Rocky Mountain National Park Engagement Session - Colorado Wedding Photographer - Erin and Taylor

If you know me, you know I am a sucker for sunrise engagement sessions and elopements. Do I hate myself when my alarm is going off at 3 am? Yes 100%. Do I get over it the second I have a warm beverage in my hand and I am driving in no traffic while listening to a fabulous audio book or podcast? Yup. So while the first 30 minutes are rough, I get over it pretty quickly, and I am so glad to be on the road and on my way to photograph some pretty people in some pretty colors.

Erin and Taylor met me right before the sun came up for their Rocky Mountain National Park Engagement Session on a warm early fall day. It was a little bit stormy, so at one point we saw a rainbow in Morraine Park. Not only did we take a million photos with the rainbow in the back ground, but shortly after that we found a patch of golden yellow fall leaves and had another mini freak out while we took another bunch of photos. Erin’s red dress made for a stunning addition to the colors of our back drop. After some time in Morraine Park, we left to get some last minute photos at 3M Curve. One of my favorite things about 3M curve is that even if the light isnt great, the photos are still stunning - the mountains and the backdrop are just too pretty. We had a mini sun shower that lasted all of like 6 minutes, but it gave the session a bit more life and also some more fun. Erin and Taylor are some of the most fun, kind hearted people I have ever met, and if you haven’t seen it yet, please make sure to check out their amazing Maroon Bells Wedding.

Rocky Mountain National Park Elopement - Estes Park, Colorado Wedding Photographer - Olivia and Eric

Olivia and Eric reached out last year in hopes of eloping at Rocky Mountain National Park in the summer. There were some last minute changes and they ended up eloping on a beautiful fall day in October at 3M Curve. One of the things I will always remember the most about these two is how giggly and giddy they were about eloping - they could not contain their excitement! Aside from myself, it was just the two of them - so it was basically as intimate of an elopement as you can get. Since self-solemnizing is totally kosher in Colorado, they wrote their own vows, married themselves, and I cried like a baby about it. Also, they were so amazing and flexible about some last minute changes we had to make - it was early October and there was supposed to be a storm rolling in the afternoon we had planned on, so we made the last minute call to move their elopement up to mid afternoon. Well, we narrowly missed the storm and it ended up being a gorgeous afternoon!

One of the things I love most about elopements is that couples don’t lose sight of whats truly important, because it’s literally only about one thing - celebrating the fact that you get to spend your life with someone else. You are celebrating with only each other, making it such a sincere and intimate experience. Big weddings are fun and have their place too (I had one and I loved it!), but far too often I see couples getting lost in the stress of the production and losing sight of the big picture, which in reality is the most important part. Olivia and Eric couldn’t have been more excited about celebrating one of their biggest and most important life experiences, and I was so glad I was there to capture it!