How to Include Family Who Can’t Attend Your Elopement on Your Special Day

By Roaming Desert Film Co.

Elopements are intimate by design. They’re about stripping away expectations and choosing presence, intention, and adventure. But just because you’re exchanging vows on a windswept ridge or deep in the desert doesn’t mean the people you love most aren’t part of it. 🤍

Over the years, we’ve filmed elopements where family couldn’t attend for all kinds of reasons—distance, health, finances, or timing. And honestly? Some of the most emotional moments of the day come from the ways couples choose to include them anyway.

Here are some meaningful, intentional ways to bring your people into your elopement—no matter how far away they are.

1. Watch Videos from Loved Ones

One of our absolute favorite moments to film is when couples sit down together—maybe at their cabin, campsite, or tucked into a quiet overlook—and watch videos sent in by family and friends.

Parents sharing advice. Siblings cracking jokes. Grandparents offering blessings. Sometimes couples ask loved ones a specific prompt like “What does marriage mean to you?” or “What do you hope for us?” Other times it’s a surprise compilation put together by a sibling or best friend.

These moments are raw, emotional, and incredibly grounding. They remind you that even though your elopement is small, your community is still surrounding you.

2. Read Letters on the Mountaintop

There is something unbelievably powerful about standing on a mountaintop, the wind in your hair, and reading words written just for you by the people who love you most.

We’ve filmed couples reading letters from parents before their vows, opening notes from grandparents after the ceremony, or even exchanging letters written by family members who couldn’t be there. Tears almost always follow—and those tears? They’re the good kind.

Pro tip: ask loved ones to write letters specifically for that moment. Tell them where you’ll be when you read it. The intention makes it even more special.

3. Live Stream or FaceTime the Ceremony

Technology gets a bad rep, but when used intentionally, it can be such a gift.

Live streaming your ceremony—or FaceTiming parents or grandparents right after—allows loved ones to witness your vows in real time. We’ve seen couples prop up a phone on a rock, wave through happy tears, and hear family cheering from hundreds (or thousands) of miles away.

Even a short call can mean everything. You don’t need to make your elopement feel like a production—just a quick, heartfelt connection can bridge the distance.

Pro Tip: Be sure the location you are in gets wifi if you are planning on doing this, and if you don’t know if it does or not, check with your photo and video team, like us!

4. Bring Meaningful Keepsakes

Sometimes inclusion looks quieter. A locket with a photo. A handkerchief from a parent. A piece of jewelry passed down through generations. A small token tucked into a pocket or bouquet.

These items may never be seen by anyone else—but you’ll feel them with you. And trust us, when you tell the story later, those details matter.

5. Let Your Film and Photos Tell the Story

This is where we come in. 🎥

Your elopement film isn’t just for you—it’s often how your family experiences the day afterward. When we craft a film, we’re thinking about the parents watching from their living room, the grandparents replaying it on their iPad, the friends who wish they could’ve been there.

Including moments like reading letters, watching videos, or calling loved ones helps your film tell a fuller story—one that honors both your intimacy and your community.

Your Day, Your Way

Eloping doesn’t mean leaving people behind. It means choosing how you include them—with intention, heart, and meaning.

However you decide to do it, know this: love doesn’t require proximity. Whether through words, screens, keepsakes, or film, the people who matter most will still be part of your day.

And we’ll be there to capture it all—wind, tears, laughter, and every beautifully real moment in between.

Roaming Desert Film Co. 🌾✨

Need a photo and video team to be there for you on your elopement day?

Hi there! We’re Tana and Cory Metcalf @ Roaming Desert Film Co. - a husband and wife photo/video team, located in Utah! We love exploring all that the world has to offer and taking our doggos and cameras along for the journey, as well!