Variety at One Venue: How to Do a National Arboretum Wedding Your Own Way

After all the sessions I’ve done at the National Arboretum in Washington, DC I can proudly claim that this is a place where I feel at home. Since it is an outdoor venue, watching the landscape change throughout the seasons always provides so much variety. I discover something new every visit so none of my sessions look the same! Find how you can personalize this amazing location for your own National Arboretum wedding!

A National Arboretum Wedding Your Own Way

While I may be stacking up my own photo library from the National Arboretum, for many couples it can be their first visit! Whether or not you arrive familiarized with the setting, it’s my job to ensure that the day looks and feels like the two of you! 

Every wedding held at the US National Arboretum can be created uniquely because of the different spots it offers. These are options for ceremonies, receptions and wedding portraits within the 451 acres of this outdoor museum.

Ceremony

• National Capitol Columns: the 22 Corinthian columns that were once part of the Capitol Building are placed in the Ellipse Meadow with a reflecting pool.
• National Herb Garden: best in spring and summer, with annual, perennial and woody herbal plants covering 2.5 acres divided into three main sections. 
• Ellipse Meadow (tent available for rain or shine): large open space adjacent to the columns.

Reception

• North Terrace: an ideal location for a secluded feel located directly behind the Visitor Center. (tent available for rain or shine) [See EMILY & JAMES below]
• Water Garden Patio: suitable for cocktail hours and receptions but tenting is not permitted.
• Flowering Tree Walk: an impressive spot for dining and dancing.
• Flowering Tent Pad: views of the Bonsai Garden and Columns which can accommodate receptions for up to 400 guests. (tent available for rain or shine) [See LIZZIE & BRAD below]

Wedding Portrait Photo Locations

1. National Capitol Columns
2. Ellipse Meadow
3. Herb Garden
4. Azalea Collections
5. Dogwood Collection
6. Gotelli Conifer Collection
7. Perennial Collections
8. Fern Valley
9. All the trails and forests in between!

Tips for Planning a National Arboretum Wedding

Your wedding timeline events will need to begin in the evening after the Arboretum closes to the public. This means that pre-ceremony photos can be tough to capture with visitors still present in the more popular spots. 

I recommend taking photos within the columns at sunset following the ceremony to find some open spaces. We can focus on the meadow with the columns in the background pre-ceremony or ride the golf cart (provided by venue) to more private areas like the dogwoods and conifers. 

Planning a National Arboretum wedding looks great in every season as it is the largest outdoor wedding venue in the DC Metro Area. Depending upon the time of day, there are so many interesting pockets of light around the grounds:

• SPRING: azaleas, dogwoods, magnolias and wildflowers.
• SUMMER: day lilies, evergreen magnolias, and waterlilies.
• FALL: hollies with red fruit, autumn-foliage dogwoods, and spider-lilies.
• WINTER: camellias, and evergreen leaves of hollies and southern magnolias.

Currently, non-wedding photo permits are not available but you can check here to see if that changes. There are also so many other amazing garden photography locations in the DC Metro Area!

Find more tips in my full guide to National Arboretum Weddings!

See How These Couples Built a National Arboretum Wedding Day

EMILY & JAMES

These two both knew that their wedding venue had to check off a few important boxes. Most importantly, they wanted to get married outside without venturing too far from the city limits. Emily and James love their DC community so a National Arboretum wedding became the perfect happy medium.

As Emily shared, “I love the fact that when you walk  into the Arboretum you feel like you’ve been dropped in the Tuscan countryside with the rolling hills and columns in the distance.” After visiting the Arboretum the couple drove home crying happy tears knowing that this was the place! 

The venue is naturally so beautiful while also being refined which is the exact vibe these two wanted to strike with their wedding. The couple was first drawn to my photography style because they wanted candid moments like these (even with happy tears!) captured in a polished way. 

Emily explained, “Your candids play up the surrounding scenery seamlessly, but still seem to capture the moment, which is exactly what we’re looking for.” Calling their wedding style “organic luxury,” the palette consisted of fall colors including earthy neutrals. 

They matched their wedding look to the venue complementing the fall foliage while still maintaining some elegance. As Emily put it, “We weren’t going for anything too rustic, it was a nice combo of modern and outdoorsy.”

The ceremony was held in the Ellipse Meadow below the National Capitol Columns while the reception was tented on the North Terrace with a black-and-white tile dance floor.

The couple utilized various locations for their wedding portraits:

• First look within the National Capitol Columns.
• Wedding party and family wedding portraits throughout the Ellipse Meadow.
• Newlywed bridal portraits towards the back of the National Herb Garden while enjoying a celebratory cocktail.

The ease of these two just being together and having fun was such a highlight in addition to such an elevated look that was sending me European garden vibes.

The couple summarized the day best: “We both think that photography (when done well!) can memorialize the feeling of a specific moment in time, and we wanted our wedding pictures to do just that. We wanted to have fun in the moment and have the pictures capture our love.”

LIZZIE & BRAD

After seeing so many of my other National Arboretum DC weddings, Lizzie and Brad loved how I captured “genuine moments and movement” at this venue. All these two wanted for their wedding was “a really fun event with our friends and family, and we want to capture that through the pictures!”

As DC locals (see their DC engagement session), the Arboretum is special to the couple as “an outdoor green space that feels like an escape from DC’s hustle and bustle!” That’s why they decided on a ceremony in the Ellipse Meadow with the National Capitol Columns in the background. 

They went with black bridesmaids dresses accompanied by florals with lots of foliage, pops of white, and other fall colors. The couple added, “the venue is such a gorgeous space and we wanted to match the more natural vibe of it.” Their reception selection was the Flowering Tent Pad which kept the garden vibes and seasonal colors going!

We were able to explore many locations on the grounds for portraits and a first look with private vows. The quieter time they took exploring the Arboretum before the day took off was some of my favorite moments! We kept the remainder of the portraits to the meadow and a garden closer to the ceremony space for easy access by their larger family. 

How to Bring Your Pup Along–Even in Spirit!

The couple’s personal ties to the venue stem from visiting nearly every weekend with their dog, Teddy. While Teddy wasn’t at the wedding in person, he still made several “appearances” during the reception. One representation could be found on the cocktail napkins that had both his face and a note stating: “I can’t believe I wasn’t invited.” 

Teddy also made it onto the wedding cake as their cake topper! He then joined them on the dance floor via a cutout of his face that was held by both the bride and groom. Honestly, the entire day was just so fun!

Wedding Vendors

Venue | National Arboretum
Photographer | Shelly Pate Photography

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