An elopement is a short marriage ceremony with 10 guests or fewer and no set-up in a non-traditional setting (AKA not your backyard or a formal wedding venue).
The easiest way to think of this is an elopement is designed for YOUR experience and enjoyment, while a wedding is designed for the experience and enjoyment of your guests.
Such a good question! I explain in THIS VIDEO.
You can view my service options here. Click on the service you’re interested in and scroll down. There will be a clickable list of the areas I serve to get pricing by location.
You have no idea how happy I am to say this — or maybe you do? I don’t know your life! LOL!
My whole family is now vaccinated, which means I finally get to say that we are only restricted by what the local, state, and federal rules are. Most National and State Parks as well as beaches require masks outdoors only when social distancing is not possible, so we might have to wear them walking through crowds at popular spots to get where we’re going. But once we are away from everyone else, we finally get to see those beautiful smiles again!!
I mean that elopements with me do not have any of the following: a formal venue, an aisle, music or sound amplification, arch or arbor, strewn petals, candles, chairs (except for the elderly or disabled), etc.
There are two reasons I don’t allow any setup (no exceptions):
- A set-up means you’re having a wedding, not an elopement. Most permits for beaches, forests, and National Parks don’t even allow this kind of stuff anyway!
- It’s stressful and unnecessary.
I know that arch you saw on Instagram or Pinterest looked amazing, but I can guarantee it did not add to the experience even though it made a great photo. Why can I say that with such confidence? Well, someone had to haul that thing down to the beach or up the mountain or set it up in the desert. That’s either going to be you in your wedding gear (now setting up instead of enjoying the experience) or you’re going to be paying a vendor a good chunk of change to tie us to a specific spot we can’t leave until the set-up is broken down and removed, even if that spot proves problematic for photos. It’s just not worth it!
The bottom line:
I’m a hiker and my elopements are designed with the “pack in, pack out” mentality, meaning we carry in and carry out whatever we bring, leaving nothing but footprints and taking nothing but photos. Because we literally go into places as beautifully dressed hikers. It is deeply important to me that we respect the land while making your elopement experience stress-free and awesome. That’s why I’ve designed my elopement services this way – so they are fun, joyful, and relaxed because you don’t have to worry about anything!
Honestly, because it’s not an elopement but a micro-wedding or wedding.
If you have a small handful of people over for the ceremony, inevitably those people want to make more of a fuss than what you might have originally envisioned. It snowballs from “a simple ceremony at home” into a full-on backyard wedding fast. Every time this has happened in the past, the couple didn’t realize just how slippery a slope that is.
That’s why it’s just not an option anymore.
Side note: I do elopements in Airbnb backyards because they have very clear rules on gatherings and alterations to the property. Every time I’ve shown up to an Airbnb for an elopement, it has remained a true elopement.
Absolutely! Location scouting is part of all of my elopement packages! You need to have a general location in mind to book (Joshua Tree NP, for example, is a general location and is actually slightly bigger than the state of Rhode Island). Even “Southern California beach” is enough to get us started!
Fridays and Saturdays are the busiest days everywhere. Traffic is horrible, parking is a nightmare, even the lines to enter National Parks are often 2-3x as long as usual.
For example, years ago I sat in a 50-minute line of cars at the West Entrance of Joshua Tree for a Friday elopement just to get into the Park. (This is something that usually takes me less than a minute on a Tuesday.) The traffic made everyone late and none of us had a phone signal to even contact each other! It’s a miracle the elopement still happened. (This is also why we always meet up somewhere there is cell signal now!)
So, I won’t do elopements on Fridays and Saturdays because they are so busy that it makes for a stressful experience for everyone involved, which is the OPPOSITE of what an elopement is meant to be! That’s why I only do elopements midweek and Sundays, no exceptions. I want you to roll up relaxed, smiling ear to ear, and ready to say your vows in an awesome place with your favorite person, not stressed out and late because of traffic.
First, most places where elopements happen only allow about that many people. Elopement permits vary from 8 people total (including you two, me, and the photographer) to roughly 15 people (including you, me, and the photographer). Having 10 guests puts us at around 14-15 people total to remain in compliance with the most common permit limits.
Secondly, remember when you said you wanted something simple? Well, an event with more than a dozen people is no longer simple. It’s like herding cats to get that many people to move even 50 yards. Plus, the more people you invite, the more expectations are heaped onto your elopement. Suddenly your Mom is asking why you don’t have seating for Grandma? Who is walking you down the aisle? What do you mean there’s no aisle and no music??
Every couple this has happened to thinks they’ll be the exception, but it happened to them too!
That’s why there is a hard limit of 10 guests, no exceptions to ensure I can provide you the amazing elopement experience I promised.
Special note specifically for the Epic Elopement Experience and Choose Your Own Adventure Elopement services:
Of the time we schedule together, your loved ones are going to only be with you for maybe 30 minutes of it. For the other 1.5 hours of the Epic Elopement Experience™ or 3-5 hours of the Choose Your Own Adventure Elopement™, your guests will be braving the elements, standing around waiting for you as you have the time of your life without anything to entertain them. They won’t have food or drinks, probably no cell signal, and no seating but the car. And when our time is done (usually sunset marks the end of our time together), they will then have to drive a fair distance just to get to wherever you all are congregating to celebrate afterward (hotel, Airbnb, restaurant, etc.). Elopements are designed for YOUR enjoyment, not that enjoyment of your guests.
I’ve also noticed that the more guests a couple has at their elopement, the more stressed and less present. Instead of savoring their newlywed state and feeling like supermodels with our awesome photographer, they’re focused on the relative who got lost and freaking out because none of us have cell signal to get a hold of them. Or worried about the friend showing signs of heat exhaustion from standing in the sun instead of finding shade despite my multiple warnings. Or fielding the complaints that their loved ones are demanding to leave early because they are starving even though we still have 40 minutes of photos during golden hour left.
Yes, those are all real examples.
In short, hell yeah!
I offer full service elopement options that include photographers because so many couples felt lost and wanted something all-inclusive. Plus I LOVE working with rad photographers, so when I find someone I adore, I want to keep working with them over and over.
But if you have found a photographer who rocks your world and you’re super excited about, then hire them! In fact, I demand an email introduction to the artist who won you over with their awesome work. 🙂
No. After having performed over 600 elopements, I know every aspect of what you need to have an amazing, chill adventure elopement without stress. And the reality is that I can’t make that happen for you with people I haven’t worked with before and who haven’t been initiated into how these elopements work.
I’ve designed these packages intentionally and with great care. Each photographer who has signed onto these elopement packages with me are professionals I’ve worked with multiple times and know how my signature processes work. That’s why my elopement packages are so beautiful and so easy: I’ve designed them that way! I only include the most amazing photographers with whom I have a solid working relationship in these packages so that I can ensure you have an unforgettable time with us.
The short answer is you can’t.
The long answer is that I am often speaking with 6-30 prospective couples at any given time, so it’s simply impossible for me to save the date while you decide. I also require a consultation before I invite you to book with me, so keep an eye out for that email with the link to schedule our consultation!
To keep it easy, I break it up into two payments.
- I require 50% of the total price to reserve the day.
- The remaining balance is due 2 weeks before the elopement.
My system is fully online, so you can make your payments online anytime once you’ve booked with me.
For the Epic Elopement Experience, I break it up into three payments.
- I require $999 USD to reserve the date.
- A midway payment of half the remaining balance is due at the halfway point between the date you book and your actual elopement date.
- The final balance is due 2 weeks before elopement day.
My system is fully online, so you can make your payments online anytime once you’ve booked with me.
For the Ultimate Adventure Elopement, I also break it up into three payments.
- I require $999 USD to reserve the date.
- A midway payment is due at the halfway point (between the date you book and your actual elopement date).
- The remaining balance of is due 2 weeks before elopement day.
My system is fully online, so you can make your payments online anytime once you’ve booked with me.