Littleton, Colorado

The Hudson
Gardens

Thirty acres of free public garden along the South Platte — a reflecting pool, a rose garden, a timber pergola and, every winter, one of the best light displays in Colorado.

30Acres

0Cost to visit

12Months of good frames

$50Photo permit, per day

The gardens

A public garden first,
a venue second

Most people arriving at this page are looking for pictures of Hudson Gardens rather than a photographer — so here they are, and here is what the place actually looks like through a year.

The Hudson Gardens & Event Center sits on about thirty acres along the South Platte in Littleton, and admission to the gardens is free. It is a genuine public garden that also hosts weddings and a full calendar of ticketed events — not a wedding venue that happens to have plants.

That shapes what photographs well here. The reflecting pool and its fountains, the rose garden, the timber pergola walkway and the stone bridges are the frames people recognise. They are also frames you share with the public, which is the single practical thing to plan around.

We have photographed weddings, engagements, maternity sessions and families here across many years, and the gardens reward repeat visits more than almost any location in the metro — they look completely different in April, July and December.

The timber pergola walkway at Hudson Gardens, looking through to the fountain

Before you go

Three things worth
knowing first

The permit hinges on payment, not portraits

This is the question we are asked most about Hudson Gardens, and the answer is narrower than most people expect. Photographing the gardens for your own enjoyment needs nothing at all — the permit applies to anyone being paid, so it is our problem rather than yours. Hudson sells three: $50 for a single day, $150 for a single wedding day, and $250 for an annual pass. If your wedding is booked at the Gardens and coverage stays within the wedding itself, no separate permit is needed.

It is a public garden, not a private venue

Unless you have booked an event space, other visitors will be there. That is entirely workable — we compose so the gardens read as depth rather than crowd — but a weekday morning is a very different experience from a Saturday in June.

Hudson Holidays is off-limits for sessions

The winter light display turns the gardens into something unrecognisable from the July version, and it is one of the most photogenic things in Colorado in December. Worth knowing before you plan around it: Hudson prohibits professional photography at its special events, Hudson Holidays included. Buy a ticket, bring your own camera, shoot it for the joy of it — it is not a session you can book, and we would rather tell you here than at the gate.

Around the gardens

Where the frames are

The reflecting pool and fountains. The signature Hudson Gardens frame, and the one most people picture. Best in the morning before the wind picks up and breaks the reflection.

The timber pergola walkway. Strong repeating structure and a natural frame down its length, with the fountain visible at the end.

The rose garden. Peak colour in June and again in September, and the most reliable spot for family groups.

The stone bridges and the water. The South Platte side of the property is quieter and greener than the formal gardens.

The blossom trees. A short window in spring, and worth timing a session around if you can.

The event lawns. Where ceremonies happen, with mature trees and open sky — and where the larger public events set up in summer.

From sessions at the gardens

What Hudson Gardens
actually looks like

A child inside the light tunnel at the Hudson Gardens winter lights display

An outdoor wedding ceremony beside the water at Hudson Gardens

A Hindu wedding ceremony under the mandap at Hudson Gardens

Couple on the stone bridge at Hudson Gardens

Family portrait in the rose garden at Hudson Gardens

Wedding rings resting in spring blossom at Hudson Gardens

Season by season

When to go, and why

SPRING · APR–MAYBlossom trees and fresh planting. A short, beautiful window and the quietest of the growing seasons.

SUMMER · JUN–AUGPeak roses and full green — and the busiest event calendar of the year — check Hudson’s rentals calendar before committing to a date.

FALL · SEP–OCTSecond rose flush, turning trees along the river, and comfortable light all afternoon.

WINTER · NOV–JANThe light display. Ticketed, busy, and completely unlike the gardens in daylight.

MORNINGS ARE BEST — WITH AN ASTERISKStill water, softer light, fewest visitors. Hudson has to authorise any shoot before 9am or after 5pm, so a sunrise call time is a conversation with the Gardens first.

CHECK THE PERMITAnyone being paid needs one — $50 a day, $150 for a wedding, $250 annual. Personal photography needs nothing.

Questions we get

Photographing at Hudson Gardens

Do you need a permit to take photos at Hudson Gardens?

For portrait and commercial photography, yes — the Gardens require a photography permit, and the rules are not the same as Denver's city parks or the Botanic Gardens. Casual visitor snapshots are a different matter. Check their current policy before you plan a session; we handle the paperwork side for our own clients.

Is Hudson Gardens free to visit?

The gardens themselves are free to walk. Ticketed events — Hudson Holidays in winter and individual concerts through the year — are separate, and a wedding or private event is booked through the Gardens' events team.

What are the best photo spots at Hudson Gardens?

The reflecting pool with its fountains is the signature frame. Beyond that: the timber pergola walkway, the rose garden, the stone bridges over the water, and the blossom trees in spring. Everything is within a comfortable walk.

When is the best time of day to shoot there?

Morning. The water is still, so the reflecting pool actually reflects, the light is softer, and there are far fewer other visitors in frame. A weekday morning is a completely different place from a Saturday afternoon in June.

What are the winter lights like to photograph?

Spectacular and genuinely different from the daytime gardens — tunnels of light, illuminated sculptures and colour everywhere. It is busy and ticketed, so plan for crowds, and expect to work at high ISO with mixed colour temperatures.

Can you get married at Hudson Gardens?

Yes. The Gardens host weddings and events on their lawns and in their event spaces, booked through their own events team. We have photographed weddings there including ceremonies under a mandap on the lawn.

Other Colorado venues we know well

We have photographed enough at each of these to write a guide to it. If you are still comparing, these are worth a look:

Denver Botanic Gardens — 24 acres of cultivated gardens in the middle of the city.
Chatfield Farms — 700 working acres against the foothills, and a separate Botanic Gardens property.
Denver Museum of Nature & Science — the Sky Terrace skyline view, and portraits under the dinosaurs.
Grant-Humphreys Mansion — a 1902 Beaux-Arts colonnade minutes from downtown.
Devil’s Thumb Ranch — 6,500 acres in the Fraser Valley, and weekend-long celebrations.
Spruce Mountain Ranch — 450 acres in Larkspur — the venue we have photographed most.
Arrowhead Golf Club — red sandstone fins forty minutes south of Denver.
Della Terra — above Estes Park at the edge of Rocky Mountain National Park.
Moss Denver — industrial, indoors, and the best winter venue in the city.
Boettcher Mansion — a 1917 Arts & Crafts lodge on top of Lookout Mountain.
Blackstone Rivers Ranch — riverfront aspens 35 minutes west of Denver.
Mile High Station — historic industrial downtown, and up to 1,200 guests.
Denver Union Station — the Great Hall — the best indoor portrait location in the city.

Still assembling the rest of your team? We keep a list of the Denver wedding vendors we love — the caterers, florists, planners and bar teams we have worked beside on real wedding days.