Long gone are the days where elopements are defined as “shotgun weddings”.

Elopements are a new alternative to the big wild, Pinterest fueled weddings of today. Elopements can be as simple as having a small ceremony with your immediate family at a local park, or as epic as taking a pre-sunrise 6 mile hike to an incredible lookout point to say yes to forever at your favorite national park.

The point is that elopements can be whatever you want them to be, but in a nutshell, they are basically what we call marrying your best friend in an incredible location without all the fuss and fanfare of a traditional wedding.

Intimate weddings are pretty much elopements + a few more people. Your immediate family, your 2 favorite cousins and your very best friends. You want to marry the love of your life in an amazing location, but you definitely want your VIPs there to witness.

Intimate weddings are elopements with up to 25 people in attendance.

That’s what we are here for. Before we charge our batteries or even pick up our cameras, we help you nail down the perfect location for your elopement.

We’ll talk to you about what you’re thinking, how far you want to travel and what type of scenery draws you in the most.

We also take into consideration how comfortable you (or any guests in attendance) are with the outdoors + hiking. From there we’ll make recommendations and give you a list of specific locations we think would be the perfect trail length, epic view + overall distance for the two of you.

If you have no idea or a specific place in mind, we’ll be here to help you plan it all.

We’re constantly upgrading our gear, but our current setup for 2024 is:

4 Sony A7iii - we love shooting with mirrorless cameras - they are lightweight (aka perfect for carrying on hikes) and they have incredible dynamic range (for capturing you during that epic early morning sunrise)

We’re also equipped with top of the line Sony + Canon lenses, Ronin gimbal, etc, etc, etc - we are pros who use pro equipment.

As far as our film setup, we’re always experimenting with new/vintage gear. The Super 8 and 35mm film cameras are vintage, the film is new. Plus we’ll throw some poloaroids and instax photos in, too.

Most important to note –We always love to mention our backup situation. Our cameras record images to 2 cards simultaneously so there is already a backup happening as were photographing/filming your session or elopement. Then we back everything up to our travel hard drive, cloud storage and our server and working hard drives when we get back home. We just wanted you to know that we’re super serious about backing up our work/your memories

YES! You don’t need to love being outdoors, or have a crazy sense of adventure in order for eloping to be for you. There are plenty of locations that are steps away from a parking lot that still provide an incredible backdrop for your ceremony + portraits. We’ll help you figure out a spot that perfectly aligns with your comfort level + we’ll provide you with all sorts of info to help you prepare for any type of adventure elopement from mild to wild.

TOTALLY!

Elopements are absolutely legal as long as you’re following the rules + regulations of the state you’ll be eloping in.

OR…

Let’s say you don’t love the laws or steps you need to take where you want to get married - you can just get married back home ahead of time or save the paperwork for after!

It all depends.

Every location has different rules + regulations so it can differ based on which place you’re choosing to elope.

If it’s important to you to be legally married at the same time as your elopement, we can help you find a witness and an officiant. There are some places where it is totally possible to self-solemnize.

BONUS

Amanda + Joe are ordained! In most scenarios and places either one of us can totally be your officiant!

This is 100% your call!

Most couples choose to have a private elopement so it can be just the two of you

Other couples want to have a small group of their absolute favorite people there with them

You have a pet? It might be tricky to bring your cat, but dogs are WELCOME AND HIGHLY ENCOURAGED

The beauty of elopements

Is that there are no guidelines or expectations and so you can do whatever feels right to you!

Whoever feels right to be a part of this incredible and intimate day/weekend/week is who you should invite.

This is the best part - WHATEVER YOU WANT!

Ok, maybe that’s a little overwhelming, but we love this part. You can do/say/go/have/exchange or experience anything you want on your elopement day. And here are some ideas of what you could do

- Exchange vows from the heart (Joe + I did this at our wedding and it was our favorite part)

- Incorporate a unity ceremony, or bring in elements from your heritage like Irish hand fasting

- Exchange rings

- Take portraits of each other right after you say yes!

- Have a picnic on top of a mountain

- Pop a bottle of champagne + celebrate!