Summer backyard weddings are perfect for the couple who wants a DIY wedding. They can take a lot of extra work and planning, but can end up being the perfect day! For Marcus and Casey, their backyard wedding consisted of a church ceremony with a backyard reception. Keep reading for more insight into the planning of their special day and some tips to help you plan the perfect summer church ceremony and backyard reception!
Summer Backyard Wedding Reception | Southern California Photographer
Ideally, for your timeline, you will want to plan on doing a first look or allot extra time for a “cocktail hour”. One of the challenges of having a ceremony and reception in different spots is the travel involved in getting to and from. Traveling from one place to the next, no matter how close it is, always takes more time than you think! You have to think about travel time on top of everyone arriving and being ready to go for photos!
Marcus and Casey chose to do a first look at the University of Redlands. With it being such a warm day in June, we opted to only do bridal party photos before the ceremony. Once those photos were done, we headed to the church for the ceremony.
Backyard Reception Aesthetic | Southern California Wedding Photographer
We arrived an hour before the ceremony so that everyone could freshen up from the heat. During this time I was able to take detail photos of their rings. This would be a good time to capture other special details such as shoes, invitations, jewelry, etc!
After the ceremony, we did a few couple shots and headed back to the U of R for family photos. They kept their family list short and sweet and made sure everyone knew exactly where to go. After, we stayed behind for a few more couple photos and got to the reception within an hour of the ceremony ending.
Lastly, the couple chose to host the reception with their guests at the bride’s aunt + uncle’s home. It was the perfect space to enjoy dinner, mingle with guests, and enjoy some fun wedding festivities! A bonus about this house is the cute balcony where we were able to sneak up for a few minutes to get some golden hour photos!
This was such a fun take on a summer wedding, not to mention budget-friendly! Marcus and Casey were able to get so many stunning couple portraits in a few different locations. I can’t wait for the next summer backyard wedding and reception. If you are still looking for a photographer, I’d love to hear more about your day!
LEIA CALDWELL PHOTOGRAPHY | SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WEDDING + COUPLES PHOTOGRAPHER
If you are ready to start your wedding planning for 2025, head to my contact page to lock me in!
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