I might be biased, but Memphis is such an underrated romantic city. But it’s also so often the chosen destination wedding or elopement of many couples. The city offers a wide variety of amazing wedding venues that you get to explore. Memphis Botanic Garden is definitely at the top of this list. It’s beautiful year round…yes, even in the dead of winter. There’s something about the botanic gardens that just draws you in. Before I go into any more photo and story telling, here is their website to get you just as obsessed as the rest of us :)

A Colorado Elopement to Memphis Botanic Garden Portraits

Kim and Jeff chose to do their post elopement session with me here! They had booked me in 2020 just before COVID had begun, and so this pushed the wedding twice. They live in Colorado and originally wanted to do this elopement with her family in Memphis, but…y’all know. Thus the story of so many couples during this worldwide pandemic. Kim and Jeff decided to elope in their backyard in Colorado, then planned for future portraits with me. Needless to say, this was probably one of the best decisions they could have made. The stress of the wedding was already over, which gave us so much time to wander around the botanic garden.

Post-Elopement Portraits

Kim and Jeff were so incredibly relaxed and easygoing, and I loved every second working with them. It’s such an easy and creative shoot when my clients are down to run with wild ideas. They were not shy in front of the camera, and were also not afraid of some PDA. SO helpful. We captured some of the most stunning photos together and I’m so happy :) If anyone is wanting to redo their wedding photos, or do anniversary photos in your wedding get-up, choose Memphis Botanic Garden. It’s just timeless and beautiful.

This Memphis Botanic Garden elopement is an extraordinary experience. MBG is so kind in their scheduling, and are always so easy to work with. You’ll need to send in a request form for a 2 hour photo session, and choose a back up date just in case! Once we had our date and time set, we could go wherever we wanted to in the gardens. Our first stop was Blecken Pavilion to re-create their wedding moment. It was honestly perfect, because elopements are usually JUST the couple. They got to have their moment again.

It never surprises me when couples choose the Memphis Botanic venue. Kim and Jeff’s personality and whimsical style complimented the gardens so well. But I’ve also seen the garden hold incredible multicultural weddings, boho weddings, simple micro weddings. It’s such a versatile place.

Botanic Garden Elopement Portraits

We started our botanic garden elopement portraits in front of the Blecken Pavilion. This location within the gardens is VERY popular for weddings, and there’s no explanation needed. The pavilion is modern, moody, and a gorgeous piece of architecture in the middle of dreamy greenery. There’s also a tulip patch nearby, which is never a bad thing. Blecken Pavilion offers the perfect background setting for a photo warm up as well. If you’re doing a shorter shoot or just a quick elopement, sometimes it helps to have a straight forward place to start.

Japanese Garden

The red bridge in the Japanese Garden was a location they made sure was one we captured. I’ve photographed this bridge at sunset, as well as in the morning, and it never. fails. to be gorgeous. The red hue really stands out in the middle of all the green in the background, and if you can catch a Coi fish swimming near the surface of the water, that’s just a plus :)

I really love when cloudy weather doesn’t keep my couples from enjoying their session. I am all about an overcast day, it’s my absolute favorite. And since they were soaking in each other’s company, we were all able to be in the moment. I think the best photos we got were all of the candids and I’m not mad about it :)

The Container Garden at Memphis Botanic Garden

To one side of the Blecken Pavilion is a small container garden with concrete planters that give you serious Greek vibes. This made for some amazing solo shots for the bride and groom, and if there’s a bench around I will 100% use it. So I did :) I feel like this little setting was really ideal for capturing Kim’s beautiful spirit. She took on her own art form and gave more life to the Botanic Garden.

One of the things I appreciate most about Memphis Botanic Garden weddings is the intimacy. With all of its hidden spots, lush trees and florals, and the whimsy… it makes the perfect setting for a wedding. You just feel like you’re in another world.

We had so many location choice that gave us photos capturing Kim and Jeff’s individual character and style. There was a quick set of portraits to include their family, but then went off on our own to create some memories for just them. Their main focus was to capture the wild and crazy side of the love they have for each other. I can confidently say that we were successful :)

Other locations that are AMAZING to use inside the garden:

Herb Garden

Rose Garden

Iris Garden

Memphis Botanic Garden

To see Kim and Jeff’s full gallery at Memphis Botanic Garden, you can find it here! If you’re interested in creating your own version of a Botanic Garden wedding or photoshoot at another Memphis location, feel free to reach out to me anytime! And if you’re looking for a Memphis wedding venue, but MBG isn’t for you, check out this list of amazing venues that the city has to offer. I promise, you won’t be disappointed.