City hall weddings can be a beautiful and highly memorable event. With the right preparation, you can naturally enhance your city hall wedding photography session to take full advantage of the location. Follow these tips to capture every moment of your special day at city hall!
Plan ahead.
Research the city hall’s policies and guidelines for you and your guests. The implemented Covid policies can change overnight, for instance as of 2/14/23 couples can now bring in up to THREE guests to their City Hall ceremony. There will be flexibility for children under 12, but outside of little ones, there will be a limit of 3 guests.
Think about timing.
The new system of appointments implemented by the NY City Clerk helps make things run smoother but there still can be delays. For our City Hall packages we don’t time the session and make sure we cover the wait and ceremony plus a few photos outside with the couple and group shots if needed. Additional locations can be added to our basic City Hall package.
Take Advantage of the Architecture and Light at City Hall area.
The City Hall wedding area with adjacent official buildings allows couples to benefit from the effect of beautiful lighting and stunning architecture. Right now the actual marriage bureau building is covered by scaffolding but the Supreme Court right in front is an amazing spot for photos!
Don’t bring a heavy bag or bulky items.
Especially if it’s just the two of you, you probably won’t want to be in the photos carrying big bags or backpacks. That said, both Leila, the photographer, and David will be there so David can help you carry small items and occasionally your coats if you want to go for a only dress photo on a chilly day!
Make sure to capture all the details
Make sure you show us details you want us to photograph such as the rings, ticket number, or any special things such as pins or symbolic pieces of jewelry you chose to wear on your wedding day.
Try to relax and enjoy the experience.
Having to fill out paperwork on your wedding day can be stressful but the workers at the locations are really experienced and will go through things smoothly. Also, David is a registered officiant so he can help clarify and even officiate if for any reason there’s something wrong with their computer system. That happened to one of our couples!
Bring your puppy!
I know we mentioned we don’t recommend to bring big bags, however if you are bring your puppy in a bag, please do! :)
Hope all these tips were helpful. Feel free to send us a note or ask us any questions!