We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sam Starns. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sam below.

Alright, Sam thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

Specializing in adventure elopements allows me to be a part of helping craft really intentional days, from empowering a bride to wear her mother’s wedding dress (she had passed away years prior) to brainstorming ways to include a couple’s pets as part of their ceremony. I tell my couples to think of their wedding day as an adventure first, and a wedding second. What would a “best day yet” adventure look like if you weren’t dressed up and getting married? What would you include? Would it be new things you’ve always wanted to try? Things you regularly do, just turned up several levels? Allowing that intentionality and meaningfulness is the secret to so many beautiful adventures that people see. So many bucket list items have been checked off for my couples. We’ve made adventures under the northern lights happen, first rides in helicopters occur, a horseback ride through the Redwoods, a visit to a new country, and so much more.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After regretting my own traditional wedding (as a wedding photographer myself), I booked a couple who ultimately wanted to elope and felt brave enough to share that desire with me. I realized that I wasn’t alone in my mindset of feeling like a traditional wedding didn’t suit me or my husband. I now specialize solely in adventure elopements for couples who want to craft an intentional day in the outdoors that is full of the things they love and sights they want to see.

I help couples break out of that small wedding box that the industry puts everyone in, and assist them in cultivating an adventure that’s representative of their relationship and their goals in life and love. It takes confidence and empowerment to go against the grain when everyone around you is pressuring you to have a particular type of wedding. That confidence and empowerment is something I encourage my couples to hold on to and utilize in every aspect of their lives where they may feel like their true interests and desires go against the grain of society.

I’ve been photographing adventure elopements since 2017 and have been fortunate to be able to write a book, “Elope Your Life”, all about utilizing the growth you experience while planning an elopement and incorporating into the rest of your life. In 2021 I also spoke at TEDxRoseburg about eloping.

Typically, the types of elopements people book are at least 8 hours and include some type of unique activity or mode of transport, but not always! My couples are provided with a ton of information in a custom planning portal, including locations, customized vendor referrals, ceremony inspiration, planning call schedulers, elopement guides, and so much more. I used to be a park ranger on the Oregon Coast, and took a special interest in geology at university, so I also act as a sort of unofficial park ranger/guide for my couples wherever we’re at. To me, this isn’t just a photography experience, it’s a human one. And so I approach the entire process in such a way that the photos are really just part of what’s provided. From the consult to when an album is delivered to their door, the whole process is about humans working together to fulfill their dreams and empowering folks to live the lives they were meant to.

If they were to write something on my gravestone, it would probably be, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing”, and I live the “whole-ass” mentality in my work and general life. When I’m not photographing elopements, you can find me traveling, location scouting, and experiencing new things.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

A lot of people will recommend “Building a Story Brand” or “How to Win Friends and Influence People”, and while those are great books, if you aren’t a devourer of self-help tomes like myself, I’d highly recommend reading “The One Sentence Persuasion Course”. It’s a 45-60 minute read and the concepts are great for website copy, approaching clients, and general human behavior.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is to empower people to think critically about societal norms that don’t often benefit us. If you want to have a wedding, I support you 1000%, but it’s crucial to also let people know that eloping is a VALID choice, and one that shouldn’t be met with entitlement and judgment from loved ones (or society in general).

I’m here to be an empowerer, an enabler when needed, and a source of information to make unique and unconventional wedding dreams come true.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.samstarns.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/samstarns
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/samstarnselope
• Other: TikTok: tiktok.com/@samstarns