8 Reasons Why We Eloped

It may or may not come as a surprise to you that a wedding photographer and self-professed lover of weddings would choose to ‘elope’, especially after seeing and being witness to so many beautiful celebrations of love and marriage.  Soon after our engagement we tackled the wedding planning monster with full force. Honestly, we found it truly consuming and had an overwhelming feeling of nothing really feeling ‘right’. We are both, by nature, really low-key and our previous anniversaries and birthdays are kept to a minimum without huge fanfare.  Add to that was the fact that we were at a super busy season in our lives of working, renovating our home, and I was in the midst of wedding season.

Photo Credit: Willow & Co

As we begun the wedding planning process, there were so many decisions, we were in a busy season of life and quite frankly it made me anxious.  After researching and visiting a few venues Luke asked me why I wanted traditional wedding, it got me thinking and together we agreed that the most important aspects to us were a romantic ceremony, amazing photography and to spend the whole day together. Based on these three things we threw around the idea of eloping and the more we thought about it the more it fit perfectly with what we wanted. While not technically an elopement, all of of family and close friends knew of our plans and gave us their blessings and best wishes. I absolutely respect that eloping is not for everyone, I photograph a lot of weddings and they are all special, individual and fabulous celebrations in their own right.

Below are some of the reasons we decided that eloping was the right choice for us:

1. Easy planning – We booked accommodation, photographers, celebrant, flowers and hair/makeup artist in one week. It made decision making easy, no need for invitations, decorations, catering nightmares, coordinating everything.
2. No timeline – We roughly had a ceremony time but it totally depended on when we were good and ready. Our photographers and celebrant met us at our accommodation and we traveled to the ceremony location together without consulting a watch or clock once!
3. Getting ready together – This is one thing that was really important to us, spending the entire day together, as we are best friends and wanted to share every moment. We begun our day sharing a champagne breakfast at our private lookout before getting ready where Luke tied up my dress and I pinned on his buttonhole.
4. Sharing our personal vows – Our vows were really personal and intimate and our tears flowed freely. I’m not sure we could have been so candid had we had 100 family and friends looking on and we most certainly wouldn’t have been as emotional
5. Not having to worry about guests – Although we did miss having our family and friends to share in our celebration, it was a compromise we were willing to bear. A part of me was relieved that no difficult decisions surrounding guest lists and seating plans had to be made!
6. We didn’t miss out photography – Our photographers Grace and Tim from Willow and Co not only captured our day perfectly, they also served as our witnesses
7. No weather worries – I packed a few clear umbrellas for us in case it rained but besides that, the weather could do whatever it wanted
8. The cost – While this wasn’t a huge factor, we certainly were delighted to have ample moolah to spend on home renovations and came home to a newly renovated bathroom/toilet/laundry!

Although we found that our elopement suited us down to the ground the moral to the story is this: Stay true to what you and your fiance really want and believe in. It’s your day and the beginning of your married life! Enjoy it and celebrate it anyway you like. There are no rules!