Redwoods vs. Yosemite: Which Iconic California Backdrop Fits Your Vibe?
The two most iconic elopement backdrops in Northern California couldn't be more different from each other. And the couples who choose them tend to be different, too. Yosemite is epic. Iconic. Expansive. Towering mountains and dramatic valleys. This place has the kind of scale that makes you feel genuinely small. The Redwoods are ancient and quiet. Towering and enormous, yes, but whispered rather than announced.
We've shot elopements in both. We've camped in both. We know which one photographs better in rain (Redwoods, by a mile), which one works better in summer (neither, honestly, but we'll explain), and which one is going to require a permit scramble three months out. More importantly, as elopement creative directors, we know how to build your ideal elopement experience around each location so that you're not just visiting a backdrop, you're living inside a story we designed for you.
Here's everything you need to make the call.
Most couples don't need a location recommendation. They need someone to help them understand which landscape matches who they actually are. That's the first thing we do.
The Case for Yosemite
The Look
Yosemite Valley is one of the most recognizable landscapes on earth. El Capitan, Half Dome, Bridalveil Falls, the reflection in Mirror Lake. These images exist in the visual vocabulary of basically every person alive, which means your elopement photos will carry an immediate sense of scale and permanence. From a photography standpoint, the granite walls create remarkable bounced light in the early morning. The secret view of El Capitan at sunrise (before the day-trippers arrive) is unbelievably peaceful in a place that hosts millions of visitors a year.
From a video standpoint, Yosemite gives Joe a lot to work with. The natural drama of the landscape lends itself to cinematic storytelling. The kind of music-video-style edit where the scale of the environment makes even quiet moments feel epic. This isn't a boring wedding video location. It's a feature-film location.
The Logistics
Yosemite is not the easiest place to elope in, and that's part of why we love it. The challenge keeps it from feeling like anyone could get married here.
You'll need a Special Use Permit for any elopement or intimate ceremony. The application fills quickly for popular dates. In summer, timed-entry reservations are required to drive into Yosemite Valley, and parking is incredibly limited. This is why having creative directors who camp inside the park the night before changes the entire equation. We secure a spot. We scout the specific location and light. You don't manage a single logistical detail alone on your wedding day.
Spring and early summer bring waterfall season, which is extraordinary visually and occasionally muddy on trails. Fall is our personal favorite: cooler temperatures, thinning crowds, and oak trees turning gold against the granite. If you're flexible on season, plan for September or October.
Our Creative Direction for Yosemite
Phase 1 for a Yosemite elopement usually surfaces couples who want grandeur with intention. Not just a postcard moment, but a day built around the emotional weight of that landscape. We translate that into a specific timeline: a quiet early-morning moment at Valley View before anyone else arrives, a mid-morning private ceremony at a spot we've selected based on your vibe, and end the day with 35mm film portraits as the valley light gets real good.
Valley View at sunrise is consistently one of our favorite starts. Where the light hits the Merced River and El Capitan simultaneously. Tunnel View for the valley sweep. Mirror Lake in fall for something more intimate. For couples willing to hike, the options expand significantly, and we'll design the right level of adventure based on what you're actually comfortable with.
Who Yosemite Is For
Yosemite is the right call if you want drama. If you want to feel the physical scale of the landscape in your bones. If you've seen those valley photos your whole life and you want your own moment inside them. It also works beautifully for couples bringing a small group. The valley has enough space that a handful of people doesn't feel like a crowd.
The Case for the Redwoods
The Look
The California Redwoods is made up of multiple different parks and spans a good chunk of Northern California. Redwood National Park in the far north or the accessible groves of Humboldt, Jedidiah Smith & Redwood State Park all offer something Yosemite simply cannot: vertical scale combined with intimacy. You're not standing in front of something enormous. You're standing inside it.
The filtered light through old-growth redwoods is completely unlike any other landscape light we shoot in. Dappled, green, timeless, the kind of light that makes 35mm film absolutely sing. We bring film cameras to almost every Redwoods session. The color palette here is inherently moody: deep emerald, brown bark, patches of gold light. It pairs beautifully with dark florals, rich jewel tones, or simple ivory. And unlike Yosemite's wide-open scale, the redwood groves create natural frames that make even simple portraits feel editorial and considered.
For Joe's films, the Redwoods produce a completely different genre. Where Yosemite is epic and sweeping, the Redwoods are intimate and atmospheric. The soundtrack practically writes itself (and that's not an accident). We build the music video vibe into the location choice.
The Logistics
Besides its remote location far from any major airport, the Redwoods are logistically more forgiving than Yosemite in most ways. The state parks within the Redwoods corridor (Prairie Creek, Jedediah Smith, Humboldt) each have permit requirements for ceremonies, but the process is generally less competitive. The national park has its own structure & has changed a bit over the years. Be sure to verify current requirements at https://www.nps.gov/redw/planyourvisit/supweddings.htm Whoever you hire to photograph your elopement should be able to help you navigate the permits here & we help all of our couples easily acquire all necessary permits.
Access roads has potential to be challenging in wet weather, which is most of the year in the northern coast ranges. We plan every Redwoods elopement with a weather contingency. Overcast and light rain in the Redwoods is genuinely, unexpectedly beautiful. It deepens the green and softens the light in a way that sunny days can't replicate. Our NYC wedding background means we've managed high-stakes logistics in every weather condition imaginable. Rain in the Redwoods is not a problem. It's often a gift.
Our Creative Direction for the Redwoods
A Redwoods elopement design tends to start with stillness. Phase 1 for these couples often surfaces words like "ancient," "private," "unhurried" & we translate that into a day with long, slow light and as few people around as possible. We create a timeline designed to avoid the peak park hours, position the ceremony in a grove we've personally walked and approved, and end the day somewhere with a view of the coast if the couple is up for the short drive out.
Fern Canyon in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park is the most otherworldly location we've photographed in California. Fern-covered walls on both sides, a shallow stream running through the middle. Easy walk in, completely immersive. The Avenue of the Giants along Highway 254 has roadside grove access that's stunning for portraits. Jedediah Smith Campground, where the Smith River runs alongside old-growth, is one of the most underrated spots in the state.
Who the Redwoods Are For
If your aesthetic runs toward film photography, moody editorial images, and a ceremony that feels genuinely private and ancient, the Redwoods are your answer. Couples who want something that feels less like a wedding backdrop and more like a forest ritual tend to fall deeply in love with this location. It's also one of our favorite spots for couples eloping with dogs.
The Head-to-Head
sunset at an iconic yosemite cliff
sunset on the coast just outside the redwoods
Yosemite delivers grand, iconic drama with logistical complexity worth navigating. The Redwoods offer intimate, ancient beauty with more flexibility and a moody aesthetic that photographs unlike anything else in California.
If you're still torn, here's the question that usually settles it: when you close your eyes and picture your elopement, are you looking out at something vast or are you standing inside something quiet?
Working With Us on Either Location
We've camped in both, designed full elopement days in both, and know the specific corners of each park that most photographers don't bother finding. When you work with us, the location scouting is already done before you book. You just have to tell us your vibe.
California elopement packages start at $5,500 and include full photo and video coverage, creative direction, and location design. Reach out, even if you're not sure which location fits, tell us three words that describe what you want the day to feel like. That's enough to start.
Amanda + Joe · Kamp Adventures · Elopement Photo + Video + Creative Directors · California + beyond
