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There is a growing trend among brides to think outside the box—from the dress, to the location, to the structure of the ceremony. One major trend is the intimate wedding. Brides are ditching the cost and stress of a large wedding and replacing it with backyard gatherings and adventure elopements.

Starting about two years ago I made a change in my photography business. After photographing a winter wedding with only 20 people in attendance, I realized I had a deep appreciation for small, intimate weddings. Since then, it has developed into my passion and the majority of the weddings I photograph.

I thought I would share the 5 reasons my brides, and many others, are scaling back and choosing an intimate wedding.

1. IT'S FINANCIALLY FREEING.
Holy smokes do you save money--and its the most obvious reason to scale back on the guest list. New England weddings are expensive and smaller weddings are the easiest way to cut the cost. With a smaller wedding you save on catering, invitations, the venue, the florist, and even the photographer and videographer.

With an intimate wedding, you don’t need eight hours of photography coverage so you can book a smaller package. As a photographer who specializes in small weddings and elopements, my packages include 3-5 hours of coverage, instead of the typical 8-10 hours.

And just think of the ways you can use all the money you saved--if you are really embracing all things small, you could buy a tiny house with your saved wedding budget!

2. ENDLESS LOCATION OPTIONS.
As soon as you decide to go small with the invite list, the venue options open up. If you have a 250 person guest list, you are limited by venues that can accomadate that number. The smaller the wedding, the more options you have. Want to get married on top of a mountain or in the middle of your favorite hiking trail? Have you always dreamed of getting married on a remote beach? Love the idea of getting married in your grandmother's backyard? Every one of these options become a possibility when you only have to account for a small amount of people. Your location choice becomes personality-driven instead of numbers-driven.

3. STRESS-FREE PLANNING (OR AT LEAST A WHOLE LOT LESS)
The smaller the wedding, the easier it is to plan. Yes, there is still the dress, the location, the flowers, and the invitations—but when you only have to mail 20 invites instead of 250, you save time. When you only have to select one bouquet instead of seven bouquets (and centerpieces), you save time. When you have to organize a seating chart for two tables instead of 20, you save time. Every little part of planning a wedding becomes easier.

This stress-free planning carries into the wedding day. Part of the reason I almost exclusively shoot small weddings is because of my experience with brides on their wedding day. I fell in love with the feel of a small wedding. It was relaxed and incredibly intimate. I was able to capture simple, meaningful moments.

4. THOSE WHO MATTER MOST
The day of the wedding is about you, your future spouse and the people closest to you. When you choose to scale down the guest list you are able to have memorable and intentional moments with each person in attendance. Things are less rushed, so your mother has time to help you with your jewelry and your father has time to enjoy the first moment he sees his daughter as a bride.

Let's not forget about your spouse! When you scale back, you have time to enjoy all the little and big moments of the day with your new spouse!

5. TIME FOR THE LITTLE THINGS
With a small wedding, you gain time. You spend less time coordinating and interacting with a large crowd of people. With this time, you can focus on the details. You can stop and relax. Your wedding day won’t feel like a blur because you will have more time to pause and take it all in.

Are you planning a small wedding? I would love to talk to you about your day!

Vince and Jackie knew early on that they wanted to elope. It had become a bit of a tradition in Jackie's family. Her parents eloped as well. Vince and Jackie loved the romance of a true elopement so, on a perfectly sunny day in August, Vince and Jackie drove from New York to spend a few days in New Hampshire. On Monday morning, they headed to Portsmouth City Hall for the license and had an intimate private ceremony just a few hundred yards away from the doors of city hall.

They invited me to capture the entire day--from the signing of the license, to the ceremony, to the walk around Portsmouth as husband and wife. They included details that helped make this day so special. They had the letters they had written during their years of long-distance, Vince's dog tags, and shoes that help benefit Best Friends Animal Society--to represent their love for animals.

With every elopement I capture, I fall more in love with them. There is something so beautiful in the simplicity of it all.