How to Plan a Wedding during a Pandemic | COVID | Adventure Elopement & Virginia Wedding Photographer
Planning a wedding can be stressful no matter the case but planning a wedding during a pandemic, now that’s off the charts stressful. As a destination wedding photographer and adventure wedding photographer, I’ve been helping my sweet clients navigate these uncharted waters and thought I’d share with others!
Although it’s not ideal, there are several options for you to become Mr. & Mrs. during COVID-19! The question is, are you flexible and ready to add a little bit of adventure into your life?
Option 1: Elope on your planned wedding date or close to it and postpone the entire wedding (ceremony & reception) for a later date!
This is the perfect option to have the best of both worlds given the circumstances! Having a small elopement with your immediate family and limited vendors to meet the 10 people requirement gives you the sense of a styled shoot/elopement but you can have a wedding for all your guests later on! This gives you the opportunity to get “married” in two different locations, destinations and scenery! Say you were on the fence and really wanted gorgeous pictures at a gorgeous waterfall but it just wasn’t an option for you to have a wedding there… now’s the chance to put on your hiking boots or get in your car and make the trek while still having all the wedding festivities later on!
Below you will two examples of this! First, George & Meredith who were my first wedding of 2020 affected by Coronavirus! Their wedding was planned for March 21st, 2020 but the Sunday before, their world spun out of control! Literally… regulations were changing by the hour and after spending countless hours trying to figure out what they were going to do, several of their vendors were able to make the best of their situation and let me tell you what - IT WAS STUNNING! I mean, just look at those florals crafted by Cara Cait Creative! She turned this ordinary backyard into a dreamy ceremony spot for an intimate wedding/elopement! They plan to have their big celebration moved to August 2020!
Second, Corey & Samantha! They wanted an epic elopement in a truly magnificent location so they traveled from Ohio to Virginia to have a Natural Bridge Elopement with their best friends! A few weeks after, they threw a big party with everyone back in their hometown! I was fortunate enough to photograph their elopement while someone else captured their celebration!
Option 2: Elope on your planned wedding date or close to it and postpone the reception (no ceremony) for a later date.
This option is similar to the first one in regards to having a small elopement with your immediate family and limited vendors to meet the 10 people requirement but instead of doing an all day wedding later on, you can just have a celebration! In 2019, one of my favorite couples did this! They chose to have their engagement pictures captured in Savannah, Georgia (where they shared their first kiss), elope in Arizona with their closest family & friends (on their private property that backs up to Saguaro National Park) and then had a reception later on their private property in Virginia for the rest of their loved ones! As you can see, Amber wore her wedding dress in AZ but decided to wear a cute yellow sundress for their celebration. Below are some teasers of their journey but click the buttons below to see more! This idea raised eyebrows so much that they were even featured in What If We Elope!
Their Arizona elopement has not hit the blog yet but here’s some of our favs!
Their outdoor celebration with friends and family has not hit the blog yet but here’s some of our favs!
Option 3: Postpone everything until a later date.
Eloping isn’t everyone’s vision and that’s okay. Talk with your vendors and find a new date to postpone your entire wedding. Just like Option 2, sadly I’ve had this happen to a couple as well BUT, it was amazing! Back in September 2018, Brian & April were supposed to get married at Douthat State Park but a derecho was on its way to Virginia and for everyone’s safety, the State Park shut down. Fortunately, these two love birds accepted the situation and rescheduled their entire wedding for November 2018. Even though they had to provide portable heaters and shift their flower choices, it was absolutely breathtaking! Don’t believe me, see the pictures below!
Option 4: Elope/have an intimate celebration for 10 people or less and Forgo the wedding.
Before anyone gets mad, this option is not directed at everyone but, it is an option and it has its caveats. There is a possibility you might lose some deposits but if you want to avoid the stress completely, have to adhere to military deployments, etc. you could to extend your elopement/intimate wedding from a couple of hours to a full day elopement and this be the best option for you. An all day elopement presents so many opportunities to capture your relationship to the fullest while still celebrating with family! Whether you choose to stay close to home or make your dreams of a Santorini elopement come true, the planning process for this can be just as much fun as planning a big wedding.
Below you will two examples of this! First, Zak & Kelly who decided to hike into the Appalachian Mountains for their private vows before sunrise with their puppers and Rob & Loran’s intimate Fearrington Village wedding and dinner. Both still VERY much memorable and very low stress. I know its cliché but ultimately, you’ll be Mr. & Mrs. at the end of the day and that’s all that matters!
