Colin & Kyleigh

Colin and Kyleigh's wedding was one of my favorite 2016 weddings! I had never heard of their venue before, but was ecstatic to find out it was 5 minutes away from my house in Brush Prairie. Jaquot Farm and Vineyards is a lovely little farm and vineyard tucked onto a couple acres in the NW part of Vancouver, WA. I loved the vibe that it gave: low-key farm with real cows with some classy vineyard feel too. 
 

Their wedding style matched the venue perfectly too - it was exactly what I think of when I hear "rustic glam." The bridesmaid dresses were an assortment coming from all different stores, one even being custom maid in Thailand. Cynthia from Flower Friends, did an amazing job as always on the GORGEOUS florals.. seriously, they were breathtaking. One of my favorite moments of the day leading up to the ceremony was when Colin showed all of their sisters, as well his mom, Kyleigh's custom ring that had sentimental value to it, which Kyleigh hadn't even seen yet. So special! 

I enjoyed how laid back the entire day was. All of the "getting ready" took place on a family friends' ranch, which provided a separate place for the guys to get ready in addition to the cutest little farm house I've ever seen for the girls. This was a photographer's dream to be able to walk back and forth or hop in the back of a truck to go between the guys and the girls, it was great! And what bride does all of her bridesmaids' hair?! Kyleigh works at a salon, so she did most of her bridesmaids' hair, no big deal. Even the reception was totally laid back and included feeding apples to cows, playing in the bubble machine, lots of dancing, and a whole lot of laughter and love. Thankfully, this laid-back atmosphere allowed me to steal away Colin and Kyleigh during the middle of the reception and frolic around the vineyard taking sunset photos with just the two of them. I adore you Kyleigh and Colin, and am so thankful you chose me to capture your beautiful day! I wish you a lifetime of as much love and happiness as what surrounded you on your wedding day, you guys are so loved.

Vendors who contributed to their dream day:

Catering & Rentals: As You Wish NW

Hair & Makeup: Jennifer Hilderband & Kate Pfeiffer

Florals: Your Flower Friends

Venue: Jacquot Farm & Vineyards

Matt & Mackenzie

I first met Mackenzie at the Willamette Bi-mart Country Music Festival a coupe years ago through mutual friends and instantly knew that I was going to love her. She is so adorable, outgoing, sweet, funny, loves country music, it was totally meant to be ;) So of course I was thrilled when Mackenzie and Matt asked me to capture their wedding about a year later, once they got engaged!

They got married at Events on 6th in Tacoma, but first we started with the girls getting ready at the cutest little salon, called Chemel (seriously cutest salon ever!). It was a relaxed morning and it was fun to get to know all of Mackenzie's awesome friends and sisters as they sipped mimosas and got all beautified. Matt and Mackenzie had one of the sweetest "First Looks" too. They opted to have a semi-private moment for their First Look in the church, right where they were about to say their "i do's" in a few hours. The look on not only Matt's face when he turned around and saw her for the first time, but the look on their parents faces watching from afar.. was SO priceless! It was such a sweet moment between them, amongst both of their parents... I loved how they did that, very special.

Mackenzie's first look with her dad was also a favorite moment of the day, along with some of the cousins' dance moves at the reception, the whole bridal party was a hoot and so much fun, and I couldn't get over how stinkin' cute the flower girls and ring bearers were... I probably took way too many pictures of them! 

Matt and Mackenzie, thank you for choosing me to capture your day. It was an honor and I had so much fun! You guys are MY type of couple that I truly feel fortunate to have come across because I'm thrilled to be able to call you guys friends as well.

OTHER VENDORS WHO HELPED MAKE THEIR WEDDING DAY A DREAM:

Cake // Jenn’s Sweet Cakes 

Flowers // " I Do” Flowers by Wendy

Venue // Events on 6th

Catering // Christie’s Catering

Dress // Belltown Bride 

DJ // We Heart Weddings 

Décor // American Party Place 

Salon // Chemele Salon 

 

,

Yosemite Elopement

,

No, this couple did not hire me to take their wedding photos and no, I did not know this couple until approximately 5 minutes before they said "I do."

We met by pure serendipity; and for me, it was simply being in the right place at the right time.

I was on a personal 6 day hiking/camping trip in the beautiful Yosemite National Park. I found this spectacular spot at Taft Point (in the Park) to watch the sunset on the first evening that I was there, and had returned to that spot for every sunset there after. On the last night, I was stoked to have the best seat at Taft Point (a random rock), to watch the sun set, only to have this handsome gentleman tap me on the shoulder and politely ask me to move so that he could get married there in a few minutes.

I, of course, moved right away and then looked around to realize that it was him, his bride, and a couple of their buddies (dog included), but no cameras. The setting was one of the most stunning views I've ever seen in my life, and they were about to get married, and not have any of it captured?! I could not believe it. I had my camera with me, naturally, and I thought about offering to take a few pics of their elopement, but ultimately decided that maybe they just wanted a private moment. Thankfully, the friend I was with is super outgoing and has this contagious spontaneity about him, and casually offered up my photography services for me. "Do you guys have a photographer? Well perfect, RACHEL happens to be a wedding photographer and has her camera with her!" Charley's eye's lit up a bit and I could tell he was beyond thrilled with the irony of this moment, he exclaimed over to his bride who was getting her dress on, "BABE, GUESS WHAT?!! We have a wedding photographer!!"

Their good friend officiated, it was short and sweet, and they sealed it with a kiss at sunset. What a way to get married! When I asked them why they chose Taft Point, Charley mentioned that it was just special to them (and I would find out later why). They are definitely a very outgoing, adventuresome couple and even after only knowing them for just a few minutes, I found their elopement to be very fitting for them.

A few days ago when I shared the images with Charley and Elle, I received not only the gift of their gratitude and kind words, but Charley shared with me the back-story as to why they got married at Taft, and why exactly it is so special to him. 

"I've been a base jumper/wingsuit flier for quite awhile. Two of my best friends, who unfortunately died last year jumping (they were very famous climbers you may have heard about), opened the jump at Taft Point together. It's always been one of my very favorite places in the world. I quit jumping after they passed away, and I wanted to make Taft a special, positive memory again, and you helped do that. Thank you so much for more than just wedding photos."     -Charley

I had heard about the fatal accident last year , but while photographing Charley and Elle's elopement September 8th this year, had no idea of the relation or even of the exact location (of which I was standing). After finding this out, I realized how much of a "God moment" this truly was. That out of all of the days in the year, I happened to be in Yosemite Park, specifically at Taft Point, the same day, in the same 20 minutes, that Charley and Elle eloped. I feel incredibly humbled, grateful, lucky, blessed, etc. that God put me at Taft in that moment to not only capture their magical "i do's" but to just meet them in general! Besides, how gorgeous are they?!

Rad couple, epic setting, captivating sunset, and perfect elopement!

Well done Charley and Elle, well done. I wish you guys many beautiful sunsets, many epic life adventures, and all kinds of continued serendipity in your future as husband and wife.

Disclaimer:
This was a spur of the moment video clip that I decided to randomly take while I was *spur-of-the-moment* photographing their elopement. No stabilization or audio equipment was used and I also had several bees swarming my head while I was trying to film, haha! This film is not meant to be a reflection of my wedding videography, but something I just did on my personal time. It was originally meant for just the couple - but I actually thought it was too cute not to share :)

On my very last evening of our 6 day camping/hiking trip in Yosemite National Park, I was excited to snag the best spot at Taft Point to watch the sun set. As the sun was a few minutes away from going down, this fine gentleman tapped us on the shoulder and politely asked us if we could possibly move since he wanted to get married there in about 10 minutes. Of course we moved! But then realizing they did not have anybody to capture this epic elopement that was about to happen in the most captivating setting, I offered to snap a few photos for them; since I, of course, had my camera. About half way through the "ceremony," that their good friend was officiating, I figured I might as well take a short little video for them as well, just something fun to have to remember this by. It was awesome getting to briefly meet Charley and Elle, and even more awesome to get to witness/capture their elopement. They are a pretty rad couple and I wish them the most happiness! Disclaimer: This was a spur of the moment video clip I decided to take while I was *spur-of-the-moment* also photographing their elopement. No stabilization or audio equipment was used and I also had several bees swarming around my head while I was trying to film! This film is not meant to be a reflection of my wedding videography, but something I just did on my personal time (as I was in the right place at the right time) and it is originally meant for just the couple - but I actually thought it was too cute to not share :)

I was blown away that Charley was a wingsuit flier, then to hear about the story of his dear friends, Dean Potter and Graham Hunt, opening up the Taft jump together. I didn't even know base-jumping/wingsuit flying was a thing, so I casually did my research and have been thoroughly intrigued with learning about this hobby more and more ever since (don't worry Mom, I'm not going to try it). Charley was too humble of a guy to tell me, but I googled him a bit (Sorry Charley!), and found out that he is 1 of 10 people worldwide who has over 2,000 jumps under his harness, from all over the world. How incredible is that?! Anyways, I thought I'd share some more insight for those of you who also know nothing about this insanely awesome hobby and/or are as intrigued and inspired as I am (click on links to open up videos/articles):

Base-Jumping

Charley-And-Friends-Flying

BASE-World-Tour-With-Charley

About-Charley-Kurlinkus

About-Dean-Potter

About-Graham-Hunt

Griffin & Jeni

Griffin and Jeni had the most beautiful wedding day in Chelan, WA at Rio Vista Winery. The setting was gorgeous, their family and friends were the sweetest, and their letters and vows to one another were so special. Some of my favorite parts of their day included the cement hand-printing they did during their ceremony (see in film!), their gifts to each other, all of the beautiful woodwork Jeni did herself (including the photo memory board), their sparkler first dance, Griff singing to Jeni at the reception, which was totally not planned, but so cute! And so, so much more. Instead of trying to explain how amazing their day truly was, you should just watch their full 10 minute wedding film at the end of this post! Much love to them and wishing them all of the happiness in the world on their next adventure of marriage. 

CLICK **HD** 1080P TO WATCH IN HIGHEST QUALITY

Venue: Rio Vista Winery // http://www.lakechelanwinevalley.com/wineries/rio-vista-wines/ Coordination: J9Bing Floral & Event Planning // http://j9bing.com/ Rentals: Lake Chelan Wedding Rentals // http://lakechelanweddingrentals.com/ Cake & Linens: Dana Divis Events // https://www.facebook.com/danadivisevents/ Catering: Janice Madden & Bart Northcutt DJ: All That Mobile DJ // http://www.allthatmobiledj1.com/ Florals: Fleur de lis floral & Event Design // http://lakechelanflowers.com/ Photobooth: Cascade PhotoArcade // https://www.facebook.com/CascadePhotoArcade/ Photography/Videography: RP Imagery // www.rpimagery.com

Venue: Rio Vista Winery // lakechelanwinevalley.com/wineries/rio-vista-wines/
Coordination: J9Bing Floral & Event Planning // j9bing.com/
Rentals: Lake Chelan Wedding Rentals // lakechelanweddingrentals.com/
Cake & Linens: Dana Divis Events // facebook.com/danadivisevents/
Catering: Janice Madden & Bart Northcutt
DJ: All That Mobile DJ // allthatmobiledj1.com/
Florals: Fleur de lis floral & Event Design // lakechelanflowers.com/
Photobooth: Cascade PhotoArcade // facebook.com/CascadePhotoArcade/

Photography/Videography: RP Imagery // rpimagery.com

Ford & Kristin

I had never photographed a morning ceremony prior to their wedding, and thought it was very unique when they first told me they were having a Sunday morning wedding ceremony. This was also my first reception experience where they had a full brunch buffet complete with a mimosa bar; who does that?!!! It was the coolest thing ever, and I don't know why more people don't do that more often, it was such a splendid idea and fun day! They made their wedding celebration a weekend extravaganza at the beautiful Pronghorn Resort in Bend, OR by having close family with them Friday evening, a bit more friends and family with them Saturday night for the rehearsal and evening party, and then the full guest list to witness their I do's and celebrate more on Sunday morning/afternoon. It made for a very relaxed and beautiful celebration of their love.

It took me by surprise how relaxed everyone was as we ended up delaying the ceremony about 30 minutes to see if the rain would let up. The guests were just mingling and didn't mind at all, the boys were hanging out with some of the guests, and the ladies were sitting in the spa room just eating veggies, talking girl talk, and soaking up the last few moments before Kristin became a wife. It was actually a very beautiful time of the day, I loved it! It was still sprinkling a little bit as everyone started to approach the ceremony, however, the clouds suddenly parted as Kristin walked down the aisle and when her dad gave her away and Ford took her hand, the sky literally opened up for us to see little slivers of blue sky. Their were huge smiles on everybody's faces. Ford's mother was actually the officiant, and gave such a beautiful testimony of marriage and how God intends for a man and wife to love each other. She did a wonderful job and it was so special to witness the traditional moment of Kristin's dad giving her away, but then also Ford's mother in a sense giving him away as she announced them husband and wife.

I also felt the true meaning of my "heart bursting" at this wedding. I can't even put into words how loved Stephanie and I felt at their wedding, all of their friends and family were so incredibly kind, welcoming, and friendly towards us - we truly felt like part of the family. Thank you all for that, and special shout out to the mother of the bride, Lori, for loving Steph and I like your daughters and making sure we were completely taken care of - you have the loveliest heart!

Ford and Kristen, I say this often - I am completely humbled by the people that God puts into my life through my career - and you two are the perfect example of this. Individually, you each can light up a room with your spunky personalities and genuine smiles... and together, you guys make the best team. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for you guys, and thank you again for letting me be a part of your beautiful day, love you guys!

Other Vendors who helped to make their dream wedding a reality:

Venue/Decor/Catering/Dessert: Pronghorn Resort
http://www.pronghornresort.com

Florals: Autry's Flowers
http://www.bendoregonflowershop.com/

 

Eric & Amy

Eric and Amy's nautical wedding day was both laid back and very romantic. They got married at the Salt Hotel in Ilwaco, WA at the marina. We were able to explore around the beautiful Cape Disappointment for their "First Look" and portraits too. Their family and friends were so sweet and I can't express enough how the whole feel of the day was so relaxed... There's just something about a coastal wedding! Eric and Amy - thank you for letting Steph and I capture your day, we adore you guys and cherished getting to capture sweet moments throughout the whole day.

Surprise Wedding Film and The Couple's Cute Reaction!

Mike and Laura live in London, they planned one of the most beautiful Seattle, WA wedding celebrations I've ever experienced... from across the country. I was so impressed! As some of you may or may not know, I do both wedding photography and videography and for their wedding in particular I was hired for photography only. We had discussed the possibility of videography as well, but in the end Mike and Laura had decided it wasn't one of their bigger priorities, and had said it was a no-go. I, however, KNEW their wedding was about to be an EPIC event and that there is no way there wasn't going to be any video from this day to remember it by... This is just not okay!! Luckily, I also had the rare opportunity to have a few extra hands at their wedding, which I told Mike and Laura were just "interns I was teaching," and we totally pulled off secretly filming their wedding (while also photographing of course).

After delivering their wedding photos a few weeks after their wedding, I was overwhelmed with all of the kind words and gratitude Mike and Laura had about them! Little did they know, I was also working on their wedding FILM they didn't know they had coming too.... So I found it particularly rewarding when Laura added these words at the end of her email "I am sure I won't be the first bride to say this but I totally regret not getting your video package. I feel like I didn't see my own wedding, if that makes sense? I suppose I am looking for the guests experience and haven't yet realized I was the bride and don't get to do that."

So here we are 2 months after their wedding and I Face-timed this sweet couple a few days ago to tell them I had a little surprise for them. I couldn't help but record their reaction because honestly these two are some of the most genuine, sentimental, caring, and compassionate people I've met. I wanted to remember their reaction (for myself) as a sweet little reminder of why I do what I do.

However, their reaction was too good that I ended up asking them if I could share... despite having just got back from a run and not feeling in their prime... they luckily agreed to let me share hehe ;)
(Even though I think they are the most darling couple no matter what they look like!)
"I do wish I hadn't just gone for a run and wasn't sweaty and un-showered, but I seriously want every bride to know how much they MUST get a wedding video!"

More words from the bride:
"I seriously can't thank you enough for this gift. I can't describe what being able to see our wedding means to my memory of the day. It all goes by so fast and I am such a visual, detail oriented person that I feel like I didn't see our wedding or that what I imagined for so long during the planning process actually happened. This video filled in all those "holes". It literally completed my wedding experience and it is so, so beautiful. I will cherish it forever (and watch it over and over and over!) :) "

HUGE THANK YOU TO STEPHANIE LAMPKIN AND LACY ARTHUR FOR HELPING ME PULL THIS OFF!

VIEW THEIR FULL WEDDING FILM BELOW:

Reed & Joannah's Wedding

Reed & Joannah got married on beautiful Whidbey Island and it was a flawless day. The venue, Crockett Farms, made the day so magical with their hard work on the florals, decor, coordination, and just by having a stunning, quiet setting to get married at. The bridal party was a combination of friends and family of Reed and Joannah's and were all so kind, and very entertaining. Reed's sister, who was also the "Best Man," surprised everybody with an awesome rap for her toast, complete with a back-up dancer. All of the kiddos were having such a good time, and had killer dance-moves too. The whole evening was one big celebration and the dancing was wild. I was lucky enough to get to be the one to capture it all, and I hope you enjoy!

Venue: Crockett Farm  http://www.crockettbarn.com/

Coordination/Florals/Decor: Whidbey Island Weddings  https://www.whidbeyislandweddings.com/
Catering: Rustica  http://www.rusticacafe.com/
Dress: David's Bridal   http://www.davidsbridal.com/
Bridesmaids Dresses: Elle Lain  https://ellelain.com/

DJ: Sounds Unlimited  http://www.asoundsunlimited.com/
Makeup Artist: Marqui Artistry  http://www.marquiartistry.com/
Bridal Yoga: Unsize Me Yoga, Carol Sele  http://www.unsizeme.com/
Wedding Favors: Lavender Wind  http://www.lavenderwind.com/

 

Mike & Laura

Mike and Laura are a dynamic duo. They exude so much energy, positivity, kindness, and joy as individuals... and then you put them together, and you have this infectious couple that everyone just wants to be around. They are also MADLY in love. I knew the first time I met with them that their wedding day would be nothing short of a fairytale. 

That it was! Laura and Mike live in London. To plan this amazing Seattle celebration from a different country is first of all - hard to do - but I could not believe how amazing it turned out!! I mean I knew it was going to be good... but their wedding celebration was truly phenomenal! Their guests came from all over the world, so it was only fitting that the wedding was travel/global inspired. It was very neat to see a combination of different family and friends from so many places come together and celebrate Mike and Laura the way they did. The live band was magnificent and the joy on everybody's faces lasted all night long. The evening got even more entertaining when we had some very special guest appearances! See for yourself below. 

I was so humbled to meet so many people from around the world, whom who were all so kind and friendly. Mike and Laura, thank you for having me be a part of your wedding day. It was truly an honor!

Be sure to check out their wedding film that I produced as well, below. It was truly an extraordinary day!

Vendors who helped make their day a true fairytale:
Coordination: Melissa Juergens from Bright Side Events // http://www.brightsideeventsseattle.com/
Hotel: The Alexis Hotel // http://www.alexishotel.com/
Ceremony/ReceptionVenue: Axis Pioneer Square // http://axispioneersquare.com/
Desserts: Family Members
Florals: Bride and Groom's Mothers
Rings & Jewelry: Danielson Jewelers (Bride's family how cool!) // http://www.danielsonjewelers.com/
Live Band: Ben Mallare Acoustic Entertainment // http://www.benmallareacoustic.com/
H&M: Molly Desimone
Liquor: BevMo
Lighting: Seattle Event Lighting // https://seattleeventlighting.com/