Suzi and Kevin decided early on that they wanted a small and intimate outdoor wedding on the rugged west coast near Tofino, British Columbia. While they would have loved to celebrate with all of their family and friends, a large wedding wasn’t feasible due to the location, nor was it desirable, and opting for an immediate family-only ceremony and reception made it easy for the couple to pare down the guest list. In order to still be able to share their day with all their loved ones that couldn’t be there, the couple hired the incredible Tomasz Wagner to capture every beautiful detail and moment on both film and video for them; the results are simply stunning!

bride and groom portrait in front of lighthouse

Suzi, 32 & Kevin, 38

Ucluelet, B.C.

Wedding Date: September 18, 2013 (on the date of the Harvest Moon)

Number of Guests: 9

Wedding Cost: Between $7,000-9,000

Wedding Ceremony Location: Wild Pacific Trail Lookout, near Ucluelet, B.C.

Wedding Reception Location: Black Rock Resort

B.C. ocean

bride sitting cross legged getting ready

back of camera shot

bride portrait in B.C.

bride and groom walking on rocky coast

bride and groom climbing on rocks

black and white bride and groom portrait

Why did you have an intimate wedding?

The idea of keeping our wedding small and intimate was really appealing to us; there was money to be saved, of course, but more importantly, we felt like keeping it small would allow us to appreciate every little moment for what it was and not have it lost in a grandiose event. From day-one, we had talked about not only going small, but having it outside, rain or shine, in the area around Tofino and Ucluelet, which is rugged west coast at its best, and not necessarily conducive to large groups.

wedding dress hanging in trees

bride portrait getting ready

Intimate-Ucluelet-Wedding-suzi-kevin-by-tomasz-wagner-11

bride looking at her reflection

groom getting ready

groom putting on vest

groom getting ready

What are some the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding?

The biggest challenge we faced was deciding how big or small to make this wedding. Obviously, we would want all of our friends and family to be there, but the idea of keeping things small and intimate was really appealing to us.

groom waiting by the ocean for his bride

bride walking to meet her groom

first look session by the ocean

first look session by the ocean

first look session by the ocean

Was it difficult to pare down the guest list?

As soon as we decided to make it immediate family only, it was pretty straightforward to know who would be attending. Obviously, we would have loved to share our day with all of our friends and family, but that’s why we decided to get our photographer Tomasz Wagner involved, so we would have something really special to share with everyone in our lives.

groom helping bride climb the rocks

bride and groom climbing on rocks

bride and groom portrait by the ocean

bride and groom walking on the rocks

bride and groom walking on rocky beach

bride and groom portrait on the rocks

intimate bride and groom portrait

black and white bride and groom portrait

bride and groom portrait

bride and groom portrait atop rocks

Did you have any ‘issues’ with the small guest list from friends and family? If so, how did you address them?

No issues! Some friends and family sent along small messages for my mother to read out at dinner, so it very much felt like they were involved in the day. If people truly love you, they will support any decision you make.

outdoor Ucluelet wedding ceremony

groom at outdoor wedding ceremony

bride at outdoor wedding ceremony

What were the highlights of the ceremony?

Where to start?!? Suzi’s flower arrangement arriving on a school bus about 5 minutes before we were to head out to the trail; the enthusiasm of our wedding commissioner, who brought his guitar and surprised us by serenading the group with Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon” during our first-look; and the surprise moss-filled clamshell put together by our wedding photographer which my dad used to present the wedding rings were all incredible highlights for us. We also had our family stand in a circle and pass around a small book which everybody read a page from, and we cracked a bottle of champagne afterwards and everyone had a glass to celebrate. The first kiss, however, was the biggest highlight of them all.

outdoor Ucluelet wedding ceremony

outdoor Ucluelet wedding ceremony

wedding guest doing reading

outdoor Ucluelet wedding ceremony

bride and groom first kiss

What were the highlights of the reception?

We had our dinner back at the Black Rock Resort in Ucluelet where we were staying. The reception room is located at the foot of a surge channel, so it was a really unique setting. The food was fantastic and the cake was beautiful; we had it modelled after a log stump with our names “carved” into it. As I mentioned, my mother read out some great messages that had been passed along by some of our friends and family, which was a nice way to incorporate them into our big day.

bride and groom with champagne

champagne toast

What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding?

We were really able to relax and enjoy the intimacy and serenity of our day.

birch bark wedding cake

moss and driftwood centerpiece

wedding speech

bride and groom at wedding reception

bride and groom at wedding reception

groom speech

bride and groom cutting cake

What advice do you have for couples who are considering an intimate wedding?

Do it. Like I said, the people who really love you will support your decision to do so. It may sound selfish, but make the day about yourselves. You’ll save money, you’ll be able to relax in the months and days leading up to the wedding, and you’ll be able to keep things manageable and loose. Enjoy!

bride and groom holding Gumbi

Vendors:

Flowers: Crab Apple Floral (Tofino)

Photography: Tomasz Wagner Photo & Films (Vancouver) 

Cinematography: Tomasz Wagner Photo & Films (Vancouver) 

Bride’s Hair: Cobella Hair Salon (Ucluelet) 

Bride’s Makeup: Long Beach Esthetics (Ucluelet) 

Cake and Dinner: Black Rock Resort (Ucluelet) 

Bride’s Wedding Band: Era (Vancouver) 

Groom’s Wedding Band: Grimson & Sons (Vancouver)