Earlier this year we excitedly flew to Iceland to got our creative juices flowing as an Iceland elopement photographer. We’re no strangers to this amazing country, having been there numerous times, we even got engaged under the Northern Lights there, and we are excited to show you our photos from this Rock and Roll Bride featured shoot. This dramatic landscape of ice, black sands and mountains demands a unique approach and we’ve always been so inspired by it. We came up with a crazy plan to get out there and shoot – in the middle of winter…
Maybe your engaged and dreading the idea of all eyes on you during the big day. You’re thinking the big white wedding is just not your thing, and don’t understand why you have to pay a small fortune to feed and entertain a load of people. If this rings true then consider having an elopement. An elopement can be just the two of you and your celebrant, or it can be a small amount of special people who you love. Small, intimate weddings are a joy to shoot for different reasons and we’d love to be there for your elopement adventure.
Your wedding your rules for your Iceland Elopement
An elopement can be whatever you want it to be. You and your beloved can run off to a registry office or city hall. You can hike a mountain in Scotland. Or the Dolomites. Or Tenerife. The beauty of being an elopement photographer is the beauty of time. We are hanging out with you like old friends, and heading to different locations away from the confines of a standard wedding day timeline to celebrate your love for each other. We have no time rules for an elopement, and can leave you too it as the sun goes down, or all head off a boozy celebratory dinner.
Gone are the normal wedding rules, we’re here to show you your elopement can be the adventure you’ve always wanted, with just the two of you or with ten. We can even act as your witnesses if you want to keep it really intimate. We particularly can show you how to make the most of Iceland for your wedding, and especially how to have an out of this world elopement.
We’ve seen so many fabulous destination weddings in Iceland, with incredible photographs of couples. However, we have noticed that the photography is usually quite muted and dark, and we wanted to bring our signature bright, fun style to the party too. A fresh approach to wedding photography in Iceland – how we see this amazing country – in all it’s vibrant glory and blue skies rather than brown or orange tones.
Planning your elopement in Iceland
We had the help of the lovely Vigids at Lux Weddings Iceland when looking at our suitable locations in southern Iceland, as we wanted to make sure we stuck to regulations. This would be our first recommendation to you if you are planning your own icelandic elopement, as they are a wonderful bunch. However if you are looking to keep things low key with what you do, here are a few things to consider:
It’s really easy for foreigners to get married in Iceland but your first thought should be whether you want to get married officially in Iceland or symbolically. You can contact your local registry office for a simple paper-writing ceremony and then have a symbolic and arguably more special ceremony in Iceland.
If you are going official, at least two weeks before your planned date you need to have the paperwork to the The Reykjavik District Commissioner (Sýslumaðurinn í Reykjavík.)
When planning locations, it’s best to work with your marriage official and your Iceland elopement photographer. The whole country is stunning, but you’ll find different types of areas north to south. The south has the popular ‘golden circle’ which has a huge amount of waterfalls and other tourist tick boxes, but it can mean it is very busy. There’s a reason why part of Games of Thrones were shot in the north… But if you are a building in a holiday in Iceland, and you should, but time is short you may find keeping within a couple of hours of Reykjavik is sensible.
Getting creative
We collated a small but perfect team of amazing wedding suppliers for the iceland elopement shoot, choosing three different looks based on the legends of Iceland; fire, ice and a third, how it makes us feel, somewhere in between the two with a ‘winter wonderland’ edge. Our locations included Kleifarvatn, Stokkseyri, Skogafoss and Vik over two days.
This country is out of this world, and we wanted to bring that feeling to our couple too. We ditched the white dress, the nude make up and all ‘normal’ wedding traditions for the shoot. Most importantly, we wanted a real couple in love, so worked with Icelandic Instagram fitness influencer Irena – Siggudottir – and her partner Mani, who not only blew us away with their commitment but showed us the real love and emotion we were looking for. If Lina had been a celebrant, she would have said the words and married them!
Ice
For the first look, ice, we had separates from Bowen Dryden – an utterly fabulous violet skirt which required its own suitcase (!) accompanied by a simple white lace cameo top. Lina’s vintage faux feathered jacket from Biba completed the outfit alongside Love from Becky‘s stunning headpiece. This look is not traditional, but a look any bride would look fabulous in – especially in Iceland, Norway or Lapland (or for a winter wedding in general). Instead of a formal lounge suit or tails, the groom kept it more casual with a blue tweed waistcoat from The Vintage Suit Hire Co. Later we also used a loppesaya, traditional Icelandic knitwear, which we both love for extra cosiness (and we think Mani appreciated it too!)
Fire
Our next look, fire, exudes passion. A red embellished Chotronette wedding dress and a Love from Becky deep red floral headpiece for the bride styled with a vintage tailored purple jacket. We wanted our groom to have much less formal styling again too – simple black denim and red braces with a black shirt kept things simple, but ultra stylish. This look would be absolutely perfect for a vintage-inspired or alternative winter elopement.
Irena in Wonderland
Our final look, a quirky outfits to contrast against the black sands of Iceland, would be perfect for a post-wedding shoot or elopement. The ‘bride’ wore a colourful embroidered Chotronette coat and silver Mustang shoes. A simple pale green waistcoat from our friends at Chimney Formal Hire perfectly complimented the dreamy coat. Don’t they look amazing next to the black rocks and sand?
It was so fun to throw out the rule book for this shoot and really strive for something different. There were no boundaries and traditions, everyone on the team embraced the unique quality that Iceland has that inspires us so much. Thanks to Belles Beauty for the incredible hair and make-up.
We hope we’ve given you inspiration for your wedding – whether you’re getting married in Iceland or planning an adventurous elopement. Why not change the rules and be unique to who you are?
We shoot destination weddings all over the world, and we LOVE Iceland. If you’re looking for an Iceland wedding photographer, please get in touch with us. We’d love to hear from you – especially if you are looking for an elopement photographer.
Thanks to 101 Model Agency Reykjavik for connecting us with Irena + Mani, as to Magpie Weddings for also featuring the elopement shoot.
