Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · Wedding Photography & Film
A Garden Wedding at Morris Arboretum
Hima and Alina’s wedding filled Morris Arboretum & Gardens in Philadelphia with color: portraits in the Rose Garden, by the pond and under the glass roof of the Fernery, vows beneath an arch of bright flowers with garlands and a brass lamp, and a reception in the tent beside the old stone carriage house with a full dance floor. It was an Indian wedding held during Pride week, and BlackTie Brothers photographed and filmed the whole day.
Morris Arboretum & Gardens · Philadelphia
A 92-acre public garden that becomes a wedding venue after hours.
What the venue says. Morris Arboretum & Gardens describes its full weddings as after-hours events with the gardens to yourselves: 92 acres, a choice of five ceremony locations, open-air cocktail spaces and dinner and dancing in a reception tent just outside its historic stone carriage house. Its wedding pages also list smaller garden and micro ceremonies, a group of exclusive caterers and an evening season that runs from April through October. Those are the venue’s current offerings, so check them for your own date.
What we saw. Hima and Alina’s day used a lot of the garden. They walked out of the Rose Garden, with its stone path and round fountain, and made portraits beside a pond (a swan joined in), on shaded garden paths and in the Fernery, a glasshouse full of ferns with a little wooden bridge that the arboretum describes as the only remaining freestanding Victorian fernery in North America. The ceremony was on a round brick patio at the edge of a lawn, under an arch thick with roses, and the reception tent stood against the stone carriage house, which glowed pink and purple after dark.
Our part. Photography and film for Hima and Alina, from getting ready through the garden portraits, the ceremony and the reception. This is the one Morris Arboretum wedding we feature here, so the photographs show how these spaces worked for their day, not every space the venue offers.
Chapter one · Getting ready and getting there
Silver, white flowers and rainbow socks
The morning was all about the details: a silver necklace and earrings laid out on an orange scarf with strands of white flower buds, the same flowers pinned into long dark hair, a blue paisley tuxedo jacket, and rainbow socks under a pair of wingtips, because it was Pride week. Then Hima and Alina arrived hand in hand to a crowd of guests outside a stone building, and a golf cart took over for the distances. Tap any photograph to see it larger.
Chapter two · Portraits in the gardens
The Rose Garden, the pond and the Fernery
Morris gives you a lot of ground, so the portraits moved. After the walk out of the Rose Garden there were a few minutes by the pond, a stroll along the garden paths and time in the Fernery, where the glass roof softens the light and the ferns fill every edge of the frame. Hima and Alina mostly just talked and laughed with each other, which is the best thing a couple can do in front of a camera.
Chapter three · The ceremony
Vows under an arch of flowers
The ceremony was outdoors on a round brick patio at the edge of a lawn, with guests seated on the grass and a thick arch of roses and bright flowers overhead. A tall brass oil lamp, a bowl of fruit and yellow flowers stood beside the couple, the officiant spoke from a red lectern, and there were flower garlands, a lot of laughing and hugs from the front row. When it was over, the whole wedding party crowded in around them.
Chapter four · The reception
Dinner and dancing in the tent by the carriage house
Dinner was in the reception tent against the stone carriage house, under draped fabric and string lights, with candles and low flowers on the tables and a sweetheart table under its own arch of flowers. For the evening there was a change into a white dress, there were speeches, a turn behind the DJ booth, and a dance floor that filled up in front of the carriage house’s arched windows and stayed full.
See all 859 photographs
Hima and Alina’s complete gallery shows the whole day, not just our favorites: getting ready, the gardens, the ceremony and every part of the night in the tent. A complete gallery is the fairest way to judge any photographer.
The wedding film · Morris Arboretum & Gardens
Watch the Wedding Film
Photographs hold a moment still; film brings back the voices, the music and the movement. Hima and Alina’s 7:47 wedding film follows the same day as the photographs above, from the gardens to the vows and the dance floor, and it plays right here on the page.
Wedding film · Hima & Alina · Morris Arboretum & Gardens, Philadelphia · 7 min 47 s. The film plays from our YouTube channel when you press play. You can also watch it on YouTube (opens in a new tab).
Planning photography and film at Morris Arboretum
Notes for a garden wedding day
Our recommendations, drawn from Hima and Alina’s day and from how we plan garden weddings in general. Access, timing and policies belong to Morris Arboretum & Gardens, so where something is theirs to decide we have written it as a question to ask.
Plan the walking between gardens.
Hima and Alina’s portraits moved between the Rose Garden, the pond, the garden paths and the Fernery, and at Morris those are real distances. We build walking or cart time into the timeline for every stop, so portraits never eat into the ceremony start. Ask the venue how you and your vendors will get around on the day.
Check the light for your date.
Under the trees and in the Fernery the light is soft and shaded, which is kind to skin tones and to film. The lawns and the Rose Garden are much brighter. We check sunset for your date and put portraits where the light will be at that hour, not where it was on your tour.
Have a covered plan for portraits.
A garden wedding comes with weather. The Fernery is under glass, the reception tent is covered, and the venue describes rooms inside the carriage house that can serve as a retreat in bad weather. Decide the rain plan early and tell us, so the photography and film plan can move with it.
Protect the vows outdoors.
Open air and wind take sound away fast. At Hima and Alina’s ceremony the officiant spoke into a microphone at the lectern, which helped the guests and the film. We also put small microphones on the people speaking and, when allowed, record from the sound system. Tell us early who is speaking.
Bring a list for the family photographs.
Big families and a lot of guests mean a lot of groupings, and Hima and Alina’s gallery has many of them, made in the gardens. Give us a list with names and a helper who knows everyone, and we will move through it quickly so you get back to your guests.
Plan the light in the tent.
Once the sun went down, the tent glowed pink and purple. Colored uplighting looks great in the room; for faces we add our own light so skin tones stay natural in the photographs and the film. Let us know who is lighting the tent and when the room goes dark.
Questions worth asking Morris Arboretum & Gardens
- Which ceremony location, cocktail space and reception space come with our booking?
- What time can we arrive for photographs, and which gardens can we use?
- How do we and our vendors get around the grounds during the event?
- What is the rain plan for the ceremony and for portraits?
- Is the Fernery open to us for photographs during our event?
- Are candles, oil lamps or other open flames allowed at the ceremony and in the tent?
- Can our vendors add lighting in the tent, and where is power available?
- When can vendors load in, and when does everything need to be out?
Nothing on this page is a venue policy. The 92 acres, the five ceremony locations, the reception tent beside the carriage house, the Fernery’s history and the April to October evening season come from the pages Morris Arboretum & Gardens publishes. Confirm them for your date.
Photography and film, one team
One plan, two crafts, the same day.
Most couples come to us for photography first. Hima and Alina wanted film as well, and on a day spread across a garden this size, having both from the same team keeps it simple: one timeline, portrait stops agreed once, and a photographer and a filmmaker who plan their positions together, so the photographs keep clean backgrounds and the film keeps clean sound.
That is a coordination benefit, not a claim that one person working alone does worse work. It simply takes a layer of logistics off your list. Collections and current details are on our pricing page.
- A shared scheduleOne timeline built with you and your planner, so photography and film never compete for the same five minutes.
- Portrait stops planned onceWe agree which gardens and when, then both crafts work from the same walk instead of repeating it.
- Positions agreed in advanceFor the vows, the garlands and the first dance we decide who stands where, so neither camera ends up in the other’s shot.
Morris Arboretum wedding questions
A few things couples ask.
Have you photographed a wedding at Morris Arboretum?
Yes. BlackTie Brothers photographed and filmed Hima and Alina’s wedding at Morris Arboretum & Gardens in Philadelphia. It is the wedding shown on this page, and it is our one featured Morris Arboretum wedding so far.
Can we see a complete wedding gallery from Morris Arboretum?
Yes. Hima and Alina’s complete gallery, all 859 photographs, is linked on this page: getting ready, the gardens, the ceremony and the whole reception. A full gallery is the fairest way to judge any photographer, so we are always glad to share one.
Does the wedding film play on this page?
Yes. Their 7:47 wedding film plays right here when you press play, with the normal YouTube controls for pause, volume and full screen. Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play, and there is also a link to watch it on YouTube.
Can we book photography and film together?
Yes. Most couples come to us for photography first, and film is available through the same team, with one coordinated plan and one timeline. Current collections are on our pricing page, and we recommend coverage once we know your date and how your day moves through the gardens.
How much time should we plan for portraits at Morris Arboretum?
More than you would at a single-building venue, because the gardens are spread out. Pick two or three spots close to your ceremony and reception instead of trying to see everything, and add the walking or cart time between them. If you have a favorite garden or the Fernery in mind, ask the venue whether it is open to you during your event, and we will check sunset for your date.
How do we check whether you are available for our date?
Send us your date, your venue and whether you are thinking about photography, film or both through the inquiry form linked on this page. We reply with availability and a coverage recommendation that fits your day.
Wedding team
Credits
- VenueMorris Arboretum & Gardens (opens in a new tab), Philadelphia
- Photography and filmBlackTie Brothers
Planning a wedding at Morris Arboretum or elsewhere in Philadelphia?
Tell us your date and what matters most.
Share your wedding date, your venue and whether you want photography, film or both. We will confirm availability and recommend coverage that fits the way your day moves through the gardens. BlackTie Brothers is a national wedding photography and film company with artists in New York, Florida and Hawaii, and we travel to weddings like this one.