FOCUSING ON YOUR COMMITMENT EVERY STEP OF THE WAY
Read more about the experience
If you’re like me, a big wedding isn’t for you. Not if you really think about it. And I want you to be brave enough to say no to it. Because I wish my wife and I had been.
Your love and commitment deserve to be the center of attention on your wedding day. This day marks the entry to the rest of your lives together, so make it memorable, make it extraordinary, make it an adventure. Make it reflect the two of you and everything you ever wanted.
This day should be a story you’ll tell future generations. I will take the photos that tell that story in a genuine way. Because those photos are memories of the moments. And I’ll make sure that your experience comes over photos, always.
WHY SHOULD WE elope?
I shoot elopements for people who want to honour their love through a meaningful experience and memories that last for a lifetime.
Read about my Approach
After the booking, I give you all of my ideas and tips on how to dream up the most you elopement experience, find the best places to stay and eat and how to get to this remote corner of the world.
DREAM BIG & GET INSPIRED
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Before booking, we'll chat via video call, get to know each other and talk about the plan in general. You can ask questions and after the call I'll send you a quote. After this you can decide if you want to book the date.
Let's connect
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Every few months, I announce my upcoming elopement locations. These are places I love, at their best times of year, selected for the best experience. Ideal for elopements that are as unique as you.
choose your destination
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plan your elopement
how it works
We'll meet somewhere cozy at the destination. I'll give you some tips how to take all in and enjoy your adventure. Let's do this!
IT's adventure time
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After you have some ideas for the say, we chat about the details and plan the best experience just for you. However, we don't plan the day in a way that there's a strict timeline - sometimes it's just more fun to keep things relaxed and go with the flow.
Let's plan together
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I'll encourage you to imagine that ceremony, those unforgettable minutes you'll be saying yes to forever with each other. How do you want to feel looking at your partner in that moment?
MAKE IT PERSONAL
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more about
Contact to get started
The sky is the limit when planning your elopement. So, the first thing I want to encourage you to do is to ditch all the rules and traditional wedding day structures. Instead focus on what’s most important to you and how you would like to mark the commitment you are about to make.
Instead of planning a ceremony, plan a wedding day. Plan a multi-day experience, plan a week. In a way, this could be your wedding and your honeymoon all at once. Think about exploring new places, enjoying new activities, going on adventures. It's the best way to celebrate your new chapter of your life.
To me, this means that instead of a wedding among lots of people in a stuffy event venue, I could instead imagine a ceremony up above the fjords of Norway. Exchanging vows in the most breathtaking scenery, and afterwards enjoying local food and snuggling up in a cosy cabin. We will do it for the experience.
dream big enough
Doing things for the experience
how to elope
what couples say about me
When you see each other for the first time in your wedding attire, the importance of the day, the epic- ness of the moment really hits you. You feel the butterflies, and you can’t wait to start the rest of the day - and the rest of your lives - together. As with every other moment of this day, I’m there to help you make the most of it - and to capture that. So, there won’t be any stiff, posed photos, I promise you that.
THe First look
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Now you’re up even though it’s still early. The sun is just rising, but you’re too excited to continue sleeping. You step outside the cabin and take a deep breath in the clean, crisp nordic air, and inexplicably, you feel more alive than ever before. You have breakfast together, then get ready in separate rooms, your heart beating with excitement. I might meet you at this point, taking some photos of these beautiful moments of anticipation.
Slowly getting ready
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Imagine waking up in your cabin nestled at between the mountains and the blue water of the fjord. You arrived yesterday and couldn’t quite believe your eyes at the sheer beauty of this place. The two of you took a walk to take in the beauty, then cooked dinner together at your cabin. You spent the evening snuggling by the fire place, talking about the day to come.
The day before
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imagining your elopement experience
your elopement can be anything you want - to help you picture it, here is an example
The sunlight gently hits your spouse’s face when the ceremony begins. The moment feels incredible. The views, the place, the two of you. You already know now that you will never ever forget this experience and this exact moment in time. You don’t have to worry about anything or anyone else. All you do is feel the power of nature and this place that seems to draw all the focus on you and your partner. When you read your vows to one another it is as if nothing else even exists.
Once-in-a-lifetime experience
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When you arrive at the top, you feel one with the scenery. There are some clouds in the sky but you can still feel the warmth of the sun on your face, see the morning fog in the valley. It’s more quiet than you could have imagined, there is only a light breeze. You may change your clothes because you wanted to hike in something comfortable, maybe you just put on a different pair of shoes. You smile because perhaps you got a little dirty on your way up. Your dress got stuck on a shrub or your pants collected some mud, but you know that these details just tell the story of your day.
The ceremony
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The trail up to your ceremony location isn’t too long, just 30 minutes, although it’s pretty steep. I helped you pick a spot that gives you the most amazing views while avoiding those popular places that draw the Instagram crowds.
Hiking to the ceremony spot together is an experience like no other. It’s not simply a hike, but it almost feels like a spiritual journey. Because you know that when you arrive, you’re going to get married.
Hike to the ceremony Spot
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After the road-trip day you’re staying in a glass igloo (because it’s the closest thing to spending the night outside under the beautiful night sky). The following day there is a possibility to go for canoeing, taking a sea wildlife safari, exploring the local cuisine or hiking the trails, but we just to do what feels best.
After spending a few days together, it's time to say goodbye, so we take a final selfie just for fun. You continue your travels and wait for the sneak peeks of your photos I will send you a few days later.
Many Exploration options
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After a relaxed lunch, you want to have a little rest and change of clothes, so I’ll leave you alone until we meet for dinner. We agree just to hop our car tomorrow and drive towards the quiet (but beautiful) part of the island. It's so inspiring to drive around, put on some music and wait for what we'll see around the next turn. After a while, we decide to do a small hike and enjoy the nature and unknown. We find a trail off the beaten path, making it even more stunning. The day ends at a dinner table, telling stories and chatting about the next day.
The next day
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After the ceremony, you feel joyful and full of energy. You celebrate the moment with a sip of bubbly or a cup of hot cocoa that we brought up on our hike. You remember what I told you about enjoying the moment together rather than being in front of the camera, and you focus entirely on one another. It isn’t hard, because you’re both gleaming with happiness over the beautiful vows you just exchanged. You’re married. You feel like you could spend the entire day up here, but you know that lunch is waiting for you at your cabin, so we make our way back down.
After the ceremony
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let's dream up your elopement
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Sign up to my mailing list to be the first to know my upcoming elopement destinations. You can also follow me on Instagram for updates or, if you have any questions, click "send a message" above to get in touch! I look forward to hearing from you.
Start exploring your perfect elopement destinations
Thank you for your message!
I will get back to you within 48 hours. If you don't hear from me, get in touch via email or hit me up on Instagram.
Talk soon,
Jaakko
Frequently Asked Questions
First, I offer elopements at select locations in Europe on set dates throughout the year as full day or multi-day experiences. If you haven’t read my reasons for doing it, please read this first.
I'll announce my new destinations first to my mailing list and a few days after that, to Instagram. To ensure your experience will be the best possible, every elopement destination will have limited availability of two elopement experiences.
Second, in addition to offering elopements at select locations, I also photograph a limited amount of á la carte elopements. If you would love to get married in your dream country, mountain or at your grandparents backyard, just hit me a message. For both options, I ensure your elopement is an intimate and unforgettable experience.
Join my mailing list to get started and drop me a message whenever you feel like.
Experience Over Photos:
- I believe that the connection and trust we develop allows you to have the best experience together with your spouse. Experiences over photos is one of my guiding beliefs. A photo will only feel real if the moment was real. And so, I’m here to help you create those authentic moments that will turn into memories for a lifetime.
Unlimited Help and Resources:
- Planning assistance, including location scouting, activities, timelines, what to pack, what to do during your ceremony, and vendor recommendations.
- 60+ Page Experience Over Photos-Guide is filled with tips and information to help you navigate this process from day one to the day you receive your photos.
- My goal is to create unique images that tell the story of you for the generations to come. I constantly think about how to make art in a way that it's meaningful to you.
- On your day, I ensure that all crucial moments are captured and preserved. Every photo is then artistically edited to high resolution, ensuring quality in every frame. Each package guarantees a minimum of 40 images per hour.
The destinations I choose all include the elements you need to truly feel present on your elopement day. In these places, nature's force sets the rhythm, and we humans are only a tiny piece of it all. My goal is that you can feel this deep in your soul when you stand by the wild sea or at one of the silent lakes when you travel through vast open spaces and explore nature's barren, raw beauty in the north.
It's not going to be just a romantic getaway with unique landscapes. It is the best setting to empty your mind of the ordinary and put your attention on your loved one.
I only choose locations where I wish we could've eloped with my wife if we had known better.
Absolutely! However, inviting people to your elopement day will make the experience a bit different. In that case, I would instead plan a multi-day elopement to ensure your intimate and meaningful experience with your partner. This way, you could prioritize your own experience while having your closest people around you.
Also, if you decide to include family or friends in your celebration, ensure they fully support your non-traditional and unique vision. Clarify that it won't be a traditional big wedding but a personalized celebration reflective of your relationship.
- You can have an engagement party
- Invite them to witness your marriage license signing before departing on your trip
- Call them on the day using Skype, Facetime, or Zoom
- Ask them to write letters that you can read on your day
- Send them images, videos, and selfies during your day
- Host a reception or celebration with them when you get back home
- Share the gallery with them after the elopement, or make an album for them
In some European countries, getting legally married is more straightforward than in others. Sometimes a symbolic ceremony can be more practical or manditory for foreigners visiting the country. Whenever I announce a new elopement location, I will provide the best option for that particular European country.
The most significant benefit of a symbolic ceremony is that it allows you to have your elopement ceremony wherever you want. Also, you can modify it in a way that there's only you two and your vows or someone (a hired officiant, a friend, or a family member) who is making the whole process more unique for you. In my experience, the most authentic moments during the ceremonies often only involve the couple getting married.
Even if you legalize your marriage in your home country, your anniversary does not have to be on that date. You can have your marriage license signed in a courthouse in your home state and then have a once-in-a-lifetime elopement in one of the perfect Nordic destinations.
An elopement is the most intimate and significant way to honor your relationship and celebrate the beginning of your life together. Making it personal is so important that the day feels like you.
I will suggest accommodation options and assist you in creating an unforgettable experience, but the focus is always on you. The final decisions and choices are yours to make for your special day.
The elopement experience starts at 5800 €.
Always included on your investment:
- The photography coverage as agreed (possibly split over several days)
- Scouting and visiting the area before your elopement day(s)
- Experience over photos guide to getting you started
- Recommendations where to stay and eat + possible vendors you might need
- Elopement planning video call
- My help during the whole process - just hit me a message, and I'll do my best to help you.
- My travel expenses
I have limited availability on my calendar for à la carte elopements, but I would love to make it happen. Contact me, and let's see how it can be done!
