Hiya, I’m Natalie!

After getting engaged, we started the whole planning process. We quickly realized that a traditional wedding was not for us, and I began looking for other options. I ran across a Reddit AMA of all things from an adventure elopement photographer-officiant duo, and the whole concept immediately clicked. I presented the idea to my partner, and we both got a heck of a lot more excited! Travel has always been a big part of our relationship, so the idea of exploring a new place and hiking and adventuring while also getting married fit our story perfectly.

We decided on a 10 day road trip around Arizona, getting married at the half way point in Sedona. I found an awesome local photographer, Allison Slater, and officiant who were both down for the off-roading and hiking required. I also made a travel video of the entire trip, which we planned to share with our loved ones.

Telling friends and family about our plan was another story. We were very lucky that we generally had understanding responses, even if people didn’t really get why we were doing things differently. We elected to have a small reception back home a few months after our elopement, just 50 of our favorite people. It was an amazing night full of love and celebration, and we really did get the best of both wedding experiences. After we shared the video of our elopement, my mom (who up until then had been supportive but a bit bummed to not be included in our ceremony) said that it all finally made sense and she couldn’t imagine us having gotten married any other way.