Elopements

The Sweetest Elopement With a Harley, Family Momentos, & Views of the Santa Monica Mountains

Imogen and Lucifer personalized their elopement to be everything they wanted on their wedding day and so much more. From their exterior, you’ll see some killer rock-n-roll tattoos and motorcycle bikers, but their interiors are gentle, filled with family tradition, and a love for nature. Their elopement near Topanga Canyon is probably the sweetest one yet.

Ready to have an intimate wedding day experience instead of a big, traditional wedding? Use our elopement directory to team up with a rad elopement vendor!

About This Motorcycle Elopement

Photography by Safeena Noah

“They met me at a sweet AirBnB tucked amongst the rolling hills of Topanga Canyon, a funky town situated right between Los Angeles and Malibu. The area is artsy and full of nature, with sweeping views of the Santa Monica Mountains. Malibu and Topanga are also biker culture haven. The canyons are an iconic ride, and you can spot groups of bikers at classic hangouts like Neptune’s Net on the Pacific Coast Highway.

These two come from completely different worlds but met thanks to their mutual love of motorcycles. It made sense to include a piece of that part of their relationship in their elopement. In addition to their beloved Harley, we took some photos with their gorgeous classic car.” [Safeena, the photographer]

Explore our California elopement packages.

Details From This Elopement

“Imogen wore a Victorian-gothic style wedding dress that she found at a thrift store and tried on 0 times after purchasing. It suited and fit her like a glove.

One of the many things I adore about Imogen and Lucifer is how true they are to who they are. All of the things that made their elopement so stylish and ‘cool’ are often used as styling props at weddings–– but for Imogen and Lucifer, they didn’t fake any of it. The Harley Davidson is one of their bikes that they ride regularly, as is their classic car. The rings adorning their hands are pieces from their family shop. Imogen’s gown is her style to a T–– not a show she’s putting on for anyone.

They didn’t have a ‘rock-n-roll-motorcycle-themed styled elopement’, but they had an Imogen and Lucifer elopement. They are two people who simply came as they are and eloped.” [Safeena, the photographer]

Get more inspiration from these elopement ideas!

Including Family Momentos

“We had a table set up with photos of family who are no longer with us. We set up a table and framed a few photos of our grandparents and my dad. Ever since my father passed away in 2014, the idea of a wedding was a little painful, as he wouldn’t be there to walk me down the aisle or celebrate with us. My dad was and still is such a huge part of my life and Lucifer was by my side and with my family as we said our goodbyes to him. We just felt like although we weren’t able to have our nearest and dearest physically with us, they were there in spirit, including those who are no longer with us. So we wanted to honor our loved ones who had passed and have them feel close to us on our wedding day.” [Imogen, bride]

Planning Your Elopement at an Airbnb Near Topanga Canyon

The location was an Airbnb in Topanga, so the couple checked in with the host when they were booking to ensure that they’d be allowed to elope and have a photographer present.

“For AirBnBs in general, always fill your AirBnB host in with your plans! Trying to hide plans or guests from your host can only lead to stress, and you don’t want to think about if you’re going to get kicked out on your elopement day. For Topanga specifically, since it’s in a canyon, the sun “sets” earlier behind the hills than your Google search might tell you. If you’re wanting to shoot at golden hour, plan accordingly! The roads are also very winding and narrow, so make sure driving that is something you’re comfortable with if you’re staying tucked into these beautiful canyons.” [Safeena, the photographer]

Check out our Airbnb elopement guide.

Deciding to Elope

These two originally planned to have a big, traditional wedding. Still, they decided on something more intimate once they realized their family and friends worldwide couldn’t get together as planned. They decided to pick Topanga Canyon as their elopement spot because it carries special memories for them over the years.

“It didn’t feel right to have a regular wedding even with a small guestlist if we couldn’t have our closest family and friends with us, and after 8 years together we didn’t want to wait indefinitely! The more we talked about eloping, the more we felt it was the right choice for us; Intimate, personal, no stressing on logistics or catering to others, just focusing on our love and our story. An exciting surprise that added to the whole experience was finding out that I was pregnant a week before we got married!” [Imogen, bride]

Get inspired by these 10 reasons to elope!

Planning Process

“The whole planning process was pretty laid back. We picked an auspicious date for us – March 13th, our lucky number, a new moon, and a year and two days since our engagement. We had a loose vision of how we wanted the day to go – we wanted to have the ceremony at sunset, for it to be simple, natural and just true to ‘us’. Once we had nailed down a location, we began researching a celebrant/officiant and obtaining a wedding license. Then of course choosing a photographer – After some deep searching around online I came across Safeena’s work and we immediately loved the feeling and style of her photography. After emailing and facetiming with her, we knew she was the one… Lastly we put together a Spotify playlist to play throughout the day! Everything fell together pretty easily and we didn’t deal with any of the stress of what a regular wedding usually entails.” [Imogen, bride]

Need more help? Learn how to elope here!

Estimated Elopement Cost

The estimated total cost was roughly $3500

“The biggest expenses were by far the 4 nights accommodation/location, and photography. Having great photos to remember the day and share with family and friends was really important to us. Thankfully Safeena was able to work with our budget as we just wanted a pared down version of her regular packages and just a couple hours of her time.”
The officiant and marriage license – $475
Dress – $80
Lucifers boots and shirt – $260
Florals – $80
Cake – $55
Miscellaneous items (veil/ribbon/cloth/food etc) – apprx $150

Get more details in our elopement cost guide.

Memorable Moments During This Elopement

From the photographer:

“How incredibly gentle, sweet, and emotive Imogen and Lucifer are, which was a really cool contrast to their rock-and-roll vibe. I loved that even though it was just them two, their dog, and one friend, they still honored the ones they loved that couldn’t be there…I also *especially* loved their motorcycle photos. You can tell that the Harley isn’t just a photoshoot prop for them–– it’s a way they connect and find joy. They were so comfortable with each other on the motorcycle, and them being able to focus on each other more than me made the photos so honest. Because they’re also creatives, I loved how trusting they were of any experimental ideas I had.”

From the couple:

“Just marrying my favorite person! Celebrating our relationship, our past and our future. The whole day was fun and relaxed. My family were ‘there’ for the ceremony through skype. It was fun frolicking around on this beautiful landscape as newlyweds taking photos with Safeena as the sun went down. Looking back, another favorite memory of our day was the excitement of our little secret that was just between us – knowing that we were expecting a baby!”

Vendors

Photography | Safeena Noah

Jewelry | The Great Fog LA