Curious how to plan a courthouse wedding and intimate reception in LA? We are here to help with how to get started and some tips we have from our experience with photographing so many of these special days. Having a courthouse wedding is such an awesome decision and it is even more awesome because you can make this day even more chic and fun while still keeping it intimate. For steps on what to do to make this day special, see below on some of our top tips on getting started with planning.

1)PICK YOUR COURTHOUSE:
For this couple, they chose the Beverly Hills Courthouse to tie the knot. It is one of the most beautiful courthouses ever and in Los Angeles. There are a number of courthouses to choose from in Los Angeles. Some of these are the LAX Courthouse and the Pasadena City Hall– check out this gorgeous wedding at the Pasadena City Hall here. For more details on how to get married at the Beverly Hills Courthouse, click here to read more!

2) FIND A LOCATION TO GET READY:
This is not absolutely necessary but something some of our courthouse couples will do so they can get some of those special moments and details of their day captured. Just because it is an intimate day doesn’t mean you have to cut out all of the extra photos. For this wedding, they chose to capture a short first look and some getting ready photos for the bride at the Prospect Hotel in Los Angeles.

3) CHOOSE YOUR WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER:
Yes, even for a smaller day, professional images are SO important. Also, because you kept it small, so many people are going to want to see some snippets of your special day since they weren’t there. Book a photographer that knows how the courthouse process works and where all the best spots are to photograph. We specialize in courthouse wedding photography, and we make sure make it tasteful, timeless and chic. Let’s connect here!

4) PLAN A FUN RECEPTION OR DINNER:
Don’t restrict yourself to only a small ceremony and no fun afterwards! Our couples usually either do a fun dinner with close family and friends after or they put together an intimate reception at a restaurant, cocktail bar etc.with more friends and family! The great thing about this, is you can make it unique to you two. Our couple in this blog chose to invite additional friends and family to come to the reception afterwards at Petit Trois for some drinks, dinner, music and celebration of their special day! They had the Velvet Poppy artfully create these beautiful tablescapes.

There are so many different ways of doing a courthouse wedding and reception. Some keep the entire day small and some keep just the ceremony small, either way it is up to you two and what makes most sense to you as a couple. We absolutely love capturing courthouse weddings all throughout Southern California and hope that this blog on how to plan a courthouse wedding and intimate reception in LA can help you make that a reality.

For other inspiration at the Beverly Hills Courthouse, check out our blog here!

If you are interested in booking photography for your special day, let’s connect below!