Eloping in California can cost anywhere from $500 to $15,000 or more — it just depends on your preferences and priorities when creating your wedding celebration. This includes things like flights, transportation, lodging, photography, and customized experiences like a private chef, park entrances, and other adventure activities.

My redwood elopement experiences start at $8,250 for a full-day elopement and $6,100 for a half-day.

What's Included in Your Redwood Elopement Investment:

My elopement packages include everything you need to design and document your day — I'm not just your photographer, I'm your elopement experience architect. You can see detailed package information and what's included on my main pricing page, or we can discuss your specific needs on a discovery call.

Absolutely — and many of my couples do! One of the unique advantages of Northern California elopements is the incredible ecosystem diversity available at our fingertips. All of the redwood forest groves in California are within driving distance of beautiful settings like wineries and ocean bluffs (and more). We can absolutely design a day that gives you multiple landscapes if that calls to you.

California state parks and national parks allow redwood forest ceremonies with advance permits, and they'll usually have designated places for ceremonies to take place to help limit ecological impact of visitors. Additionally, there are occasionally differing guest count limits per location. Regional parks often require a permit as well, but are more flexible on the ceremony location.

The redwoods can be crowded, depending on the day of the week and the time of year that you're visiting. It's important to consider timing when choosing your elopement date: weekdays are a good option any time of year; early spring and fall are your best bets for the middle of a Venn diagram with ideal weather and minimal crowds.

During our planning process, I'll ask you how important privacy is to you and recommend locations accordingly. If "no other humans in our photos" is non-negotiable, we'll build your day around private spaces, off-the-beaten-path redwood groves, and strategic timing. 

The short answer: you'll have the clear umbrellas and body warmers I keep on hand for couples to keep you warm and dry; beyond that, some of the fun and magic lies in embracing what Mother Nature has to offer.

The long answer: if you're eloping in a season with a higher risk of wet weather, during our planning process we'll identify both your ideal locations and backup covered options that work in wet weather, like ones that have a covered outdoor space, or your home rental property.

In six years of photographing redwood elopements, I've never had weather genuinely ruin a day. We adapt, we embrace it, and often the "imperfect" weather creates the most memorable images.

For most redwood locations: 6-12 months in advance is ideal, especially for peak season (May-October) and weekends.

For Redwood National Park specifically: Book as early as possible—both for photographer availability and permit processing (they require at least 30 days notice for ceremony permits). Plus, accommodations in the area (Crescent City, Eureka, Orick) book up during summer.

For Armstrong/Sonoma or Santa Cruz redwoods: There's more flexibility since they're closer to population centers and have more last-minute accommodation options.

That said, I've worked with couples who planned everything in 6-8 weeks, so if you're on a shorter timeline, reach out anyway.