Next Story: Celine & Ben

Celine & Ben

Snaefellsnes, Iceland

Iceland Elopement

It will be wild

Celine is German. Ben is a Kiwi. Between them, they had covered most of the planet. But neither had been to Iceland, and that was part of the point. They wanted somewhere neither of them owned. Somewhere with no history, no associations, no expectations beyond the weather.

They chose Snaefellsnes because it looked wild in the photographs. They stayed in Hellnar, a village at the foot of the glacier, where the population is in the dozens and the nearest anything is a drive away. One friend came. That was it. The rest was landscape.

The ceremony location was not planned. The morning of the wedding, Celine and Ben walked out from where they were staying, found a spot they had not seen before, and decided that was the place. No scouting. No backup plan. A walk that ended with a yes.

Celine made her flower crown in the hotel room that morning with the one friend who was there. They worked with what they had. The whole day ran like that: practical, calm, unscripted. And then the sun came out, which on Snaefellsnes is never guaranteed, and stayed for the rest of it.

First look at Hotel Hellnar with Snæfellsjökull glacier in the background on the coastal path near Hellnar
First look at Hotel Hellnar with Snæfellsjökull glacier in the background among Icelandic lava fields
Céline and Ben preparing for their Iceland elopement at Hellnar on the coastal path near Hellnar
“We love the rugged, wild look of Iceland.”
Céline and Ben preparing for their Iceland elopement at Hellnar with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Céline and Ben preparing for their Iceland elopement at Hellnar among Icelandic lava fields
Couple portraits on the rugged Snæfellsnes coastline in Iceland by the North Atlantic coastline
Couple portraits on the rugged Snæfellsnes coastline in Iceland with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Elopement ceremony on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland on the coastal path near Hellnar
Elopement ceremony on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland with dramatic Icelandic sky
Elopement ceremony on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland by the North Atlantic coastline
Céline wearing her wildflower crown during their Iceland elopement among Icelandic lava fields
Céline wearing her wildflower crown during their Iceland elopement with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Bride and groom exploring the dramatic Icelandic landscape with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Coastal cliff portraits during Céline and Ben elopement in Iceland among Icelandic lava fields
Volcanic rock formations on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula wedding with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Volcanic rock formations on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula wedding among Icelandic lava fields
Golden hour elopement portraits on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland among Icelandic lava fields
Golden hour elopement portraits on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop
Golden hour elopement portraits on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland with dramatic Icelandic sky
Golden hour elopement portraits on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula Iceland with Snæfellsjökull glacier backdrop