Shelby & TJ’s San Francisco City Hall Wedding

This San Francisco City Hall wedding was a dream! You may remember Shelby and TJ from their engagement session in 2022. Well, now they’re ready to tie the knot in sunny California!

Wedding Planning

Shelby had a vision for her wedding and nothing in Austin quite captured the aesthetic of what she envisioned. They researched online, called some venues, and even did walk-throughs, but nothing felt “right.”

But when this bride-to-be stumbled upon San Francisco City Hall on Instagram, it was everything she pictured, and so much more! So this Austin couple got to work on planning their dream destination wedding.

The Big Day

After almost a year of planning, Shelby and TJ’s wedding day is finally here!

Wedding stationery and details from the couple's San Francisco City Hall wedding.

The most calm bride ever:

The bride getting ready at the Fairmont in San Francisco

The views from the bridal suite at the Fairmont in San Francisco

Bridal details in the bride's bouquet at the San Francisco City Hall wedding.

I love the sweet little moments between Shelby and her mother.

The bride and her mom having a moment before her San Francisco City Hall wedding.

The mother of the bride helping her daughter get ready before her San Francisco City Hall wedding ceremony.

The bride getting into her wedding dress at the Fairmont in San Francisco

The bride putting on the final touches at her San Francisco destination wedding hotel room.

TJ’s mom popped in to get ready with the ladies:

The mother of the groom checking in on the bride in her hotel room.

The bride walking down to the first look at the Fairmont in San Francisco.

The bride and groom really wanted to enjoy the celebration with their guests and utilize all the photo opportunities, so they opted to include a first look on their wedding day at the Fairmont.

The first look at the rooftop at the Fairmont in San Francisco.

Shelby also wanted as much color and greenery as possible in her photos. Luckily, the Fairmont has the most beautiful and lush rooftop garden:

The bride and groom portraits at the Fairmont rooftop in San Francisco.

Going to San Francisco City Hall

Shelby and TJ rented transportation for their wedding party and their guests. This made it super convenient for everyone to enjoy themselves without the stress of driving in the city, finding parking, and avoiding drinking and driving!

Heading to their San Francisco City Hall wedding ceremony.

Once we arrived, we had some time for more photos. Just look at the elegant architecture! This is a photographer’s dream!

Bride and groom pictures at San Francisco City Hall

Bride and groom pictures at San Francisco City Hall rotunda.

To say I’m obsessed would be an understatement…

Bride and groom pictures at San Francisco City Hall Mayor's balcony

Bride and groom pictures at San Francisco City Hall elevator

Bride and groom pictures at San Francisco City Hall fourth floor.

The bride walking down the staircase at San Francisco City Hall

San Francisco City Hall Wedding Ceremony

As their photographer, I loved how intimate their wedding was. Because Shelby and TJ’s wedding was a destination wedding, they chose to only invite their closest friends and family. They kept the list small so they could keep their wedding intimate and focus on their guests’ experience.

Everyone was in awe of the ceremony space. The rotunda and its architecture is a sight to see. Everyone couldn’t stop taking photos and talking about how perfect the space was!

The guests arriving at San Francisco City Hall for the wedding ceremony.

The flower girl and ringbearer walking down the aisle at San Francisco City Hall.

Last minute change: instead of going down the aisle, Shelby and TJ made a grand entrance down the steps of city hall!

San Francisco City Hall wedding ceremony at the rotunda.

First kiss as husband and wife at San Francisco City Hall wedding ceremony.

They are officially married, y’all (we may be in California but you can’t take the Texas out of us)!

The ceremony was followed by family formals:

Family portraits after the San Francisco City Hall wedding ceremony

Later, the couple’s first dance as husband and wife:

Newlyweds dance their first dance at the rotunda inside San Francisco city hall

Shortly after that, of course, more photos:

Portraits at San Francisco city hall on the fourth floor.

Bride and groom walking down the staircase at San Francisco city hall.

Family pictures outside of San Francisco city hall.

Bride and groom exiting the San Francisco city hall after their wedding ceremony.

Time to Eat!

Finally, the newlyweds and their crew headed out on their shuttle to the Waterfront Restaurant. And the shuttle was a blast! Everyone was in celebration mode!

The wedding party heading to the Waterfront restaurant in San Francisco

Wedding reception details at the couple's San Francisco destination wedding.

The bride and groom's wedding cake at their San Francisco City Hall wedding.

Cocktail hour at the Waterfront restaurant in San Francisco

The bride meeting a guest's dog at the wedding reception.

The couple making their way to their wedding reception in San Francisco.

The couple mingling with the Golden Gate bridge in the background.

At the restaurant, they enjoyed some good food, great conversations, fun and sweet toasts, and cake-cutting.

The bride and groom giving toasts at their wedding reception in San Francisco.

The bride and groom's San Francisco City Hall wedding reception.

The wedding guests giving toasts at the reception in San Francisco.

The bride and groom cutting their wedding cake at their reception.

The wedding guests enjoying their meal at the reception.

The bride tickling the flowergirl at her San Francisco City Hall wedding reception.

A group photo outside of the wedding reception venue.

After dinner, Shelby and TJ surprised their guests by taking them to the Presidio of San Francisco…

The wedding party taking a shuttle downtown San Francisco.

Specifically to get a view of the Golden Gate Bridge and some photo opportunities.

A group photo of all of the wedding guests outside of the Golden Gate bridge.

A Little Later …

Till we ended at the Top of the Mark for their after-party, but not before another chance to take photos in the streets of San Francisco. The one below is one of my favorites. Not only is it cute, but you can even (barely) spot a trolley in the background (to the right of Shelby)!

The bride and groom walking down the streets of San Francisco.

The couple walking into the hotel after their San Francisco city hall wedding.

An elevator photo of the couple after their San Francisco city hall wedding.

When we got to Top of the Mark, the newlyweds enjoyed drinks, some dancing, and wedding gifts:

The couple enjoyed a wedding after-party at Top of the Mark.

Originally, these two wanted photos on the beach, with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge. However, they were exhausted, it was super windy (hello, mouthful of sand), and didn’t want to stray far from their hotel. So instead, we went back to their hotel for some final couple’s photos before ending my night with them.

Bride and groom portraits at the Fairmont in San Francisco.

TJ is a romantic and even picked a flower for his bride:

Bride and groom portraits at the Fairmont after their destination wedding ceremony.

I absolutely adore the hotel series below:

Bride and groom portraits in their hotel room at the Fairmont in San Francisco.

Bride and groom pictures with San Francisco skyline behind them.

The couple looking out at the San Francisco skyline from their hotel room at the Fairmont.

From Shelby and TJ:

“The best decision I made during my wedding planning process was hiring Naomi! She was beyond helpful and truly went above and beyond. I would recommend her without reservation to anyone needing a photographer.”

Thank you for the kind words and congratulations to this amazing couple. I so enjoyed being your wedding photographer, spending the day with you two, and capturing all of your beautiful moments! Maybe we can even do a little trip back to San Francisco one day ….