Even though I’ve been a wedding photographer for 12 years now, I’ve realized that I’ve had a misconception of what elopements are/could be (since I’ve mainly focused on photographing larger weddings with about 100-200 guests thus far)! Even though I’ve photographed elopements before, I a have a new found exciting perspective of them now!

There is no one “right” definition of an elopement. It could be just you two starting off the day with a cold plunge in the lake, then getting ready, having a first look and exchanging vows on your own. It could also be having 10 of your closest family + friends at your ceremony. It could be you two and exchanging vows on your own and then having a dinner celebration with family + friends with drinks and dancing to follow! The beauty of it is that it’s up to you and you get to write your own story with more flexibility. Plus you get to have so much more time to spend just the two of you, if that’s what YOU want! ;) Also, it could be in your own backyard, or on the other side of the world!

Here is my definition of an elopement:

It’s a way to celebrate + honour your relationship, your bond and your journey together in a freedom kind of way. Where you can choose to have as much space as you want on your day/s to do what you want, when you want, with who you want, and how you want! OH and to take the money you would spend on a full on wedding and SPOIL YOURSELVES ;)

To me that sounds like a pretty sweet deal and the words that come to mind when I think of an elopement this way are; space, ease, adventure, excitement, indulge, calm, memorable, custom, meaningful, and freedom!

After having this realization that an elopement doesn’t have to just be a 1-2 hour event but could even be full weekend event for just the couple alone and/or with some closest friends and family as well, my wheels started to turn thinking of all the fun and meaningful ways couples like you could experience your elopement and literally have THE TIME OF YOUR LIVES!

Activity ideas for your elopement!

Road tripping your your favourite nature spot (or one you’ve dreamt of visiting) and exchanging vows there
Camping
Playing music together
Stargazing (if you’re out of light polluted areas)
Spa Day (hello Scandinavian spa experience!)
Taking a 4x4 for a spin
Private chef making you a meal with a magical table setup on the beach or in the wilderness
Cold plunge in the morning
Yoga
Meditation
Hiking
Chillin by a fire
Flying out to a dream destination
Horseback riding
Hanging with some animals on a farm
Dance party
A private connective Breathwork class
and the list goes on!

These are just SOME ideas I have, but a good way to intuitively figure out what activities would suit you two best would be asking yourselves questions like these:

If we were planning an EPIC weekend with a ton of quality time, what would we LOVE to do together?
What are some things we want to cross off our bucket list?
What places mean a lot to us?
What’s one of our dream destinations to explore?

When and for how long?

That’s up to you! That’s the beauty of it isn’t it! You can have a sunrise experience, a sunset experience, an all day experience, a 2 day, or full week experience!

You deserve more than just a 1-2 hour “shoot” on your day. Here is an example timeline/itinerary for you to see how much of a fun filled/meaningful day this could be for you two!

Example Elopement Timeline

8 - 9 am - Wake up in a dream Airbnb nestled in the middle of the forest and enjoy cuddles, breakfast and mimosas in bed.
9 - 10 am - Cold plunge in the river nearby + sauna it up!
10 - 11 am - A private breathwork + Yoga class
11 - 12 pm - Lunch out in nature made by a private chef
12 - 2 pm - Getting ready
2 - 3:30 pm - Hiking together to special spot and exchanging private vows just the two of you + some adventurous + meaningful portraits
4 - 5 pm - Meet up with close group of 15 family + friends for your 20-30 minute ceremony that you can share with everyone and where others share some speeches to make the ceremony even more heartfelt!
5 - 5:30 pm - Mingling, celebrations, and group photos
5:30 - 7 pm - Adventurous sunset portraits of just the two of you. Time to reconnect with just each other again.
7 - 8:30 pm - Dinner by an incredible private chef spoiling you two and your family + friends!
8:30 - rest of the night - Change into going out outfits and go out dancing!

I hope this gives you some ideas of where and how you can elope! I would be honoured to tell the story of your elopement through photos! Click here to contact me about your dream elopement!