Hannah and Scott eloped to New York from their home in England this June. They were aged 28 and 37 when they got married. They stayed in the Plaza Hotel, and started their photography session there, walking around twenty blocks north through Central Park, taking photos along the way, to get to the Ladies’ Pavilion, where they had the ceremony.
The couple had been together for almost seven years when they got married. They met at a holiday park where they were both working at the time. They got engaged in Central Park! Scott popped the questions at Gapstow Bridge, so they had wanted to pass by there for some photos on their wedding day. They had been engaged for five years when they got married.
I hear from so many couples who start down the route of planning a big, traditional wedding and then decide that it’s not for them and they don’t need all of that stress. Hannah and Scott were one of these couples. They had booked a wedding in a large country hotel and cancelled soon after due to the stress. The decision caused them to lose their deposit, but the big wedding was not what they wanted.
They are pleased that they made this difficult decision to cancel that wedding that would not have suited them. “An elopement not only allows you more time to focus on what’s important, and on each other, it is also much less stressful and very easy in New York, especially with the help of Claire,” said Hannah. They had a reception celebration on their return home with friends and family, so they managed to get the best of both worlds. “Everyone was very excited to see the photos,” Hannah told me.
Hannah and Scott purchased their dress and suit in UK, Hannah had artificial flowers made at home and they packed them all in their suitcases. They arrived in New York the day before the wedding, and they checked in to the Plaza Hotel. It’s a beautiful hotel, overlooking Central Park from 59th Street, with lots of great photo opportunities. If you stay there, I’d advise that get permission from the hotel if you do want to take photos inside. In our experience, sometimes they yes, sometimes they say no. For Hannah and Scott, their stay was short, and they began a cruise from New York the day after their wedding.
Our photographer Jakub Redziniak began taking photos in their hotel room, and they slowly worked their way north from there. He took some photos of them outside of the hotel, and then the three of them walked up to Gapstow Bridge, where Hannah and Scott had gotten engaged. Then they walked up the Mall, taking photos as they went, and stopped for portrait photos at Bethesda Terrace, Wagner Cove and Bow Bridge.
After the portrait session, they walked up to the Ladies’ Pavilion to meet our officiant for the wedding ceremony. After the ceremony, they took more photos around the Shakespeare Garden and Belvedere Castle. They covered a lot of Central Park! The whole photo session took three hours. Hannah and I discussed how far they would have to walk beforehand to make sure that she was clear on how long she’d be on her feet and to be sure she had the right shoes. Not everyone wants to do this much walking on their wedding day, but Hannah was aware of the distance and she was happy to do it.
Hannah said that she had expected that their favorite photos might have been taken on Bow Bridge, but in the end “I couldn’t say which photo locations were my favorite as I love them all!” Which is wonderful to hear! They chose the Ladies’ Pavilion for their ceremony for its privacy. For the ceremony, we had the officiant talk a little about their relationship to date, then they exchanged traditional vows before exchanging rings. After their time in Central Park they went over to Times Square for dinner and drinks.
I asked Hannah if she had any advice for anyone considering getting married in Central Park. “Just do it, you won’t regret it!” she said. I asked how we did. “Claire offers a fantastic service that really takes the stress out of things and you won’t be disappointed if you book with her. Her knowledge is invaluable, thank you Claire!” she said. Thank you so much for your kind words, it was an absolute pleasure to plan your wedding with you Hannah!
If you would like me to help you with planning your own Central Park wedding or elopement, whether you live locally or are planning on traveling to New York to get married, visit our website. Keep updated with our news and see lots of beautiful photos, “like” us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and follow us on Pinterest.
