Is eloping right for you?  Let me first preface this blog post by saying that weddings scare the bejesus out of me.  Not physically attending a wedding, although that’s not exactly my favorite thing to do either, but shooting weddings.  That’s the reason I have never agreed to shooting a full blown wedding.  And by full blown I mean, bridesmaids + groomsmen, flowers up + down the aisle, a huge reception with all of the scary indoor lighting, etc.  Nope, not for me.  At all.  I learned very early on in this business that if you’re ill equipped for a wedding you will potentially ruin someone’s big day so it’s best to leave it to someone that actually knows what  they’re doing.  Not having the proper training/experience or equipment or insurance can all lead to that day being disastrous.  So I decided early on that I wanted no parts in that.  Could I take on a wedding + have it turn out pretty good, probably.  Am I willing to take that chance?  No sir!  So as the wedding requests rolled in I politely declined (letting the potential clients know that I am however available for engagement + bridal sessions) + referred them to a few other amazing wedding photographers that I know.

But then came the opportunity for an elopement.  It was different than an actual wedding.  There would be no wedding party.  Just the bride, groom, officiant + two witnesses.  This, I thought, I could handle.  The ceremony as well as a few portraits afterward would take no more than an hour + I felt comfortable with that since it seemed more in line with a regular portrait session.  So I met with the bride + groom to find out their wedding day needs + we trudged forward.  I was happy with the results as well as the clients.  This was in 2013 + since then I had no more elopement requests.  Big weddings, yes, elopements, no…until this year.

I’ve noticed more and more people deciding to elope instead of having a large wedding.  With websites like Runawaywithme.com gaining in popularity I can see why it’s such a popular option with some couples.  Within the last couple of months I’ve had two elopement + a small wedding vow renewal ceremony (that I just shot last weekend so stay tuned to the blog in the coming week for that post!) inquiries.  It got me to thinking that maybe I should add this to my package options.  It seems there is a demand for it + why not?  Elopements are more about the bride + groom versus a wedding which seems to be about everyone else.  It’s intimate, which I love, cost effective + I feel that I would be able to solely focus on the couple instead of everything else going on around them at the time of their wedding.  So with that said, check out my pricing page + if you’re interested in my elopement services give me a call or shoot me an email.  I’d love to talk things over with you + be a part of your special day!