An Intimate UC Berkeley Botanical Garden Wedding

Berkeley Botanical Garden Wedding California | Mather Redwood Grove Wedding | UC Berkeley Amphitheater Weddings

This famous Redwoods amphitheater is nestled in California’s UC Berkeley Botanical Garden, and Emma + Himanshu chose this most gorgeous, no-decorations-needed outdoor wedding venue for their family-only celebration.

California redwood wedding photos by SF wedding photographer Kathryn Cooper Weddings

Planning a Family-Only California Redwoods Wedding

When Himanshu and Emma planned their 3-day Indian-American wedding in the East Bay, they knew they wanted their Western wedding ceremony to be somewhere private, and quintessentially California. That meant saying vows under the towering redwood trees, in one of the most amazing woodsy spots ever: the Redwood Amphitheater at UC Berkeley.

A UC Berkeley Botanical Garden wedding can be held in many beautiful locations, but the most famous—and my personal favorite—is the Mather Redwood Grove section within this gorgeous garden.

It’s such a special, quiet, and classic garden location you’ve likely seen online—but who guessed it was so close to a bustling college city, and just 1 mile from the 63,000-seat UC California Memorial Stadium?!

A UC Berkeley Botanic Garden Wedding

Himanshu & Emma held a 3-day celebration to celebrate both the Indian and the American side. Guests came from multiple states and countries (as far away as New Zealand!), and participated in several different celebrations.

Their third and final wedding day was at this awesome California botanic garden: The UC Berkeley Redwood Amphitheater. Only their immediate family members were invited, along with me (their photographer), and a violinist. The lovely Berkeley coordinator gave the group peace and quiet so the couple could enjoy their vows and ring exchange, officiated by the bride’s aunt.

Microweddings in Berkeley’s Redwoods

UC Berkeley weddings and microweddings are available throughout the year, and the Redwood grove ceremony spot is lovely all year long. It is, however, only available certain times of day, so make sure you plan this into your schedule and plans.

While there are endless trails, sections, ponds, fountains, cacti, and flower sections located within the UC Berkeley Botanical Gardens, the redwood grove is located across the street, on a short path winding through the woods. Simple green cushions are supplied for guests to sit on since the wedding amphitheater is quite simple.

That said, it’s perfect! It seems both large and intimate, and can fit just a dozen guests—or 200. Ceremonies traditionally take place as the sun is a few hours away from setting, and the entire paths, entries, and exits are made private for your wedding day.

I spent the entire weekend with Emma, Himanshu, and their family, photographing them at quite a few different locations—so I felt like I knew them well at this point! In fact, Emma’s brother helped hold a light for me during portraits on the final day.

Getting Ready + Their First Look at the Garden

To start, Emma and her mother got ready in a dressing room near the park’s headquarters. I’d already scouted out several locations for their first look and portraits, so I did some detail shots outside, and captured a few moments of Emma changing into her wedding dress.

I picked one of the ponds for their first look, but decided to get an across-the-pond perspective to give them privacy. Normally I’m fairly close, but since they’d done a first look the day before for their Hindu wedding. So yes, this was their second first look. First second look? To be continued…

Their first look was beautiful and private, near a series of stepping stones leading to the viewpoint. After they saw each other in their traditional tux and white wedding dress (albeit with non-traditional mehndi and bangles from their Choora), we took photos along a few paths and spots I’d chosen. The sun was darn bright for October, so keeping them in shade was important. Yes, it was that hot out—90-103 that weekend (that’s FAHRENHEIT). Luckily, redwood weddings at UC Berkeley take place in the much cooler forest, and I headed over there to capture the space before their family arrived. Meanwhile, the bride, groom, and both their parents headed to a different entrance, out of sight, so they could walk in up the beautiful, fern-covered paths towards the floor of the pavilion.

It’s truly such a simple, yet so darn beautiful, setup. Having a Berkeley Botanical Garden wedding means you can have a super memorable, no-frills-needed ceremony—and then head out to dinner afterwards.

A Foresty Wedding Ceremony in the Redwoods

As the ceremony started, I got a variety of close-up and wide shots—some featuring the beautiful setting sun—as Himanshu and Emma took turns walking up the redwoods forest path with parents on either side.

The ceremony started, and it was perfect! Full of laughter, tears, poignant moments, and their personal vows (which are not said during a Hindu wedding), their microwedding was a beautiful reminder that small and sweet is stunning.

When I say the space is quiet, I mean quiet. In order to get all the different vantage points, I actually had to remove my already-soft-soled shoes (which were too loud in an amphitheater location where one could hear a pin drop). That way, I could quickly move around the large stage area to get different perspectives.

With just a bouquet and a boutonniere, and no speakers nor microphones, these two kept it simple and beautiful.

And with that, they were officially married! Hugs, chatter, and photos with their family quickly took place. Right after that, I took a few portraits of them as the evening light set in. A few photos of Emma’s colorful flowers and their rings, and voila—it was time for their final wedding dinner, and the weekend commenced!

UC Berkeley Wedding Costs

UC Berkeley Botanical Garden weddings cost $2000 – $2500 for microweddings, and go up from there for weddings with more guests, more details, different spaces (such as the Julia Morgan Hall or the Conference Center), or wedding reception options. If you want a rockin’ traditional reception for more than 80 people that goes late into the night, this venue is likely not the right fit. Celebrations here are more focused on clean, un-fussy celebrations in nature.

Redwood grove weddings are always beautiful, and unique to California (although Redwoods and Sequoias have been successfully found/grown in other areas, such as Oregon, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Europe). They thrive in the unique climates of the Bay Area, Santa Cruz mountains, and Northern California. While there are more groves up north, I dare say that the spots we have of Redwoods and Sequoias in the Bay Area are the best for weddings!

Where Else to Have a Redwoods Wedding in the Bay Area?

Other options for weddings in the redwoods within California—especially options that are more oriented for private, all-day weddings within 2 hours of San Franscisco—are plentiful, and range from county parks to luxury wedding venues.

If UC Botanical Garden doesn’t have the time flexibility for your celebration, here are just a few of my favorite redwoods wedding venues in the Bay Area (in no particular order):

Deer Park Villa (Marin): https://deerparkvilla.com/
The Mountain Terrace (Peninsula/mountains): https://www.themountainterrace.com/
Camp Campbell (Santa Cruz Mountains): https://www.ymcasv.org/ymca-camp-campbell/group-events-rentals/weddings
Nestldown (South Bay/mountains): https://www.nestldown.com/
Waterfall Lodge and Retreat (Santa Cruz Mountains): http://waterfallsantacruz.com/
The Sequoia Retreat Center (Santa Cruz Mountains): http://www.sequoiaretreatcenter.com/
Reinhardt Regional Park (East Bay): https://www.ebparks.org/parks/reinhardt-redwood
Saratoga Springs (Peninsula/South Bay/mountains): http://saratoga-springs.com/

Their Berkeley Celebration

This all said, having your wedding in the redwood grove of this Berkeley beauty is not only going to be amazing, but the walk up the winding trails as your guests await you at the amphitheater—and the entire day at this beautiful NorCal wedding venue—will be immensely memorable and photogenic from the start.

I loved capturing Emma and Himanshu’s fusion wedding weekend, and capping it off with this most beautiful, intimate celebration at UC Berkeley’s forest wedding venue. For garden vibes, that woodsy wedding feeling, and a one-of-a-kind celebration in nature, this is your place. It certainly was for these two, and their photos show just a glimpse of their wedding day joy~

UC Berekeley Botanical Garden
200 Centennial Dr, Berkeley, CA 94705
(510) 643-2755
https://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/

Photography: Kathryn Cooper Weddings: Instagram.com/kathryncooperweddings
Venue: UC Berkeley Botanical Garden in Berkeley, California: https://www.instagram.com/ucbgarden/
Violinist: Katrina Wreede: https://www.instagram.com/wreedekatrina/
Flowers: Pocketful of Posies: https://www.zola.com/wedding-vendors/wedding-florists/pocketful-of-posies
Dress: Blue Sky Bridal, Seattle: https://www.instagram.com/blueskybridal/
Emma’s Shoes: Dolce Vita: Instagram.com/dolcevita
Hotel: Instagram.com/AirBnB