First and foremost, CONGRATULATIONS on your upcoming wedding!
Whether you’re having 200 guests or having your photographer be your third wheel ;) everyone wants their special day to go smoothly and without a glitch! Planning your big day can be made a lot more enjoyable with a bit of insider knowledge regarding the venue itself – so if I may say so myself, you’ve come to the right place!
Photographing City Hall for the past ten years
For a bit of background information – I’ve been photographing at SF City Hall for the past decade and enjoy sharing all the experience I have gained over the years! Not only do I know every inch of the venue, but having been there for countless weddings, I know the best routes to take, the most optimal flow through the venue, and when and where you should be for the best timeline possible.
City Hall, The Happiest Place in San Francisco
I know many consider Disneyland to be the “Happiest Place on Earth”, but that’s only true for those who haven’t been to SF City Hall. If you have yet to visit, you will light up when you walk into the building! The space, built in 1916, has a history and energy like nowhere else – and everywhere you look, people in love! In every pocket of the building, it seems you can find someone anxiously anticipating the ceremonial moment, huddled up with a judge getting married in a picture-perfect location, or drifting through the halls in post-ceremony bliss. Every inch of the building and grounds is heaven, and having a photographer who loves the space and *gets* why you chose this route for your nuptials is very beneficial to the TLC that goes into the photos.
What to Expect on Your Courthouse Wedding Day
Ok, onto the nitty gritty! Whether you are from the Bay Area or traveling from out of state (or even country), I love helping my couples know what to expect for their City Hall wedding. First, I love talking to my couples on the phone to hear their plans for the day and offer whatever insight I am able. Together, we come up with a rough photo timeline that maximizes our time together and will ensure we are able to take amazing photographs AND have fun doing it (after all, it is your wedding day! Why shouldn’t we make it as fun as possible?)
Getting your Marriage License
Lets back it up a little bit and start with the basics! To get married at San Francisco City Hall, you’ll need to make two reservations: one is to obtain your marriage license (valid for 90 days) and one is for your in-person civil ceremony (on your actual wedding date!)
The marriage license, which is valid for 90 days, costs $107 (as of Summer, 2020). Appointments to obtain your marriage licenses can be made anytime Monday through Friday from 8:15am to 3:30pm. When it’s time for your appointment, you’ll go to Room 168 on the 1st floor (and don’t forget to bring your IDs).
City Hall Elopements
One of the wonderful things about getting married at San Francisco City Hall is that you don’t need to be a US citizen or resident. That makes it an ideal spot for destination elopements (in fact, some of my fondest memories at City Hall are with my couples from Israel, Canada and London…because why wouldn’t you want an excuse to run away and elope in San Francisco?) The only requirements to book your wedding at City Hall are that you are at least eighteen years of age and currently unmarried.
Although most of my couples opt for the Public Civil Ceremony, there are a few different routes you can take as far as deciding what kind of wedding vibe you want! Here is some information on the different options available to you to create whatever kind of wedding day you are envisioning:
City Hall Wedding Packages and Prices.
Civil Ceremony (Public) – $93. Ceremony is typically performed in the Rotunda Area (the round area at the top of the grand staircase) or in a Private Room. In my experience, if the Rotunda is occupied by other ceremonies, the Judge (appointed by City Hall, who will officiate your wedding) will have a suggestion for an alternate spot and will meet you there at the agreed upon time. For a Public Marriage Ceremony, one Witness is required to be present and to sign your marriage license (and I have lots of experience being a Witness and signing my John Hancock, if you’d like me to do the honors!) There is a strict limit of 6 guests (including photographer and children.) If you have more than 6 guests, you will likely be required to have your ceremony in the private room or you can make a reservation for the following..
1 Hour Wedding – $1000. A great option that grants you more time and more space! This package includes private use of either the Mayor’s Balcony or, my personal favorite, the Fourth Floor Gallery (available Monday-Friday.) Once rented, the space is yours for up to an hour .. they even block it off for you to ensure no other group comes to the spot you’ve rented out. If you have the room in your budget, I highly recommend this route – it’s private, quiet and has the most amazing light in the building (but as a photographer, I am obviously biased towards any space with good lighting ;) Plus, since most ceremonies only take a few minutes, this option allots you lots of extra time for couple’s photos or family photos in the location you’ve rented without feeling rushed by other couples.
2 Hour Wedding – $5000. This package is offered on Saturdays only, with the earliest available ceremony time beginning at 9:00am and the latest time beginning at 12:00pm. Unlike the options above, the added bonus of this route means your ceremony can take place on the epic staircase. This package includes chairs, which may come in handy because..oh yeah..You can bring up to 200 of your favorite people to witness your vows :)
Your Courthouse Wedding Itinerary
Once you’ve made your decision, you’ve booked your space, you’ve got your license, and most importantly, your favorite people are ready to celebrate with you! The day is here.. NOW WHAT!? As far as Civil Ceremonies go, here is a guide to help my couples know what to expect:
- When you arrive at your glorious SF wedding venue, you’ll head through security, just inside the front doors at the top of the front steps
- This is where I meet my couples! On the other side of security, I guide them to the spot where you will ‘check in’ for your day – Room 168, the County Clerk’s office.
- After this initial check-in, you’ll get a numbered ticket and usually a time to return back to the desk to sign more papers and meet your Judge. Your Witness must accompany you for this second visit and typically (whether or not your photographer is acting as your Witness) I’m allowed-in to take a few photos of you signing on the dotted line!
- Once you’ve met your Judge and signed all of the important documents, they will tell you where and when to meet them. The Judge’s time will split between you and two other couples also getting married in the same time window. You’ll wait for them at the ceremony location, and then they’ll call you over when it is time, depending on where you and your partner are in the batting order :)
- The moment of truth! It’s time to get married!! You’re at the location and waiting for the judge to call you! Once the judge calls you up by name, you’ll walk over to them with your rings and any guests who are witnessing the ceremony (make sure everyone is ready and on stand-by, because it happens fast!) The ceremonies are typically very short and sweet. Couples are not permitted to exchange personal vows, but they do allow rings to be exchanged. Side note: for my couples who want to write vows to each other, we usually carve out time before the ceremony to make a private moment out of the vow reading (this also makes for really sweet photos)!
- After you’ve been pronounced married (and make sure the marriage is sealed with a kiss, of course), its’ onto the fun stuff – for me, at least – portrait time! Depending on where the ceremony takes place, we typically head to another spot in City Hall to take family photos and couple’s photos. Thanks to the “Family Photo List” that my couples execute prior to their wedding which tells me each person and combination of persons they would like to get photos of, I am able to move though Family Photos without my couples feeling like they need to keep track of all of the different photo dynamics that they have envisioned. Wedding days can be a blur – and you shouldn’t have to keep track of stuff like that!
- After family photos are finished, me and the couple take a tour of the most photogenic corners of the building for couple’s portraits. This is such a fun time, and I love making my couples comfortable and guiding them all around the premises as we be sure to hit all the iconic spots.
- Once couple’s photos are finished, we typically make sure do the classic “City Hall Exit” photo and possibly go to another location (depending on what package they booked).
- If I am not booked for a post City Hall reception/dinner-type-thing, then we say our goodbyes, The next time you would hear from me is 3-5 weeks after the wedding date when I deliver a beautiful gallery of your images from your magical City Hall wedding!
What to Bring For Your City Hall Wedding:
Upon arrival at the County Clerk’s office for your Marriage License Reservation, you must present:
- Valid, authentic, legal photo identification.
- Complete public or confidential marriage application form.
- If either/both parties were previously married or a State Registered Domestic Partner (SRDP), a certified copy (see notes below) of divorce, annulment, termination, or death record must be presented at the time of your marriage license reservation if it ended within the past 90 days of your marriage license reservation date.
Once you arrive (10 minutes early) for your Ceremony Reservation, each party must present:
- Valid, authentic, legal photo identification.
- Valid marriage license.
- One Witness (no more than two) if presenting a public marriage license.
- No Witness is required if presenting a confidential marriage license.
Pro-Tips From a Photographer Who Has Seen a Thing or Two At SF City Hall:
-If you’re trying to figure out what time to book your ceremony, I recommend first thing in the morning or closer to the end (3:30pm). In my experience, during this time (especially early in the morning) there is less people and an easier time photographing on the iconic staircase and, my personal favorite, the 4th Floor.
– The judges at City Hall can be a bit no-nonsense about witnesses making a mistake on the license. If there are any mistakes or crossing-out on the form, the whole form must be generated again from scratch, so to minimize this, take your time with the form! And if I may, only having one Witness added to the form is the safest bet.
– Often, each judge will have several ceremonies back-to-back. Once you’ve met them, they will tell you where and when to meet them. Once you arrive at your designated ceremony location, you may have to wait on-deck for your judge to marry the couples who are in front of you in the order. While this may not sound terribly romantic, I like to think of it as witnessing (from an appropriate distance) the couples who you’ll share an anniversary with :)
– Between us, some of my couples have had success asking the judge to have their Civil Ceremony in a different spot than the Rotunda. The rotunda is, of course, iconic and beautiful – but sometimes, the 4th Floor Gallery or Mayor’s Balcony can provide a better background and better light. In my experience, if the judge doesn’t have too much on their plate, they are usually flexible (especially if you ask kindly!)
– During your Civil Ceremony, turn and face one another, instead of the judge. The pictures will be better if you are looking at each other and it helps to remain mindful and present during the short ceremony (plus looking at your favorite person is the best!)
I’m sure that was a lot of information to process, but if there’s anything else I can help you with or any other way I can make your City Hall wedding a dream-come-true, please reach out!