Sunrise Vows at Sarakiniko & a Day on the Aegean Sea

There are some enquiries that land in my inbox and immediately feel like a dream booking. And Clare and Austin’s Milos elopement was absolutely one of them.

Greece had always been somewhere they wanted to travel together, so rather than planning a traditional wedding day back home in the States, they decided to turn getting married into an adventure. They completed the legal side quietly at home. Planned a celebration with their friends and family for their return. And escaped to the Greek islands for an intimate elopement that could seamlessly become their honeymoon.

First stop: Milos.

And somehow, I got to be the only other person there.

Planning an Intimate Elopement in Milos

Clare and Austin met through mutual friends, and funnily enough, a connection through family and another destination wedding is ultimately how they found me too.

A few years earlier, I photographed Julia and Sam’s intimate wedding in Sorrento, Italy. Julia’s mum is friends with Clare’s mum. My name was passed along, and eventually an email about photographing an elopement in Milos appeared in my inbox.

It was my first time visiting the island, but Milos had been sitting firmly on my travel bucket list for years. The white volcanic landscapes, turquoise water and tiny beaches scattered around the coastline make it one of those places that almost doesn’t look real in photographs.

So photographing a couple there — particularly in the relaxed, adventurous way Clare and Austin wanted to experience their wedding — felt like the perfect first introduction to the island.

A Sunset Pre-Wedding Shoot at Echoes Suites

We actually started their Milos elopement celebrations the evening before the ceremony.

Clare and Austin were staying at Echoes Suites. And we met there around sunset for a relaxed pre-wedding shoot. Rather than trying to fit absolutely everything into one morning, splitting their photography across different parts of the trip meant we could create completely different sets of images without ever making the experience feel like one long photoshoot.

It also gave Clare an excuse for multiple outfits. Something I will always support.

Alongside her main Jenny Yoo wedding dress, she had brought pieces from With Jéan and Bec + Bridge, which were perfect for the more relaxed, editorial feel of the evening.

There was no rigid wedding timeline or list of formalities to work through. We could simply make photographs, enjoy the light and let their time in Milos actually feel like a holiday.

And then came the slightly less glamorous part of planning a sunrise wedding ceremony. The 5am alarm.

Sunrise Vows at Sarakiniko Beach

The next morning, I met Clare and Austin at Sarakiniko Beach before sunrise.

We deliberately didn’t photograph getting ready. With preparations beginning at around 3:30am while it was still completely dark outside, it made far more sense for them to get ready privately and for me to meet them at the place that really mattered.

Sarakiniko is probably the most recognisable location on Milos. Its smooth white volcanic rock stretches towards impossibly blue water, creating a landscape that feels more lunar than Mediterranean.

It’s also understandably one of the island’s most popular places to visit.

For a Sarakiniko elopement, sunrise was therefore incredibly important.

We began with portraits while the beach was at its quietest. The light was soft, Clare’s hair and makeup were untouched by happy tears. And for a little while it felt as though we had one of Greece’s most famous beaches almost entirely to ourselves.

Our original plan had been to spend longer taking photographs before moving into the vows. But by around 7am I could see more people beginning to arrive.

One of the benefits of keeping an elopement flexible is being able to respond to what’s actually happening around you. Rather than waiting until Sarakiniko became busier, I suggested Clare and Austin exchange their vows while it still felt peaceful and private.

So we found a spot amongst the white rocks, overlooking the Aegean, and they made their promises to each other.

Just the Two of Them

There was no aisle. No rows of chairs. No wedding party waiting nearby.

It was literally Clare, Austin and me.

They had already completed their legal ceremony in the States, so there was no need for an officiant or any formalities in Greece. Instead, they stood opposite each other and read the personal vows they’d written.

The whole thing probably lasted ten minutes.

There were tears — hence my decision to get some portraits beforehand proving particularly useful — but that simplicity was what made it so lovely.

Without a room full of people watching, they could completely focus on each other.

And because their family and friends weren’t physically there, I became slightly more than their photographer for those ten minutes. Alongside photographing everything, I filmed their vows and little snippets of the morning on my iPhone so they had something immediate and personal to send home.

I think photography becomes even more important with an elopement for exactly that reason. When your favourite people aren’t standing beside you, your photographs become the way they experience it afterwards.

The goal isn’t simply to create beautiful portraits. It’s to give everyone back home something that makes them feel like they were almost there.

Exploring Sarakiniko After the Ceremony

Once the vows were finished, there was nothing else we had to do.

No guests waiting for drinks. No wedding breakfast beginning at a certain time. And no speeches, cake cutting or transport schedule.

We simply explored.

We moved across Sarakiniko’s white rock formations, finding quieter corners and different perspectives as the sun climbed higher. The majority of Clare and Austin’s wedding morning was essentially one long, relaxed couple shoot — exactly what they wanted.

This is one of my favourite things about photographing elopements.

A traditional wedding day inevitably involves documenting lots of people, relationships and events. An elopement gives us the luxury of slowing everything down and making the location part of the story.

And somewhere like Milos deserves that time.

By just after 8am, we were finished.

Clare and Austin headed back to their suite for a very well-earned nap, while I went away to start editing some previews.

But their Milos elopement wasn’t over yet.

Turning Their Elopement Into a Full-Day Adventure

That afternoon, we met again — this time for a self-drive boat trip.

Austin had approximately 30 minutes of instruction before being handed the boat, and then we were off.

Rather than booking a traditional wedding reception, they spent their afternoon travelling along the Milos coastline, stopping at beaches, swimming in crystal-clear water, eating snacks and jumping from the rocks into the sea.

It felt less like a wedding itinerary and more like spending the day on holiday with friends — except one of us happened to be wearing cameras.

And, naturally, there was a little peer pressure involved.

At one point Austin climbed up onto a particularly high rock ready to jump. Once he got to the top, however, he began reconsidering his choices and suggested he might climb back down instead.

Unfortunately for Austin, Clare and I had recently been discussing the social-media trend of completely normal things men do that inexplicably give women “the ick” — treading water and chasing after a ping-pong ball being amongst the examples.

We informed him that watching him carefully climb back down the rock would, unfortunately, have to be added to the list.

He jumped.

Sometimes being a destination elopement photographer involves documenting emotional vows at sunrise.

Sometimes it involves low-key bullying the groom into jumping off a cliff for the vision.

It’s about range.

Clare & Austin’s Milos Elopement on 35mm Film

Alongside their digital gallery, I photographed parts of Clare and Austin’s Milos elopement on 35mm film — something that felt particularly suited to the slower, nostalgic feeling of their day.

There’s an unpredictability to film that I love for destination weddings. The grain, softer tones and little imperfections give the photographs a completely different feeling to digital, almost like looking back through photographs from a summer you never wanted to end.

Against the white volcanic landscape of Sarakiniko and the blues of the Aegean, the film photographs have this beautifully timeless, sun-soaked quality. They feel less like traditional wedding photographs and more like stills from their honeymoon — which, for Clare and Austin, is exactly what their wedding was.

I love mixing 35mm into my digital coverage rather than treating the two as completely separate. Digital allows me to document everything reliably and in detail, while film adds another layer to the story: a little more imperfect, tactile and nostalgic.

For a Milos elopement that was ultimately about travelling somewhere they’d always wanted to visit, getting married quietly and then spending the day exploring together, film felt like the perfect fit.

Why Milos Is Such an Incredible Place to Elope

Having now photographed an elopement in Milos, I completely understand why couples are drawn here.

It has the incredible landscapes you expect from a Greek island, but there is so much variety packed into a relatively small place. You can exchange vows surrounded by the otherworldly white rocks of Sarakiniko in the morning and spend your afternoon swimming from a boat in unbelievably blue water.

For Clare and Austin, it also meant their wedding wasn’t a standalone event they spent months planning only for it to disappear in a few hours.

It became part of a much bigger experience.

After Milos, they continued on to Paros, turning their elopement naturally into their honeymoon before eventually heading home to celebrate with everyone they love.

I think that’s one of the best arguments for a destination elopement.

You don’t necessarily have to choose between having an intimate wedding and celebrating with your people. Clare and Austin essentially did both — they just separated the two.

The actual act of getting married belonged entirely to them.

Thinking About Your Own Milos Elopement?

If you’re considering a Milos elopement, my biggest advice would be to make the day about the experience. Rather than trying to recreate the structure of a traditional wedding with fewer guests.

Wake up ridiculously early and watch the sun rise over Sarakiniko. Read your vows somewhere beautiful. Go back to bed afterwards if you want to. Hire a boat. Swim in the Aegean. Wear multiple outfits. Find somewhere incredible for dinner.

Your elopement can be two hours, two days or an entire trip through the Greek islands.

From a photography perspective, I’d also strongly recommend building flexibility into your plans — particularly if you want photographs at famous locations like Sarakiniko. Starting early gave us beautiful light and far more privacy, and being willing to bring the ceremony slightly forward when people began arriving meant Clare and Austin could still exchange their vows without feeling as though they had an audience.

Those little decisions can completely change how a place feels.

Milos Elopement Photographer

Clare and Austin’s wedding was my first time photographing in Milos, despite the island having been on my bucket list for years, and it ended up being exactly the kind of destination wedding I love photographing.

Beautiful locations, very little formality and enough space for the couple to actually experience the place they’ve travelled all that way to see.

My approach to destination elopement photography is relaxed and predominantly documentary, mixed with editorial portraiture and true-to-colour editing. I want the photographs to feel effortless and personal. While still looking like they belong in the pages of a magazine.

Most importantly, I don’t want your elopement to turn into an eight-hour photoshoot.

Clare and Austin had time to exchange their vows privately, explore Sarakiniko, nap, swim, cliff jump, eat snacks and actually enjoy being in Greece — while still coming home with a gallery that tells the whole story.

And that’s exactly how I think a Milos elopement should feel.

If you’re planning an elopement in Milos, elsewhere in Greece or another destination entirely, I’d love to hear what you’re dreaming up.

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