Arizona Elopement Photographer
Elopements, Intimate Weddings, Vow Renewals, & Couples Sessions in Arizona
Hi, I’m Carrie —
A traveling elopement photographer with a soft spot in my heart for capturing love stories in the beautiful state of Arizona. If you’re looking for epic landscapes, great weather, and a little adventure, Arizona is the perfect place to elope! For scenery, you can choose anything from towering red rocks to canyon overlooks to mountains, cacti, forests, slot canyons, and more! In many spots you can experience a variety of different landscapes at the same time or within a short distance of each other. The diversity of this state makes it a really fun road trip destination — which is an amazing way to extend your elopement beyond just the day you say your vows.
Plan a full week of adventures throughout the state (or even make your way over to California or Utah, too) and pick your favorite spot to have your ceremony!
An experience like that deserves to be documented and I’d love to be the one to do it. Check out the info below to learn more about eloping in Arizona and what I offer as an elopement photographer.
Recent Work in Arizona
Best Arizona Elopement Locations
SEDONA
Towering red rock formations, vortexes, 4x4 off-roading, tons of hiking trails.
HORSESHOE BEND
An iconic spot overlooking the Colorado River. Red and orange rocks. Slot canyons nearby.
LAKE POWELL
View the beautiful blue waters from above at a remote overlook, hang out down below on the beach, or rent a boat to take your adventure past the shores. If water sports are your thing, THIS is the place.
GRAND CANYON
Amazing place to watch the sunset or sunrise - best paired with unique accommodation or a private reception venue.
SUPERSTITION MOUNTAINS
A craggy, volcanic mountain range east of Phoenix. Saguaros and desert plants.
SAGUARO NATIONAL PARK
Saguaros are the universal symbol of the southwest and this is the place to go if you want to be surrounded by them.
AMANGIRI
Technically in Utah, just across the border from Page, AZ, this luxury resort literally blends into the surrounding desert. If you want a truly unique, elevated experience without sacrificing the views, Amangiri is a 5-star choice.
UNDER CANVAS
Under Canvas offers luxurious, safari-inspired glamping tents at multiple locations across the US, including the Grand Canyon and Lake Powell, making it a unique and convenient option for an Arizona elopement.
Getting Married in Arizona
MARRIAGE LICENSE
To legally get married in Arizona you’ll need a marriage license which costs $83 and must be obtained in person at the County Clerk’s Office. You may need to schedule an appointment in advance if you’re traveling from out of state or planning to get married within the next 30 days. Once you have your license, you can get married any time from that same day up to one year, at which point it will expire. For your ceremony, you’ll need an officiant and two witnesses and the signed license must be returned within 10 days.
LOCATION PERMIT
Depending on your elopement location, you may need to purchase a special use permit to have your ceremony there. The price of these depend on the specific location, the size of your group, and if you plan to have any type of setup. These are typically only a few hundred dollars and it’s important to obtain one if the location requires it.
If I’m your photographer, I will help you out here! You are responsible for applying for any necessary ceremony permits, but I’ll point you in the right direction for who to contact.
BEST TIME OF YEAR TO VISIT ARIZONA
The summer months in Arizona can be extremely hot due to the desert environment and the winter can bring extremely cold or at the very least, more unpredictable weather (depending on which part of the state you’re in), so I always recommend Spring and Fall for planning your Arizona elopement! In the spring you have the chance to see wildflowers in bloom and in the fall, the colors of the leaves change. Paired with milder weather, both of these seasons are beautiful times to visit! I recommend aiming for the shoulder of the season (so early spring or late fall) to avoid crowds and planning your elopement on a week day no matter what time of year you visit.
OTHER VENDORS
Once you’ve picked your Arizona elopement location, settled on a date, and booked a place to stay, then you’ll want to start planning the rest of the details!
Depending on your vision for the day, you may want to hire a planner, florist, hair and makeup artist, and/or private chef or caterer to help create the ultimate elopement experience for you.
Planning the Rest of Your Arizona Elopement Experience
DETAILS
Pick out something to wear that you’re excited about and that you feel confident in! Add some fun accessories to complete your look and think about other little things to really make the day special. Some ideas are: personalized vow books, wedding day perfume/cologne, something to include your pets (like socks, a pin, or a little card with their faces). I also love to encourage couples to include things that are significant to their relationship, like old love letters or a special playlist with your favorite songs, gifts that you’ve gotten each other over the years, etc.
DAY-OF ACTIVITIES
Really take some time to envision what you want your day to look like and make room for some intentional time together. This could look like getting up for sunrise on your wedding day to have a quiet morning together, or buying ingredients for your favorite breakfast and cooking together before you get ready, or packing a picnic to share at a viewpoint. It could also look like a helicopter tour or jeep adventure or a campfire after the sun sets. Make your whole day fun and exciting and full of your favorite things! This will look different to everyone, which is one of the best parts of eloping - you can do whatever YOU want!
DAY BEFORE OR AFTER SESSION
One thing I highly recommend if you’re planning a destination elopement, is having more than just the elopement day documented. Doing a day before session with your photographer is a fun way to get comfortable in front of the camera, get more photos in something besides your wedding outfits, and have even more memories from your trip captured. Almost all of my couples book one of these! Alternatively, you can do a session the day after your elopement. This idea would be a fun option if you’re roadtripping around Arizona and you want photos in multiple locations!
Arizona Photography Pricing
Elopements & Intimate Weddings
Coverage starts at $7500 for 4 hours of coverage and includes all travel expenses and a digital gallery of high-resolution photos. Add-ons include engagement sessions, a second photographer, and albums. Average investment for a full day of coverage is $10k.
Couple & Engagement Sessions
Starting at $2500 for a 1.5 hour session in one location. Additional hours are available at a rate of $500/hour.
“WOW! We can’t say enough good things about Carrie!”
Carrie was originally supposed to photograph our 160-person wedding in Ventura, CA. Like most 2020-2021 couples, we had to change up our day a bit. We were so nervous Carrie wouldn't be available for our change of plans, but turned out she was able to travel to Sedona, AZ with us for our more intimate "COVID-19" wedding (that was the best decision we could've made). Upon changing our plans to a smaller, more "elopement-style" wedding, Carrie went to work location scouting for us and helping us plan/schedule the events of our big day. She made everything so easy and went above and beyond to check on permitting, restrictions and even communicated with park rangers for us. We had no idea where we wanted to get married in Sedona, we just knew we wanted to do something adventurous (not a venue), so the guides she created were incredibly helpful. Our wedding day was everything we could've hoped for and more, and Carrie played HUGE part in that. She captured our day perfectly and was such a joy to spend time with, which is really important when you climb a mountain together, lol. You should've seen her scaling the rocks with her gear, capturing special moments along the way! After the wedding, Carrie AGAIN did not disappoint. Two days later we already had a sneak peak gallery with 70 photos! We couldn't believe it. And just over two weeks later we had our entire gallery. We highly recommend Carrie if you are looking to do an adventurous elopement. She goes above and beyond for her couples and is so dang talented!
— Sheridan & Austin
ARTFUL & INTENTIONAL STORYTELLING FOR COUPLES
WHO VALUE CONNECTION, AUTHENTICITY, AND MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCES
