Hayley and Jake’s wedding day was the perfect example of how a wedding can feel intentional, beautiful, and completely personal without everything happening at a traditional wedding venue. They chose two spaces that gave them the best of both worlds: a garden wedding ceremony at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh followed by a relaxed tented reception right in their own backyard.
The result was a wedding day that felt incredibly them. The Arboretum gave us the lush greenery and romantic garden setting for the ceremony and portraits, while their backyard reception created a completely different atmosphere for dinner, drinks, dancing, and celebrating with everyone they loved.
A Wedding Ceremony at the JC Raulston Arboretum
If you’re looking for an outdoor wedding ceremony location in Raleigh that already feels beautiful without needing a ton of additional decor, the JC Raulston Arboretum is such a good option.
Located in Raleigh, the gardens are filled with mature trees, winding paths, interesting plants, and pockets of greenery that make the entire property feel tucked away from the city. For Hayley and Jake, it created a naturally romantic backdrop for their ceremony while still keeping everything convenient for their guests.
One of my favorite things about photographing weddings at gardens like the JC Raulston Arboretum is that the setting does so much of the work for you. Instead of transforming a blank space, you get to lean into what's already there. The greenery, texture, and natural light gave their ceremony that effortless garden-party feeling while still keeping the focus on the two of them.
Wedding Portraits Around the Gardens
After the ceremony, we were able to use the Arboretum itself for portraits before heading to the reception.
Having your ceremony somewhere that also doubles as a beautiful portrait location is such an underrated wedding-day decision. Rather than traveling to another location or trying to squeeze portraits into a small area, we could wander through the gardens and create a mix of more traditional portraits alongside candid, documentary-style moments.
The JC Raulston Arboretum has enough variety that you don't need to go far to completely change the look of your photos. Between the open garden spaces, pathways, trees, and more structured areas throughout the property, there are so many opportunities to create images that feel different while still telling one cohesive story.
From a Raleigh Garden Wedding to a Backyard Reception
After the ceremony, the celebration moved to Hayley and Jake’s backyard for their reception. And honestly, backyard weddings deserve more credit.
There is something really special about inviting everyone back to a place that already means something to you instead of moving into another traditional event space. Ellerbee Events transformed the backyard with a tent, tables, and chairs, creating a full reception space while still keeping the relaxed atmosphere that makes backyard weddings so fun.
It felt elevated without losing the intimacy of being at home.
Guests could grab drinks from Capital Bevvys, snack on charcuterie from Snacks Provision Co., and eat dinner from the Arepa Food Truck before the evening transitioned into dancing with Steven Downing Music.
Instead of feeling overly scheduled or formal, the reception had room to breathe. People could eat, drink, talk, wander around, and actually enjoy being together—which also happens to create some of my favorite photographs.
Why I Love Backyard Wedding Receptions
A backyard reception gives you so much freedom to decide what your wedding actually looks like.
You aren't necessarily working around a venue's standard floor plan or trying to make your celebration look like every wedding that has happened there before. Hayley and Jake could build the reception around what mattered to them, from bringing in an arepa food truck for dinner to having Publix make their wedding cake.
Those choices are what make a wedding memorable.
As a documentary-style Raleigh wedding photographer, these are also the kinds of environments I love photographing. When guests are comfortable and the timeline gives everyone space to actually experience the day, there are naturally more of those little interactions happening everywhere—the hugs, conversations, reactions, people sneaking food, kids running around, friends catching up, and all the tiny moments that weren't planned.
Those photographs end up being just as important as the portraits.
Planning a JC Raulston Arboretum Wedding in Raleigh
If you're considering getting married at the JC Raulston Arboretum, pairing a ceremony there with a reception somewhere else can be a really beautiful way to structure your wedding day.
Your reception doesn't have to be at another traditional venue, either. A backyard, family property, favorite restaurant, or another meaningful Raleigh location can give you the freedom to create something much more personal.
From a photography perspective, I also love the contrast. You can have romantic garden wedding portraits surrounded by greenery during one part of the day and completely different tented, flash-filled reception photographs later that night. It gives your final wedding gallery variety without making the day feel disconnected.
Hayley and Jake’s wedding was exactly that: garden ceremony, backyard celebration, really good food, their favorite people, and a wedding day that felt like their own.
Hayley + Jake's Raleigh Wedding Vendor Team
Ceremony: JC Raulston Arboretum — Raleigh, North Carolina
Tent, Tables + Chairs: Ellerbee Events
Coordination: Lindsey Kimbral, Elegant Memories Weddings — @elegantmemoriesweddings
Bartending: Capital Bevvys — Sarah + Faith
DJ: Steven Downing Music — Garner, NC
Dinner: Arepa Food Truck
Cake: Publix
Charcuterie: Snacks Provision Co.
Wedding Dress: Vow’d
Groom's Suit: Amazon
Looking for a Raleigh Wedding Photographer?
I'm Maggie, a Raleigh wedding photographer documenting weddings with a mix of candid, photojournalistic storytelling and an editorial eye. My approach is focused on giving you space to experience your wedding while creating photographs that feel romantic, honest, and completely personal to you.
