the groom's face when the doors open."
The vows and rings
"Both sets of vows, then the rings, then the pronouncement and kiss, with the applause."
Signing and recessional
"A short moment of the register signing, then the walk out under the petals."
Formal reception
"Grand entrance, first dance, father and daughter dance, best man's toast, cake cutting, in that order."
Send-off
"End on the sparkler exit to the vintage car."
What a classic highlight balances
Completeness against length
A classic viewer expects to see every milestone. At about 5 minutes, most of them can only appear briefly, so marking the few that deserve real time keeps the film from feeling like a checklist.
Ceremony against reception
Traditional highlights tend to weight the ceremony more heavily, since it holds the vows and the rings. If the couple's reception mattered more, for example a long family dance, say so.
Words that anchor each section
One clear line per milestone often holds the structure together: the pronouncement, a phrase from the toast, the band leader announcing the first dance. Name the ones you want.
What the longer film keeps
Every word of the service, complete speeches and the entire first dance belong in the longer cut you deliver yourself. The highlight is the version that tells the whole day briefly.
One project, one highlight
The Highlight Reel is about 5 minutes and is the only edit that project produces, delivered as a 1080p MP4 you can open in Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut Pro.
Briefing a classic highlight, milestone by milestone
| Moment | Why it matters in a classic highlight | How to brief it |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival | Sets the place and the start of the day | Name the exterior shot and the arrival you want |
| Processional | The first formal moment, and many families' favourite | List who walked and in what order |
| Vows and rings | The core of the ceremony | Say whether to hear both vows in full or one line each |
| Recessional | Closes the ceremony with movement and applause | Point to the angle that shows the guests |
| First dance and toasts | The formal heart of the reception | Give the order they happened in |
| Cake or send-off | A traditional ending | Name the last moment the film should close on |
What is a classic Highlight Reel?
A Highlight Reel is the WeddingEditor deliverable of about 5 minutes, one per project. A classic one runs through the day's traditional milestones in chronological order, built by AI editing from the footage you upload and the running order you write.
Not a documentary of the whole day. A classic highlight shows each milestone briefly; the complete ceremony and full speeches stay in the longer film you edit and deliver yourself.
Classic highlight questions
Does a classic highlight have to be strictly in order?
It does not have to be, but that is what most people mean by classic. If you want one exception, such as opening on the pronouncement before going back to the morning, write it as a specific instruction.
How much of the ceremony goes in?
Usually the largest share of the film, but still a condensed version: the processional, a part of the vows, the rings, the kiss and the walk out. Say which parts you want heard in full.
Can the getting-ready footage be left out?
Yes. Some classic highlights start at the ceremony. Write that in the free-text question about anything to avoid or use less of.
Will the first dance play in full?
Rarely in a highlight. A short section is the usual approach, with the full dance kept for your longer film. If the couple choreographed one moment, such as a dip at the end, name it.
Can I send revision notes about the order?
Yes. Up to two revision rounds are included with every full edit. Email the milestones that are out of place from the link in the app, and the same highlight is revised rather than rebuilt.
Is there a widescreen and a phone version?
There is one version: a widescreen 1080p MP4. WeddingEditor does not produce a vertical cut.
Related classic and highlight pages
Every milestone, in its place
Upload the full day and write the timeline, and AI editing makes a highlight that follows it.
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