The Six-Hour Elopement Is Here To Stay

Their wedding planning took an unexpected twist. It’s 2021, so maybe every wedding story you’ve read recently starts this way, but their journey is a big deal to every couple. Doesn’t it seem like you must prove to some invisible wedding god tribunal that you want and deserve to tie the knot in peace? I see you out there praying for no more guest list reduction, venue changes, and being at the mercy of endlessly changing local rules. Have hope because another path lies on the other side of the wedding mountain. Extended elopements are the best new wedding trend of the year.

Exhausted and over it was how Elissa and Derek felt as they sat down at one of her lovely home-cooked dinners and continued their ongoing discussion about planning their wedding. He surprised her when he looked her in the eye and said, “What if we just elope? I’d love for the two of us to go away to our favorite place get married, and enjoy the weekend away together. End of story.” She told me that she felt such a huge wave of relief crash over her and broke into happy tears on the spot.

She was still sniffling and smiling as we spoke on the phone the next day, explaining that they wanted an elevated experience. They weren’t looking for a quickie one-hour wedding package, and she wanted to know what we had to offer them. They’d be driving up from Southern California and wanted an authentic experience they couldn’t get anywhere else, showcasing what they’d fallen in love with on their previous trips to San Francisco.

After laying out their options, they decided that a morning visit to the Barrel House in Muir Beach would be a perfect way to begin their wedding day. We have access to This private modern vintage home for elopements. They arrived with Kat, our hair and makeup stylist, at 9 am, and she set up her vast array of brushes, color palettes, dryers, curlers, clips, and spray. Before long, Elissa looked like a wedding dream, and Alley and I went crazy with an impromptu bridal boudoir mini-sesh! Derek had his own space to get ready on another floor so we could keep the first look for her walk to the altar. She was adorable and nervous, and he looked so handsome, waiting for her to take his hand and say yes forever with her stunning ring from Brilliant Earth.

Next step? Cake and bubbly to celebrate! This is one of my favorite new offerings, and we are firm believers in wedding cake around here. Pair that with a nice chilled bottle of Chandon, and it’ll be a mini-wedding reception! Generally, we like to do a small cutting cake for the couple and gourmet cupcakes if there are more than four guests, so keep that in mind. It’s easier to hand everyone their own treat to enjoy and less clean up when you want to keep the day moving. On this occasion, we “accidentally” had a bigger cake and a party of two, so the whole team was generously invited to enjoy the cake. Was it really an accident? That’s my story, and I’m sticking with it. We prepared to-go containers, and we boxed the rest up for them to enjoy later. Then, we set off on their photo tour.

When we’re setting a couple’s itinerary, I’ll ask them for the list of their top photo spots, knowing that we probably won’t get to all of them. If you haven’t taken wedding pictures, you’d never know how much time and energy goes into every shot. How to calculate driving, parking, and walking in between the locations on your list. This is our job, and we’ve learned through years of experience and photographing hundreds of weddings in San Francisco and the Bay Area. We had a list of four possible stops, and I knew we’d get to two, possibly three.

Our first stop was the Marin headlands, and we surprised them with a journey to a spot they hadn’t been to: Hawk Hill. It’s one of the highest spots, towering over the Golden Gate Bridge and all of the splendor of the San Francisco Bay. We did photograph two hawks circling the photoshoot and checking us out. The wind was blowing, lifting the layers of her stunning dress and letting it gently float around her for some charming movement in their pictures. High grasses, cliffside views, and the setting sun made this perfect for their couple’s session.

Next on their list was Pier 7, next to the Ferry Building, and we were racing to beat the sunset and keep Elissa warm. She was a trooper, and Derek proved to be an excellent new husband by keeping her as snuggled in as possible in his warm embrace. We wrapped up the session just at the six-hour mark, which was our plan, and while we didn’t get to go up to Coit Tower, we did get stunning images of it in the background, so everyone was happy.

Their package included six hours of wedding photography with Rachel and wedding videography with Will. We booked and delivered their bridal bouquet, boutonniere, cake, and bubbly. Diego served as the officiant, her hair and makeup were with Kat, and the getting ready/celebrating venue was the Barrel House.

We think elopement weddings are here to stay; frankly, we’re all here for it. Contact us to help you plan your intimate wedding or elopement.