You’ve been dreaming about an intimate wedding on Vancouver Island, and you love the idea of having someone help bring it all together. But what does that actually look like?
Do you need to choose your ceremony location first? Will you get a say in which vendors are involved? And how does a collection of ideas become a wedding day that feels like you?
These are exactly the kinds of things we’ll work through together.
As your elopement photographer and planner, I’m here to help you make those decisions, organize the details, and photograph the experience we’ve created. Here’s what you can expect, from our first conversation to the photographs you’ll look back on afterward.
1. It Starts With Your Inquiry
First, you’ll fill out my inquiry form to tell me a little about the two of you and what you’re dreaming up. You don’t need to have everything figured out! Share the plans you already have, the things you’re excited about, and anything you’d love some help with.
From there, I will send you a link to schedule a free consultation to get to know each other, talk through your visions and ideas, and see whether working together feels right.
2. A Personalized Quote, Not a Predetermined Package
After our chat, I’ll send you a questionnaire where you can choose the vendors and services you’d like to include. You can select as many or as few as you’d like. This helps me understand which details you’re excited about and what you’d rather keep simple.
Your choices help shape the experience and the personalized quote I put together for you. I do not have a fixed elopement package that every couple needs to fit into, so this step is where your elopement starts to take shape!
You’ll receive a thoughtfully presented proposal to look through, with the details of what’s included and the investment for your day. You can see how everything comes together before deciding to move forward. If need be, we can adjust your selected services before you move forward, so your proposal reflects what matters most to you.
Once you’ve accepted your quote, I’ll send your contract and retainer invoice. With your contract signed and retainer paid, it’s time to grab the champagne and celebrate—you’ve officially booked your elopement!
3. Finding Your Ceremony Location
Once you’re all booked, we get to explore where you’ll say your vows. I will send a secondary questionnaire to learn more about your travel plans, vendor preferences, and the kind of scenery you love. Are you drawn to a sandy beach, rugged shoreline, peaceful forest, lake, or viewpoint? Will you be flying or ferrying into Nanaimo or Victoria?
This questionnaire plays a huge role and begins the planning from my end! These details help me put together location suggestions and vendors that make sense for both your vision and your visit.
From there, I’ll create a personalized selection of potential elopement locations for you to look through and choose from. Rather than handing you a long list of places to research, I’ll give you a starting point (with links) based on what you’ve shared with me.
You get to choose the setting that speaks to you, without having to become an expert on Vancouver Island first!
4. Bringing Your Vendors and Timeline Together
Once your location has been chosen, I’ll begin hiring your selected vendors and introducing you to the people who will be part of your day! This is the part that I truly love because the vendors really add to the magic of your elopement!
Your celebrant or officiant is the first introduction. This gives you the opportunity to connect with the person who will help shape such a meaningful part of your wedding: your ceremony. And let’s be honest, the one that makes your elopement LEGAL and official.
Other introductions happen as the planning progresses, so you can get to know your vendors without everything landing in your inbox at once… remember my one goal is for a stress-free experience!
About a month before your elopement, we’ll meet for a final Zoom call. Some couples opt for a call sooner and that is totally ok as well. Like I reiterate many times, this is your day so we follow your lead! In this call we will go over your vendors, discuss the remaining details, and develop your elopement-day timeline together.
This is where the individual pieces become a day you can picture: where you’ll be, who will be there, and how everything will flow.
You still get to make the meaningful decisions. You just don’t have to coordinate everything yourself!
5. Your Wedding Day Is Here!
By the time your elopement arrives, your ceremony location has been chosen, your vendors have been introduced, and we’ve talked through the plan together. My hope is for you both to settle into the experience rather than spend the day wondering what’s supposed to happen next. And while you’re experiencing it, I’ll be there to photograph it! I have a day-of coordinator and a second photographer that are always with me, so that I can simple just immerse myself in telling your story.
My approach is centred on storytelling: the anticipation, the laughter, the little details, and those moments between the two of you that happen naturally. There’s room for photographs that take in the beautiful surroundings, too.
You don’t need to know what to do in front of the camera. I’ll offer gentle guidance along the way, with space for you to be yourselves. After all, this is your wedding day, not just a photo session.
6. Reliving It All Through Your Photographs
After your elopement, I’ll begin selecting and editing the photographs that tell the story of your day. You’ll receive a sneak peek (up to 10 days after) to enjoy while I work on editing your full collection, followed by a private online gallery where you can download your photographs and share them with the people you love. My contract states that my gallery turnaround time is up to 90 days, however I have yet to take that long!
Some images will bring you straight back to a moment you remember. Others might show you a small detail or expression you hadn’t noticed at the time. That’s one of my favourite things about photographing elopements: giving you a way to return to how it all felt.
Let’s Start With Your Story
You don’t need your ceremony location picked out, a list of vendors ready, or every detail decided before reaching out.
We’ll start with what you know, explore what matters to you, and build from there.
My goal is to make your elopement feel personal, manageable, and exciting. A day you help shape, with someone beside you to bring the plans together and photograph the memories.
Tell me a little about the two of you and what you’re dreaming up.
Fill out my inquiry form with your ideas and plans so far. This gives me a starting point to learn more about you before we chat—no finished wedding plan needed!
I’d love to hear your story!
Elyse
Vancouver Island Elopement Photographer & Planner
