Montana Weddings

Loving large

It is always pleasant to meet a couple in person for the first time on their wedding day and feel like I’ve known them for some time! Such was the case last Saturday at the 320 Guest Ranch. I have always had an affinity with this place. I have had the honor of photographing many fine weddings here for years.

This marriage brought a lot of lives together. Now they are one big happy family! I’ll let my photos tell you the story.

Thanks to my fine young friend Rachel Mascari for second shooting with me again this week and contributing to this blog post. ENJOY THE VIEW!

Sarah’s sons walked her down the aisle and there wasn’t a dry eye in the place!

I love my job! Capturing the experiences of life and making new friends!

Thanks to Sarah and Steve for finding me!

Alanna and Brent

It was a warm and pleasant day in the hills above Bozeman at the Woodlands at Cottonwood Canyon. It seems just weeks ago, that I had met and photographed with Brent and Allana in preparation for their wedding. And now here we are!

Enjoy the view!

This is not exactly what you might think. Brent’s back muscles were cramping after the wedding. The officiant also happens to be a trainer and good friend. So after all the family photos were done, he came to Brent’s aid. It’s one of those special moments during a wedding day of photos!

At sunset we hit the dusty road up to a friend’s property for some sunset beauty! It was breath taking! Thanks very much… you know who you are.

Thanks to all of the talented wedding professionals that made this day a very special occasion for Brent and Allana!

Beauty and the Belief
Just a Taste
Wildwood Events, Elsa Campbell
Sweet Pea Bakery

Special thanks to my talented young friend and second photographer, Rachel Mascari.

Proposing in Paradise

I got an email from Michael a couple of months ago and began the process of setting up the photography of his surprise proposal to Sarah in Yellowstone National Park. Little did we know that all the precise planning was going to be ‘awash’, so to speak in the challenges of a disastrous flooding of the Yellowstone River starting in Yellowstone park and continuing south though many towns down river.

Well, it’s quite a story which I’ll make time for later in the week. The bottom line is that Michael and I for the last week, carried on daily secret conversations to bring us all together without blowing the secret. Amazingly, we did it… and yesterday Michael proposed marriage to Sarah on the banks of the mighty and still swollen Yellowstone River.

I posed as a hobbyist photographing birds near a pre-planned location and the rest is history!!! Here’s a beautiful image I grabbed right as the couple was walking by me to the planned spot. Then the real event began!

Congratulations to Sarah and Michael, newly engaged and my new friends! smiles…

Livingston Peak Wedding

Ah yes, springtime in the Rockies. We had all been watching the weather forecast closely for the past couple of days, hoping for a break from the dark rainy day that had been predicted. AND THEN… things changed and the threat of a rainy day was going to back off a bit just in time for the planned ceremony in the mountains above Livingston. phew !!!!!

Here’s the mountain road on my way to the wedding. Yikes! ‘A river runs through it’ – perhaps not what the movie title made reference to… smiles

When I arrived everything was moving forward in the face of the current weather conditions. Dick, the Father of the bride, was putting the floral touches to the wedding arch and soon the bride would arrive. The closer and closer we got to the time of the wedding the rain diminished and slowly gave way to a brighter day. And finally, right before the wedding began, the clouds lifted and revealed Livingston Peak and the amazing mountain range. A little drizzle remained, but no one was noticing. It was so beautiful… absolutely amazing!

Thank you to such kind people that made me feel like part of the family. I really appreciate that! Warm regards to Alex and Reem and the whole crew.

Livingston Peak Love

Alex and Reem came into town this week for their wedding in the mountains under the radiance of the massive Livingston Peak. Yesterday, I decided to take a drive up the mountain road to explore the route to the wedding location. I always like to get the feel for a place and check the conditions of rough mountain roads before the day of.

As I was poking around at the locked property gate hoping for a sign of life, up drove two pickup trucks. I introduced myself and told them my business. The gentleman smiled widely and as fate would have it was the father of the groom. So, he invited me to follow him up to the ranch and showed me the wedding location. OUTSTANDING!

Soon I got a call from Reem and went over the details of the upcoming wedding plan. With the potential of some wet weather on her wedding day, we decided it would be wise to meet at the property later in the day for some pre-wedding photos. We had a delightful hour together running around making photos in the beauty of this high mountain valley.

Thanks to Tarvez and Dick for the hospitality and a delicious snack before I hit the road.

Cheers to Reem and Alex!

Here’s the first draft of an album of images from the day before the wedding! Sweet!

320 Guest Ranch , Big Sky wedding

Nicole and William married at the 320 Guest Ranch in Big Sky on a beautiful day in August. Families and friends gathered alongside the river on this lovely historic Montana ranch. It’s the perfect place for a Big Sky wedding in the mountains where a river runs through it. At every wedding there is always a bitter sweet environment that is always with us as human beings. That is the truth of life and death. This occasion was immensely sweet, beautiful and wonderful in every way and yet the knowledge of the recent loss of the bride’s father was in everyone’s heart and his life was celebrated on this special wedding day. His presence was tangible at his daughter’s wedding! It was an honor to photograph with this couple, their families and friends. The pictures tell the story!