This was a wonderful styled session put on by Ruscus & Rose and Utah Vintage Cars. They set up in front of 39 Exchange Place in Downtown Salt Lake City. The two grooms actually said “I do” a few weeks prior but opted to participate in this floral and automotive styled session dressed in their wedding suits & shoes. The grooms looked quite dapper in their matching dark green suits from HM Cole. Utah Vintage Cars supplied a beautiful pearlescent white 1966 Ford Mustang convertible for the newlyweds to set up in. Ruscus & Rose decorated the Mustang with a stunning array of red, white and light orange blooms that popped against the white classic car. Don’t the two grooms’ Tiffany & Co. wedding bands look fire on the hood of this vintage car??

When photographing outdoor weddings, weather always plays a big role. As a wedding photographer sometimes you’re lucky and other times not so much. Is it possible to have both on a wedding day?

For this wedding day I traveled back to my home state, Georgia, to shoot an absolutely amazing detail-filled wedding at the Marietta Country Club in Kennesaw. The night before the wedding, the bride and groom gathered their family and friends at the Glover Parker Brewery located in downtown Marietta. This night was filled brews, great atmosphere, stories about the bride & groom and great food. 

The next day we headed to the Marietta Country Club (funny enough located in Kennesaw). The bride and groom chose to both get ready there while staying separated until the ceremony. Potential couples - Please consider getting ready at the same location! This allows us wedding photographers to be able to go back and forth and get as many great photos as possible without having to commute between different locations! It can also help make a timeline a little more streamlined. 

The bride and groom’s getting ready photos were both taken in their respective locker rooms. Vibes were high with champagne with the gals and post golf beers with the guys. The guys did take quite a while to put on their corsages, which was quite difficult to watch…

Our main objective of the day was to hide the bride from not only the groom but also the wedding guests. It was also important for the couple to have a private vow reading without the groom seeing the bride. We tucked away to a secluded spot surrounded by trees right next to the golf course. This moment was very meaningful and the bride and groom were able to successfully embrace each other after their vow reading without the groom seeing the bride in her beautiful princess dress. 

SUCCESS!

After we accomplished the most important logistical event of the day, it was time for a wedding! The ceremony was absolutely beautiful overlooking on of the holes at the golf course with a beautiful lake. The couple said “I do,” kissed and then the party started! Cocktail hour featured atmospheric jazz from the incredibly talented Empire band and also coffee provided by Aviator Coffee Company. There are simply too many details to list as the bride planned her day extensively with everything you can think of from: 

A bourbon tasting table, a fillable crossword puzzle based on the couple, wedding magazine, a live watercolor painter for the wedding guests (), designed matchboxes, etc. 

I might have to make a separate blog on all the details she included!

After we skated through family formals and headed into the reception the wedding party made their grand entrance with the bride having prepared a special surprise video for the groom. The couple had an explosive first dance complimented with cold sparks and then dinner was served!

The rest of the reception featured incredible energy and dancing fueled by the Empire band’s electric set. Once it was time to call it a night, the bride (with an outfit change of knee-high white cowgirl boots) and groom paraded through the sparklers and cold sparks to the getaway car - a Rolls Royce. 

This bride thought of everything providing me with a wedding that was a dream to photograph. I am so lucky that I get to meet such great people and capture their memories :)

This outdoor wedding day kicked off the first week of June with a clear and beautiful summer day. Located at the base area of Canyons at Park City Ski Resort, the Hyatt Centric Park City was a fantastic wedding venue. As a wedding photographer I especially enjoy when the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception areas are all within steps of each other.

We kicked off October heading down to Moab in southern Utah to capture a macabre proposal at one of the world’s most famous sunset spots - Dead Horse Point State Park. The name Dead Horse Point is very apropos for this particular proposal as the ring box was a specially designed black skull ring box all the way from Ukraine! The couple arrived at the overlook just after the beginning of golden hour. We got super lucky as there was quite the crowd hanging around where the proposal was going to go down. Somehow most of the crowd dissipated just as our proposer went down on one knee. She did such an amazing job! One thing I recommend to my proposers is to stay down on a knee longer than you would think. You’d be surprise how many people immediately pop up after going down on one knee during a proposal. After the “yes” was said the couple and I captured celebratory photos around the red rock, basking in the glorious Dead Horse Point sunset. This might be my new favorite proposal location in Moab! We ended up staying during the entire sunset. As it got darker we did a few fun photos with lanterns - this definitely added to the spooky, Halloween vibes of the proposal. It’s truly amazing that as a wedding photographer and proposal photographer I get to travel to some of the most beautiful places in the world capturing the happiest moments of people’s lives. It truly is a dream and an honor. :)

Sneaks from this past weekend in beautiful Montrose, Colorado. The bride and groom picked such an amazing location for their big day that was filled with fun, dancing, and cowboy hats 🤠

This Deer Valley wedding was epic! This is your sign to book your wedding venue in beautiful Park City J

The bride and groom started the day by getting ready in downtown Park City. The groom got ready at an apartment just down the street from the luxurious Deer Valley Ski Resort, and the bride got ready at the Marriott Summit Watch not too far away from the Park City Mountain Resort ski bridge. We snapped some getting ready photos of the groom with his groomsmen, then headed over to the Marriott to capture the bride and her bridesmaids (and one bridesman) finishing getting ready. Then it was time to leave downtown Park City and head up to the venue - Deer Valley! The ceremony site was Cushing’s Cabin on top of the mountain, and the reception site was Empire Lodge, right next to the Montage. To get there, you take Marsac Avenue as if you are headed to Guardsmans Pass, and right after you pass the entrance to the Montage, there is a roundabout where Empire Lodge is located. From there, we were shuttled up to the ceremony site – Cushing’s Cabin at the top of the Ruby Express chairlift at Deer Valley Ski Resort. The bride and groom opted to do a first look and exchanged beautiful private vows outside of Cushing’s Cabin, with the mountains from Empire Pass in the background. Then guests began to arrive, and one of the coolest things about getting married at this particular site at Deer Valley was that guests got to actually ride the chairlift up to Cushing’s Cabin! We made sure to get epic shots of all the guests coming up the chairlift. Once everyone arrived, the ceremony began, and the backdrop was a wedding photographer’s dream, with a beautiful triangular arch with florals and chairs set up outside the cabin, with the mountains in the distance. After the ceremony, we secured the family formals photos just outside the ceremony site, and guests began to ride the chairlift from Cushing’s Cabin back down to Empire Lodge which is where the reception took place. We made sure to get some awesome photos of the bride and groom on the ski lift on the way back down J It was a really cool ride down with views the whole way of Empire Lodge, the mountains, and the Montage.

Cliff Lodge was such an amazing wedding venue! The staff was very accommodating and provided everything from hair and makeup to the wedding cake! We did the first look on the panoramic balcony at the Aerie restaurant (also where the rehearsal dinner was held). The ceremony then took place just outside the two-story Golden Cliff room where the reception was held. Cocktail hour was just outside the main reception area. This where the bride sabered a bottle of Dom Perignon. This was not just a bottle of Dom but the 2006 Lady Gaga rosé edition. She pulled it off effortlessly!

Dinner, drinks, speeches and dancing was then held inside the two-story Golden Cliff wedding reception room with beautiful design by Harvest Moon Events. There was even a photobooth provided by Big Shot Photo Group! Dj Erick Miner threw down on the dancefloor with a lively, personalized set even featuring video from the bride on his DJ video monitor. After the couple did a cold sparks exit, we all headed up to the Cliff Lodge Spa pool where the couple jumped in the pool! Cliff Lodge at Snowbird was such an amazing wedding venue, I can’t wait to come back!

What a weekend in Cincinnati covering K&J's fun-filled wedding! We kicked off the weekend at Rhinegeist Brewing with a rehearsal dinner at one of the coolest breweries l've been to. Saturday started off with a midday wedding (can we have more of these?!?) at the beautiful Holy Cross Immaculata Catholic Church. This church had insane architecture with beautiful stained glass. We then headed over to the couple's favorite bar the Stretch near the Cincinnati Bengals stadium. The night was capped off with plenty of miller lites at the beautiful Ault Park. l am so incredibly lucky this couple found me and flew me out to Cincy!! While I’m a wedding photographer based in Utah, I love to travel to weddings all over the US, even Ohio!

Two Brides Sunset Fall Elopement in Provo Canyon - They really wanted a scenic, mountainous backdrop, so we scoured AllTrails looking for the best location in the Wasatch Mountains. We settled on Provo Canyon just outside of Orem, Utah for the elopement spot. It was an absolute dream!

Fairytale Picnic Engagement Session at Big Springs Park in Provo Canyon

Two Brides Zion National Park Gatsby Wedding at Zion Red Rock Villa Rockville, Utah

Beautiful Golden Hour Rehearsal Dinner at the Oak Steakhouse Skyline Lodge in Highlands North Carolina

What a day. I headed down to Moab, Utah just after the new year to capture a surprise photo proposal in one of the most iconic locations in the world… Arches National Park. These two were traveling from the south hitting up all of the national parks in Utah during the off-season.

Photographing and capturing a wedding proposal might be the most rewarding and exhilarating part of being an engagement & wedding photographer. Weddings are very fast-paced and are always rewarding, but nothing is quite like helping guide someone to propose and ask the biggest question of their lives. I mean its kinda crazy. You are conspiring with a stranger to completely fool their best friend haha!

Antelope Island is one of my favorite locations to photograph engagement sessions, bridals, and elopements. It’s such a beautiful location that is so unique, especially considering its proximity to the Wasatch Mountains. There are beaches, bison, and jagged rock formations. With only an hour drive from Salt Lake City, I am always excited to head out to these beaches on the Great Salt Lake. Also if we ride in the same car, we can get in for free with my photographer’s pass!

What’s better than choosing the beautiful Stanley Lake in Stanley, Idaho to elope, cut the cake & exchange vows with the love of your life? Although I’m a wedding photographer based in Salt Lake City, I will gladly travel for a wedding, elopement or even engagement session especially if I’m able to take photos in beautiful locations like this!

She said yes! This week we’re back at the salt flats with Alex & Aiden bringing some good news! Alex contacted me looking to surprise his girlfriend with a meaningful wedding proposal at the Bonneville Salt Flats while they were on a road trip through Utah. Prospective proposers - be like Alex & hire a proposal photographer! Your proposee will appreciate it :)

We had a plan set up where I was to act like I was a random photographer taking photos of the beautiful salt flats alone while Alex was to approach me asking to take a photo of them with his phone. I would then proceed to ask if I could take a pic of them with my camera doing a cool pose I saw online. Alex would then get down on one knee and ask her to marry him. I must say the plan went off without a hitch! - At least not yet wink wink

Once the dust settled we proceeded to have a wonderful engagement session. One of the perks of being a wedding photographer and engagement photographer is that you get to see your clients at their happiest, and this day was no exception! There is nothing like the feeling after getting engaged (I can vouch) and heaving an engagement photographer there to capture that pure joy is such a great idea. Especially at an incredibly beautiful location like the Salt Flats.

The ground at the salt flats was still wet from the crazy amount of rain we got in Utah this year. This allowed for a pool of water to collect where we were able to get stunning reflection photos. We were also gifted with a truly magical salt flats sunset. How are they always so good here?!? If you’re wanting to make some magic out here, you know who to call!

By Jordan Varela - Utah Wedding Photographer

We’re back at Little Dell Reservoir in Emigration Canyon for a lovely engagement session filled with white snow and gorgeous Wasatch mountains! Right in between Salt Lake City & Park City Utah, Little Dell is a fantastic option to get your engagement photos done for your wedding. Especially in the winter! Utah was gifted with so much snow this year, we had to get creative with this engagement session.

Jessica, Tyler & I snowshoed from the parking lot down the ramp to get to even ground. Once we found a solid spot, I patted down the snow to make sure that slipping through the snow was minimal. How many wedding photographers do you know that will go to such lengths for their clients? Ha!

Once they kicked off their snowshoes (I kept mine on) we were off to the races! They were absolutely stunning on this cold & overcast day. The Wasatch Mountains were absolutely gorgeous and were a great reminder of why I moved to Utah! I am truly blessed to be a wedding photographer in such a scenic and beautiful state!

Located about 42 miles from Salt Lake City, Antelope Island is one of Utah’s hidden gems for a wedding photographer. From the moment you enter the causeway, you see the great expanse of the Great Salt Lake with views reminiscent of the Bonneville Salt Flats with half the drive time! On this particular afternoon, the sky was overcast and the air was quite chilly. London & McKay opted to dress in denim & low cut Chuck Taylor Converses. I absolutely loved the look of the denim and black Chuck T’s against the wispy brown vegetation & rocks at Antelope Island. I highly encourage couple’s to dress down like this for their next engagement session! Save the formal look for your wedding day! Overall we had a fantastic session and I can’t wait to go back to Antelope Island for another engagement session to explore all of its stunning features!