Getting married at the courthouse is very popular with some couples. Courthouse weddings for the military, in particular, are pretty commonplace these days. With deployment or PCS schedules, it just make sense for some military couples to get married at the Justice of the Peace.
There are many different reasons to get married at the courthouse and here are a few.
1) Cool Pictures – Most courthouse weddings are at city hall. City halls are usually downtown. This means you will have urban chic downtown photos of your wedding day (as seen in the lead photos here by Amy Hutchinson Photography) Very cool.
2) Budget Friendly – This is usually reason number 1 for a courthouse wedding ceremony. The average cost of a traditional wedding in the U.S. is close to $30,000. Yikes! A courthouse wedding begins at an average of $25 to $75 depending on your state.
3) Intimate setting – Perhaps you or your fiance is shy. You don’t want 200 eyes staring at you when you walk down the aisle, or say those vows, or dance. That’s ok. A smaller wedding means you don’t have to deal with the “show” of a wedding. Speaking of smaller weddings…
4) Less stress – There is less stress associated when you aren’t packing a venue full of a few hundred of your family and friends. You don’t have to worry about enoughs seating, or wedding favors, or table cards, or anything of those things.
5) Shorter engagement – You met the one, so why wait? Why wait for a venue to be open MONTHS or YEARS down the line. If you are positive that this is the one for the rest of your life, you shouldn’t have to wait another day.
6) No time restraints – I had a traditional wedding, and the first thing the coordinator sent to me was a “Day of Schedule”. It was like I was going to class again. I was allotted this much time to eat, this much time for photos, so on and so forth. With a courthouse wedding, you’re in, you’re out, and then you’re free to do what you want.
7) The Important Details – I admit it, photos of the fancy place cards or center piece can be nice. However, with a courthouse wedding, the photographer has one thing to focus on and that’s you and your new spouse. He doesn’t have to waste time getting pictures of the guests or waiting for Aunt so-and-so to be in the family photo. You get more pictures of you two as a couple.
8)Focus on love – Instead of flowers, the DJ, or fancy centerpieces taking the center stage, it is your love. And that’s an amazing thing.
Next up Read: 12 Amazing Tips for a Courthouse Wedding
Photography provided by the very talented Amy Hutchinson of Amy Hutchinson Photography