A San Francisco City Hall Wedding That Reimagined the Entire Building

San Francisco,

California

Three women in satin pajamas celebrate on a couch, one holding a champagne bottle, arms raised joyfully.

If you're planning your San Francisco City Hall wedding (or even just letting yourself daydream about it) let me tell you what actually makes a day in that building unforgettable. Not the Pinterest version. The real one.

Two brides in white gowns hold hands and dance joyfully in an elegant marble hall with ornate arched ceilings.

Lily and Bailey rented out the entirety of San Francisco City Hall for their wedding. The rotunda, the grand staircase, the marble halls — all of it — filled with over 100 of their people. Two brides. Every echo in that building theirs. I want to walk you through how their day unfolded, because almost everything that made it work is something you can think about for your own.

Black and white photo of groomsmen lifting bride and bridesmaid during lively wedding reception dance celebration.

Elegant wedding table setting with blush pink roses, carnations, crystal glassware, navy napkins, and gold cutlery on white lace.

Elegant wedding ceremony at San Francisco City Hall grand staircase with guests seated in circular rotunda.

A First Look, a Slipped Shoe, and a Staircase Entrance That Shook the Marble

Lily and Bailey couldn't stand still all day. Not during their first look, when they took each other in and realized how similar their dresses were, but also how beautifully different. Not during the breaking of the glass, when Bailey's shoe slipped off mid-stomp and Lily knelt down to slide it back on, both of them dissolving into laughter. Not during their grand entrance, when they swept down the staircase to a roar of cheering guests that I swear shook the marble.

This is the part City Hall couples underestimate most: the building gives you these once-in-a-lifetime moments, but only if you build your timeline to let them breathe. We didn't rush the first look. We didn't rush the staircase. When the shoe slipped, we had time to actually be in that moment instead of racing to the next thing. That's not luck. That's a timeline built around how the light and the space actually behave throughout the day.

Bride in white gown and veil at elegant staircase wedding ceremony with floral arrangements and officiant.

Three women laughing together on a couch, one holding a champagne bottle, in a black and white photo.

Bride lifted by guests during lively wedding reception dance celebration with warm amber lighting.

A Judge They Met on a Cruise and a Ceremony Worth Crying Over

Lily and Bailey's officiant was Judge Hannah Blumenstiel, a federal judge they originally met on a cruise and grew close to over the years. When they asked her to officiate their wedding, it was a huge honor.

Standing in the Rotunda, Judge Hannah spoke about the long, unfinished history of marriage equality. She shared that when Proposition 8 passed in 2008 — amending California's state constitution to ban gay marriage — she vowed she would not marry another couple until every couple could marry the person they chose. In 2010, a federal court ruled Proposition 8 unconstitutional. In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated same-sex marriage in California. In 2015, the Supreme Court legalized it nationwide. Which brought us all to July 13, 2024, watching Judge Hannah joyfully marry Lily and Bailey in the most beautiful building in San Francisco.

She told the room she believes love is love, and that every couple deserves the right to marry the person they choose. The room erupted.

There's a particular kind of joy that only fills a room when love like this gets to be celebrated out loud. That was this room. And it's the kind of moment a venue alone can never give you — it comes from choosing someone to marry you who actually knows your story.

Two brides in white gowns celebrate with champagne alongside a guest in a black dress in an ornate wedding venue.

Black and white photo of bride and groom kneeling on grand staircase with floral arrangements during wedding ceremony.

A Dog Cake Topper, a Shared Parent Dance, and Energy That Never Dipped

The whole night, guests kept rushing in for one more photo. Lily and Bailey's cake had a tiny figure of their dog peeking through the tiers (a detail I still think about). Their parent dances were one shared song, both brides on the floor with the people who raised them. Their love is electric — you can feel it in every single image from their gallery.

City Hall is one of the most photographed wedding venues in the world, which means the building does a lot of the work for you. What makes a day there yours is the details no one else would think of. The dog cake topper. The shared parent dance. The officiant who actually knows your story. Those are the things I'm watching for behind the camera — because in twenty years, those are the things you'll want to see again.

A wedding like Lily and Bailey's is exactly what San Francisco City Hall was built for.

Planning your San Francisco City Hall wedding? I'm a wedding photographer based in Monterey who travels to San Francisco often. If you're drawn to imagery that makes you feel, puts you back in the moment, and captures effortless emotion, you're exactly where you need to be. I'd love to hear what you're dreaming up.