I didn’t elope, but I wish I had | Susan Woods Photography

Susan Woods Photography · Sydney Elopement Photographer · susanwoodsphotography.com

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Here’s the thing nobody says out loud: no matter what you do for your wedding, someone is going to have feelings about it. So you may as well do exactly what you want.

I had a wedding. A real one. People, speeches, the whole thing. It was a beautiful day and I genuinely mean that. I’m grateful for every person who showed up and celebrated with us.

But there was a moment — somewhere between the seating chart drama and the third round of “can we just move this table slightly to the left”, where I looked at my partner and thought: I just want it to be us. Right now. Just us.

That feeling didn’t go away. And if I’m honest, it’s part of why I now photograph intimate weddings and elopements almost exclusively. Because I understand it in my bones — the wanting to strip it all back and just be present with the person you’re choosing.

No matter what you do for your wedding, somebody is going to have feelings about it. Someone will be annoyed they were invited. Someone else will be annoyed they weren’t. Someone will complain about the drive, the venue, the food, the timing, the fact that you didn’t do a bouquet toss.

You genuinely cannot win. So you may as well stop trying to and just do what you actually want.

The impossible task of planning a wedding that pleases everyone

Here is what I have observed, as someone who has been a bride, a guest, a bridesmaid and a photographer at weddings : the couple who has 150 guests gets told they should have kept it small. The couple who elopes gets told they’ve broken everyone’s heart. The couple who does 30 people gets it from both sides.

There is no version of your wedding that makes every single person in your life happy. That is simply not on the table. The only version of your wedding that’s actually available to you is one that makes you happy and hopefully your partner too, if you’re going to keep them around.

I say this not to be cynical about weddings, I love them, clearly, I photograph them but because I think a lot of couples spend enormous amounts of time and money and emotional energy trying to manage everyone else’s experience of their day. And somewhere in the middle of all that managing, they forget to actually enjoy it themselves.

What eloping actually means in 2026

Eloping doesn’t mean sneaking off at midnight and telling no one until it’s done, though if that’s your vibe, I fully support it. In 2026, eloping simply means choosing to get married in a way that’s intimate, intentional, and on your terms.

It might be just the two of you on a clifftop at sunrise with a celebrant and an elopement photographer. It might be fifteen people in a hidden garden in Lavender Bay. It might be a long lunch at a restaurant you love with the eight people who matter most. All of these count and all of these are valid.

What they have in common is that every single person there is someone you genuinely wanted to be there, not someone you invited because of obligation or politics or the fear of the conversation if you didn’t. Every face you see when you say your vows is a face you chose on purpose.

The guilt is real and it’s also not your problem to solve

The number one reason couples don’t elope when they want to is guilt. They don’t want to disappoint their parents. They don’t want to cause family drama. They don’t want to be the person who robbed everyone of a celebration.

I hear this all the time. And I want to say something gently but clearly: the people who love you will get over it. Faster than you think. What they won’t get over and what you won’t get over; is you spending your wedding day stressed and stretched and unable to actually be present for it.

You can celebrate with everyone after. A dinner, a party, a low-key gathering, whatever feels right. But the ceremony itself can be exactly what you need it to be. Small. Quiet. Just yours.

What to look for in a Sydney elopement photographer

Not all photographers are built for intimate weddings and elopements and that’s fine, it’s genuinely a different skill set. A big wedding has a timeline, a coordinator, a hundred moving parts. A small wedding or elopement lives and dies on the connection between the photographer and the couple.

When you’re looking for a Sydney elopement photographer, here’s what actually matters. Look at how they talk about their couples, not just what their photos look like, but whether you can feel warmth in the way they write and communicate. Check whether they’ve shot engagements, weddings and elopements that look like yours, in terms of energy and vibe, not just location. Ask them what a session with them actually feels like. Their answer will tell you everything. (Also, check their reviews to see others experiences).

As an elopement photographer based in Sydney who also travels NSW-wide, I work almost exclusively with couples who want something real and unhurried. No big production. No coordinator with a clipboard. Just us, a place you love and a day that feels completely and entirely like you.

Where to elope in Sydney; a few places worth knowing

Sydney is genuinely one of the most beautiful places in the world to get married quietly. Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Garden in Lavender Bay – wild, lush, and hidden in plain sight with the Harbour Bridge sitting behind you. The Royal Botanic Garden, where an intimate ceremony at the Herb Garden feels worlds away from the CBD five minutes walk away. The Kirribilli foreshore, where you arrive by ferry from Circular Quay and say your vows with the Opera House directly across the water.

Further afield across NSW there are country estates, clifftops, vineyards and national parks that are built for exactly this kind of day. I travel NSW-wide for elopements and small weddings and some of the most beautiful sessions I’ve photographed have been an hour or two outside of Sydney where the light and the land do things you simply can’t replicate in the city.

If you’re not sure where to start with locations, that’s one of the first things we talk about when you get in touch. I know the spots. I know the light. I know which ones require permits and which ones don’t. That’s part of what you get when you work with a photographer who specialises in this.

So, do I wish I’d eloped?

Honestly, yes. I had a beautiful wedding and I love the photos and I wouldn’t change the people who were there. But I would have loved just one moment, of it being just us. Quiet. No one watching. Just choosing each other without an audience.

That moment is what I try to give every couple I photograph. Whether it’s an elopement for two, a gathering of fifteen people in a garden, or a small wedding of fifty people who all genuinely earned their seat there, I’m trying to give you that feeling.

Your day doesn’t have to be big to matter. It just has to be yours.

Ready to talk about your day?

I photograph intimate weddings and elopements across Sydney and NSW-wide. Small guest lists, laid back couples, days that feel like you rather than a production. If that sounds like what you’re after, I’d love to hear from you!