Your Guide to Wedding Photos in Philadelphia
Philadelphia is home to so many beautiful wedding venues, and endless opportunities for photo locations on your wedding day. I have been photographing Philly area weddings for almost a decade now, and if there’s one thing they’re notorious for it’s their unique timelines and locations compared to anywhere else! With being located in the city, couples getting married here often truly love the city vibe and want to bring it to their wedding photos. A lot of the venues in the city do not have outdoor photo spaces or do not allow you to utilize the venue until just before ceremony. This leads to Philly wedding days often include walking between places, trolley rides, multiple photo locations, photo permits, and more. To make sure your wedding day photos go off without a hitch, I’m here to tell you everything you need to know. This is your guide to wedding photos in Philadelphia.
Getting Around:
From getting ready, to photo locations, to your wedding venue, you may have some getting around to do! Some wedding days are entirely walkable – like a wedding day that goes from getting ready at Hotel Monaco to photos at Second National Bank to wedding celebrations Union Trust (just to name one possible scenario). While others are more expansive. For those more expansive wedding days, I highly recommend getting a trolley. Some of the biggest wedding venues in the city, like Cescaphe venues have trolleys for their couples to use. You can also rent them independently from transportation companies. Trolleys can typically hold your wedding party, immediate family, and vendors like your photo and video team. Using them keeps everyone in one place so you can continue to spend time together on your wedding day and everyone can truly relax without having to drive. It also saves the stress of potential parking scenarios around the city. You can easily hop off and on if hitting multiple locations.
Obtaining Permits:
Philadelphia is a big city with a ton of spaces to photograph. Some of their most popular spaces require photo permits. Luckily the permit process is typically easy and can be done entirely online or by mail. It is recommended you start obtaining permits at least one month prior to your wedding day, but the earlier the better – especially in high traffic seasons and days of the week like Saturdays in the Fall. Here are some instructions for the most popular spaces in the city as well as their costs:
Second National Bank, Merchants Exchange Building, Benjamin Rush Garden, 18th Century Garden, Washington Square
In January 2025, the EXPLORE Act was signed into law, changing how permits were handled for National Parks locations. This includes Philadelphia landmarks like Second National Bank, Merchants Exchange Building, Benjamin Rush Garden, and 18th Century Garden. While permits were widely stopped in 2025, as of April 2026 it is now required to obtain a permit for parties of 8 of more or for larger scale productions involving anything outside of handheld equipment. You can also obtain a permit, while not required, if you would like priority of the space. Priority is given to permit holders in situations where multiple parties are utilizing the space.
$50.00 application fee, followed by a $150-250 fee depending on the size of your group.
Permit obtained through the Philadelphia National Parks Service, here
Restoration of the cobblestone surrounding Merchant’s Exchange is ongoing and may impact permits through Summer 2026.
Waterworks and Boathouse Row
Restrictions may apply due to pre-scheduled events in the area
$150.00/hour
Permit obtained through City of Philadelphia, here.
Free Library of Philadelphia / Parkway Central Library
Permits are obtained after a review that takes on average, 4-6 weeks. Certificate of Insurance required.
Permit obtained via email, here.
Philadelphia Museum of Art steps and Azalea Garden
$50.00/hour
Permit obtained through City of Philadelphia, here.
Cherry Street Pier
Only available on select dates due to events hosted at the pier
$100/hour for public access, $500/hour for private access
Permit obtained through Delaware River Waterfront, here.
Rodin Museum Garden
2 time slots available per day for a start time of 10:00am or 1:00pm
$100 for 3 hours
Permit obtained on the Rodin Museum Website, here.
Photo locations that do not require permits
While some of the most popular locations in the city require permits to take wedding photos, there are also a ton of spaces to choose from that do not require permits. That being said, permits do ensure that you have a space to yourselves during your allotted time, and a lot of those which do not require permits are public spaces. Places like City Hall and Franklin Square regularly host events so checking their event schedules before relying on them for your wedding day is very important.
Some of these locations are also small in terms of space, so not every location in the city is going to be ideal for larger groups like your wedding party or family photos. The locations that have enough space for these larger groups have been marked below with an * .
Race Street Pier
Elfreth’s Alley*
Broad Street*
City Hall
Love Park
Logan Square
And more! The great thing about the city is that you can really walk around and explore. I’ve done photos from city sidewalks to alleyways, cafe benches, and bars. There are so many small parks scattered throughout the city as well, and a quick google search should be able to tell you if a photo permit is required. Wedding venues may also be able to provide insight into popular locations near your wedding venue.
Important Update: As of summer 2025, permit’s are no longer required for popular, previously permit-required NPS locations in Old City for parties of under 8. This includes Merchant’s Exchange Building, Second National Bank, 18th Century Garden, and Benjamin Rush Garden. If you have 8 people or more, you can obtain a permit by emailing the National Park Service at INDE_Permits@nps.gov. Groups are being advised that those holding permits have priority of the space over those without permits.
Where photos are not permitted:
Luckily with all of these options, you are sure to find a great location for your wedding photos in Philadelphia! However, it is good to note locations that are not an option for wedding photos:
Rittenhouse Square
Barnes Foundation*
Inside of any of the cities museums, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art*
*The Barnes Foundation and Philadelphia Museum of art host weddings, where photos are permitted only if they are your venue.
I highly recommend working with your wedding vendors such as your photographer, videographer, planner, and/or venue to make a plan and location choices that are best for you.