San Miguel de Allende Elopements
Intimate Celebrations Inspired by the Magic of San Miguel
Welcome!
Welcome, and congratulations on choosing San Miguel de Allende to celebrate your love.
There’s something undeniably magical about this city — the color-filled streets, candlelit rooftops, colonial architecture, music drifting through the air, and the feeling that time somehow slows down here.
San Miguel has a way of inviting people to become more present and connected — not only with the city itself, but with each other. The art, architecture, music, candlelit evenings, vibrant culture, and unhurried rhythm of life here naturally create an atmosphere that feels romantic, immersive, and incredibly meaningful for intimate celebrations.
Your celebration deserves to feel more than beautiful. It should feel intentional, immersive, emotionally connected, and fully woven into the experience of San Miguel.
Whether you’re envisioning an intimate celebration for just the two of you or a meaningful gathering with your closest loved ones, I’m here to help create something authentic, immersive, and beautifully reflective of your relationship.
More Than Just a Ceremony
Your elopement is about so much more than beautiful photos or exchanging vows.
It’s about wandering cobblestone streets hand in hand. Rooftop dinners as church bells echo through the city. Music drifting through candlelit plazas. Slowing down and truly experiencing this chapter together in a place that feels alive with beauty, history, romance, and soul.
My role is not simply to photograph your celebration, but to help create an experience that feels effortless, meaningful, and deeply connected to both your relationship and the spirit of San Miguel.
From thoughtfully curated locations and personalized planning guidance to local insight, artistic photography, and meaningful details, every part of the experience is intentionally designed to feel relaxed, immersive, and deeply connected to both your relationship and the spirit of San Miguel.
Hi, I’m Susan
Photographer, planner, and the creative heart behind SMA Elopements.
For over 20 years, I’ve been photographing intimate celebrations across the U.S. and Mexico, capturing more than 600 love stories along the way. What I love most are celebrations that feel intentional, emotionally connected, and deeply rooted in the experience surrounding them.
San Miguel de Allende completely captured my heart years ago with its vibrant colors, colonial charm, artistic soul, and the incredible energy that fills its streets. It’s a place that naturally invites people to slow down, be present, and celebrate life more deeply — which makes it such a meaningful place to begin a marriage or renew your vows.
I work closely with couples looking for something intimate, stress-free, and beautifully experience-focused — whether that’s an elopement for just the two of you or a small celebration with your closest loved ones.
My goal is simple: to help you create a celebration that feels authentic to who you are while preserving it through honest, artistic, emotion-filled photography.
More Than Beautiful Photos — This Is an Experience
Your celebration should feel immersive, emotionally connected, and fully centered around the experience you’re creating together.
This isn’t simply about planning a ceremony or taking beautiful photographs. It’s about creating an experience where you can slow down, be fully present with each other, and immerse yourselves in everything that makes this city so unforgettable.
From personalized planning guidance and trusted local insight to thoughtful recommendations and artistic photography, I’ll be by your side helping you navigate the experience every step of the way.
Your Celebration
Every celebration I create is thoughtfully designed to feel personal, intentional, and reflective of who you are as a couple. From the overall flow of the day to the smallest meaningful details, I’ll help guide you through an experience that feels effortless, beautiful, and uniquely yours.
Personalized elopement or vow renewal planning guidance
Ceremony location recommendations based on your vision and aesthetic
Thoughtfully designed timeline for beautiful light and a relaxed flow
Trusted local vendor recommendations
Guidance with florals, styling, and meaningful details
Gentle, natural photography direction throughout the experience
Artistic, hand-edited imagery that feels timeless and emotional
Your San Miguel Experience
For many couples, this is their very first time visiting San Miguel de Allende — and having someone local to guide you can make all the difference.
I’m here to help you feel completely supported, not only with your celebration itself, but with creating an unforgettable overall experience in this magical city. My goal is for you to feel less like tourists planning from afar and more like you have someone local by your side helping guide the experience every step of the way.
Boutique hotel and villa recommendations
Rooftop restaurant and dining suggestions
Activity recommendations for your stay
Guidance on neighborhoods and the best areas to stay
Suggestions for cultural experiences and local traditions
Insider knowledge to help you experience San Miguel beyond the tourist experience
Ongoing support and personalized recommendations throughout your planning process
Kind Words
The greatest honor is helping couples create celebrations that feel emotionally connected, immersive, and deeply reflective of who they are together.
“Amazing experience, phenomenal photos and completely stress-free. It was the perfect romantic experience. Since we had never been to San Miguel before, having Susan guide us through everything made the experience feel effortless and easy.”
— Ali P.
“No words can describe the incredible experience we had with Susan in San Miguel. From our very first conversation to receiving our stunning photos, everything was seamless and thoughtful.”
— Jess K.
“Susan is hands down the best you will find for your San Miguel de Allende elopement!”
— Tina W.
“We are so happy we chose an intimate, meaningful celebration and we couldn’t imagine a more perfect experience than the one Susan helped us create in this magical city.”
— Laura J.
“As first-time visitors to San Miguel, we couldn’t have imagined a more magical experience. Susan guided us through every detail with care and creativity, turning our vision into a day that felt effortless, meaningful, and completely ours.”
— Nicole H.
“We were blown away by the beauty of our ceremony for our 10 year vow renewal. It was more beautiful than when we first were married!”
— Kelly M.
Your Signature Experience
A thoughtfully curated multi-day elopement experience designed for couples who want to fully immerse themselves in the magic, beauty, and soul of San Miguel de Allende.
This experience is about far more than simply a ceremony and photographs. It’s about slowing down together, wandering colorful cobblestone streets hand in hand, discovering hidden corners of the city, savoring rooftop dinners beneath glowing lights, and embracing meaningful moments together.
It’s about creating memories that extend far beyond the wedding day itself and experiencing San Miguel in a way that feels immersive, romantic, and deeply connected to this chapter of your lives together.
Every celebration is intentionally crafted around your connection, your vision, and the overall experience you want to have while in San Miguel. The goal is for everything to feel relaxed, immersive, emotionally connected, and beautifully reflective of the two of you from beginning to end.
For many couples, this is also their very first time visiting San Miguel. One of the most valuable parts of working with me is having someone local by your side throughout the entire process — not only helping guide your celebration itself, but helping you navigate and experience the city in a way that feels relaxed, seamless, and completely taken care of.
From helping you decide which airport is best to fly into and arranging trusted transportation into the city, to recommending boutique hotels, rooftop restaurants, local experiences, hidden gems, and unforgettable excursions, you’ll have personalized guidance every step of the way.
Whether you’re dreaming of a sunrise hot air balloon ride, a private cooking class, wandering local art galleries, a walking tour through San Miguel’s historic streets, a vineyard experience, or a meaningful day trip into the surrounding countryside, I’ll help curate experiences that make your time here feel truly unforgettable.
Personalized Planning & Concierge Support
Your experience includes far more than photography coverage alone. From our very first conversation, I’ll be by your side helping guide the overall experience and making the planning process feel exciting, seamless, and stress-free.
For many couples, this is their first time visiting San Miguel, and having someone local available throughout your stay can make all the difference.
Throughout your time in San Miguel, you’ll have someone local by your side throughout your stay for guidance, insider knowledge, and thoughtful support whenever needed.
Assistance choosing airports to fly into and transportation logistics
Boutique hotel and villa recommendations
Rooftop restaurant and dining suggestions
Recommendations for local experiences and activities (hot air balloon rides, cooking classes, art classes, walking tours, etc.)
Day trip and excursion recommendations outside San Miguel
Ongoing support throughout your planning process and stay in San Miguel
Your Celebration
The heart of this experience is creating space for the two of you to slow down, be fully present together, and celebrate your relationship in a way that feels authentic and deeply connected to the spirit of San Miguel.
Your two-day celebration is thoughtfully designed to feel relaxed, connected, intimate, and beautifully reflective of who you are together.
Rather than building your experience around strict photography coverage, we’ll thoughtfully design a celebration that unfolds naturally and allows you to fully immerse yourselves in the beauty, romance, and magic of San Miguel together.
From location ideas and timeline guidance to meaningful details and artistic touches, every part of your celebration is intentionally crafted to feel intentional, immersive, and fully aligned with your vision.
Personalized Ceremony & Experience Design
Every celebration is thoughtfully designed around your relationship, personalities, and the kind of experience you want to create while in San Miguel — from the overall flow of the day to the thoughtful details that make it feel deeply reflective of your connection.Spiritual, Symbolic Ceremony with a Non-Denominational Celebrant
Your ceremony is guided by a warm, non-denominational celebrant focused on creating a meaningful and heartfelt experience centered around your connection, values, and story together. These ceremonies are spiritual and symbolic in nature rather than legal ceremonies, allowing you to focus fully on the experience itself while handling any legal paperwork in your home country if desired.Personalized Custom-Written Ceremony Script
No generic templates or cookie-cutter ceremonies. Your ceremony script is written specifically for the two of you, creating a deeply personal experience that reflects your relationship, journey, and intentions for this next chapter together.Ceremony & Portrait Location Recommendations
With my local knowledge and photographer’s eye, I’ll help guide you toward locations that best reflect your vision and overall aesthetic. Whether you’re drawn to the colorful charm and colonial beauty of the city itself, or the natural landscapes surrounding San Miguel — including tall cactus fields and sweeping countryside views — together we’ll choose settings that feel meaningful, beautiful, and uniquely aligned with your experience.Thoughtfully Designed Timeline Focused on Beautiful Light & Relaxed Flow
Your timeline is intentionally crafted around the best lighting, ideal pacing, and overall experience of the day so everything feels natural, relaxed, and never rushed.Trusted Local Vendor Recommendations
From hair and makeup artists to musicians, florists, private chefs, and specialty experiences, I’ll connect you with talented local professionals I trust to help bring your vision to life beautifully and seamlessly.Guidance Incorporating Meaningful San Miguel Traditions & Artistic Touches
If desired, I can help weave meaningful local traditions, artisan details, cultural elements, and uniquely San Miguel touches into your experience in a way that feels authentic and intentional.Artistic Photography Throughout Your Experience
Rather than simply documenting events as they happen, I photograph your experience in an honest, artful, and emotionally connected way — capturing not only how everything looked, but how it truly felt to be there together in San Miguel.Custom Bouquet with Locally Sourced Florals
Your bouquet is thoughtfully designed using beautiful locally sourced florals inspired by your preferred colors, style, and the vibrant spirit of San Miguel itself.Bridal Floral Head Wreath or Artisan San Miguel Hat
Choose between a handcrafted floral head wreath or a beautifully curated artisan hat for a distinctive San Miguel-inspired touch that adds personality, artistry, and local charm to your overall look.Handmade Vow Books
Beautiful handmade vow books created with artisan-inspired details, giving you a meaningful keepsake for your vows and a lasting reminder of your celebration in San Miguel.
Your San Miguel Story Session
One of the most meaningful parts of this experience is having additional time together outside of the ceremony itself — allowing space to slow down, explore the city, and simply experience San Miguel together beyond the wedding day. Many couples end up saying this becomes one of their favorite parts of the entire experience.
Separating part of the photography experience onto another day allows your celebration to feel more relaxed and immersive while creating imagery that feels genuinely connected to your overall time here rather than compressed into a single schedule.
Two-hour photography session on another day
Explore San Miguel’s colorful streets and hidden corners together
Optional Mojigangas Experience
Add one of San Miguel’s most joyful and iconic traditions to your celebration with custom mojigangas — whimsical, larger-than-life papier-mâché puppets designed to resemble the two of you. Mojigangas bring an unforgettable sense of energy, celebration, local culture, and fun to your San Miguel story session.
Preserving Your Memories
Your photographs are carefully edited by hand and designed to preserve not only how everything looked, but how the experience truly felt.
600+ hand-edited high-resolution images
Private online gallery for viewing, downloading, and sharing
10x10 Fine Art heirloom wedding album
Investment
Every part of this experience is intentionally designed to create not only beautiful photographs, but memories and moments you’ll carry with you long after you leave San Miguel.
The Signature San Miguel Experience — $5,300 USD
Additional venue fees, accommodations, travel, rentals, specialty vendors, and permit costs (if applicable) are not included.
Let’s Begin Planning Your Experience
If what you’ve read here resonates with you, I’d love to connect and hear more about the kind of experience you’re envisioning for your time in San Miguel.
Whether you already have ideas in mind or are just beginning to explore what’s possible, our first conversation is simply an opportunity to connect, answer questions, and talk through what your celebration could look like together.
I’ll help guide you through the process, offer recommendations, and create an experience that feels beautifully aligned with who you are as a couple and the way you want to experience San Miguel.
Because I take on a limited number of celebrations each year, I recommend reaching out early if you already have dates in mind.
I can’t wait to hear your story and help create something truly unforgettable together in San Miguel.
