I can’t tell you how much fun I had with Sam & Tim (and their huge fur babies Tank and London) for their engagement session! It was a beautiful day to explore around the Tihsreed Lodge in Florissant, Co. I had done some winter portraits at Tihsreed a few months ago and when Sam told me she was hoping for an engagement session location that celebrated the Colorado mountains and potentially had some awesome turning colored Aspens for Fall, I thought of Tihsreed.
These two high school sweethearts are so easy going and super sweet with each other that I couldn’t stop smiling the whole session. Check out their gorgeous photos (complete with some of the most awesome alpenglow I’ve ever seen on Pikes Peak!) and leave them some love in the comments below!
Kristin & Peter's Camp Hale Wedding
Kristin & Peter’s wedding was one for the history books, for sure! The day started out beautifully while they both got ready in the always stunning Vail village. We then headed up the pass to historic Camp Hale for the rest of the day’s festivities. Everyone was excited to watch their first look and take some photos as rainstorms were approaching FAST on the radar. If you know Colorado, you know that storms can strike quickly, especially at 10,000 feet in the middle of the gorgeous Rocky Mountains!
We had a blast with photos. Kristin and Peter have a beautiful, sweet kind of love that you can just tell by looking at them runs deep and true. With their friendship starting back in school at Colorado College and growing into real love over the years, they’ve formed an amazing bond that’s carried them all over the country. As a photographer, I had a great time exploring Camp Hale and photographing them all over. Everywhere you look is another beautiful view. Add two cute lovebirds and my job was bliss!
As we finished up photos with their (awesome) bridal party, it started to rain. We all ran for cover in the cabins and thankfully, the skies dried up as we approached ceremony time. Guests made the walk over the bridge to the little island where the ceremony would take place and anxiously awaited the start of the ceremony. The music started, the bridal party headed for the aisle and BOOM! Thunder. Rain. Wind.
In true Colorado style (after the initial squeals and shrieks from the guests) everyone grabbed their umbrellas and jackets and just laughed as the ceremony kept going! Later, I heard that despite being apart while staging for the ceremony, with heavy clounds looming overhead, both Peter & Kristin said “let’s do this!” when given the option to wait or move it indoors.
Although I’ve photographed many forms of crazy weather during a ceremony, this was a first of this kind of storm. Sideways rain. Wind so bad umbrellas were breaking everywhere. Thunder. Mother Nature was putting on quite a show! Plus, I got to practice my skills of holding golf umbrella between my neck and shoulder while shooting, so that’s a new skill to add to the resume! Ha ha!
Peter & Kristin didn’t shy away from it one bit. They didn’t shorten their ceremony. They didn’t complain or cry like I often see happen with inclement weather situations. They laughed and smiled, took it all in, and joked about how this was one for the history books. It’s that kind of attitude that I admire and will certainly carry them far in their life together. It was a beautiful moment to watch them, happy through it all, surrounded by friends and family (also happy and laughing through it all).
It rained off and on the rest of the night but that didn’t stop anyone from having a blast. This crew knows how to party! Also…small, little known fact, Kristin is quite the performer. She grabbed the mic and serenaded the crowd with a cover of Salt-n-Peppa’s “Shoop”. It was awesome.
We ended the night with a fun photo shoot in the couple’s camper van. It’s a beloved part of their lives and at the wedding (when it wasn’t raining!) It functioned as a fun selfie booth. I was so happy the skies had cleared and some stars had come out for the grand finale.
Take a peek at the rest of the photos below and leave them some love in the comments!
Vendor Roll Call:
Planner: The Day Of
Venue: Camp Hale Weddings
Hair & Makeup: Breck Chopping Block
Floral: Reverie Floral
DJ: TH Entertainment
Catering: Vail Catering Concepts
Rentals: Alpine Party Rentals
Dessert: Rolling Pin Bake Shop
Sarah & John: Vail Wedding Deck
I’m having THE hardest time picking out all my favorites from Sarah & John’s wedding. There are so many beautiful moments I’m just going to have to spam your eyes with a ton of them!
The day started out like most Colorado summer days—gorgeous! Sarah and John got ready in their separate suites at Antlers in Vail. Then like most summer days in Colorado, Mother Nature decided to pull some rain pranks on us. Thankfully, the rain cleared for their adorable first look by the creek but a thunderstorm rolled in as we ran for cover in Vail Village while we waiting for the gondola to open back up. No worries though because despite the rain, there was still some gorgeous light to be found in the village!
Once we finally managed to get on a running gondola and make it to the top we had a blast taking photos! Sarah and John are so sweet with each other and were down for anything if it meant beautiful photos! Plus, Vail is nothing short of stunning. And with multiple bands of storms coming through, it was quite fun (and funny!) alternating dodging the bands versus utilizing their dramatic beauty in the backdrops of the photos. Sarah and John made everyone’s life easy by taking everything in stride with a smile and adapting as we would run inside and go back out. Major kudos to them!
Thankfully, the rain cleared after their traditional tea ceremony just in time for their ceremony on the wedding deck. (And really…I dare you to find a prettier spot than the wedding deck at Vail!) The ceremony kicked off with two adorably stylish ring bearers and the most adorable flower girls carrying unicorn bubble guns (GENIUS!) and was filled with smiles, laughter, and love throughout.
Rain came (yes, again) after their ceremony during their cocktail hour but the universe had a gift for us. In the middle of their first dance a MASSIVE double rainbow appeared right on the mountain top. It was stunning! Sarah and John asked if we could go out and take photos and I was skeptical. Usually rainbows are extremely fleeting and very hard to photograph. Bright skies behind tend to wash out the colors. But, like any person with a brain I said “if we hurry, we can try!”
We ended up bolting down the stairs. And I mean bolting. Sarah deserves Bride of the Century as she not only ran down the stairs and outside but also down the mountainside in her high heels chasing these rainbows!
To my amazement, they were still there and still going strong. PLUS, the storm was sitting behind in the background keeping the sky darker so the colors were still insanely vibrant and amazing. We got in a bunch of photos and then we decided to chase it further down the mountain to get a view without chair lifts as well. STILL the rainbow was going strong. It was truly something special.
To top it all off, the stars were amazing that night and we were able to create an amazing Milky Way photo to end the evening.
What a truly blessed day!
Check out the rest of their photos below and leave some love in the comments!
Vendor Role Call:
Vail Wedding Deck - coordinator Courtney
Hair and Makeup - Bel Viso
Florist - Bec’s Blossoms
Cake - Cornerstone Chocolates & Confections
Music - On Cue Entertainment, Spinphony
DJ & Photobooth - All Star DJs













































