Patrick Pike Studios

Lately I've been reflecting on a couple's wedding day experience. It's what you'll remember doing with your partner, it's how you'll remember feeling on your wedding day. It might be as simple as walking hand in hand along familiar trails or maybe you might want to seek out the backcountry together. No matter how you look at it, getting married in Yosemite opens the doors to the possibility of some incredible wedding experiences. Do you have special plans for your wedding day? How do you want to remember your wedding day? #weddingplanning #yosemitewedding #elopeinyosemite #elope #wedding #weddingexperience #weddinggoals #lifetogether #exploretogether #weddingday #yosemiteelopement #weddingquestions

Stuck inside a car describes my least favorite way to see Yosemite. Technically you can see the parts of the park that the car isn't blocking (another vote for a convertible from me) but you can't hear Yosemite, you can't feel it. Physically walking through the park, crunching snow under each step, touching the rocks, listening to the breeze through the trees; that is the Yosemite experience. To end a year like 2020, that was the experience I craved, the experience I needed, ...and I suspected that Gina and Brennan were right there with me. After their wedding ceremony we continued to explore Yosemite Valley together on foot, walking first to a grove of Black Oaks and then to the base of Yosemite Falls. When we arrived at Lower Yosemite Fall, I looked at the water spilling down the granite walls and I wanted to take it a step farther. That's how on their wedding day, Gina and Brennan ended up scrambling up boulders to the pools at the base of the fall. We listened as water cascaded down the freezing rocks to collect in a pool of water that is uniquely Yosemite green, while Brennan held his wife tight. This is the Yosemite experience. #elopeinyosemite #yosemite #yosemitefall #yosemitefalls #waterfall #wedding #elope #elopement #yosemitewedding #exploretogether #hiketogether #weddinggoals #weddingexperience #exploreyosemite #yosemiteweddingphotographer #yosemiteelopementphotographer

Just as we reached the end of our scheduled time together, I asked Summer and Mike if there were any other photographs they wanted. They were still buzzing with excitement from exploring Yosemite Valley together for the first time when Mike asked How much time do we have? Curious to see what he had in mind, I looked at my phone and told them that the park closed in ten minutes. They turned to each other as if they shared an inside joke or possibly daring each other. What d...o you think, should we do it? Over the next ten minutes I learned that yes, Summer and Mike were in fact previously married, but for them their wedding ceremony was nothing more than a dry, legal rite of passage. They held back. What they had hoped to do was find the perfect time and place to make an emotional union and share their vows with each other. This time, this place was their perfect. No guests, no officiant, just Summer and Mike. I’ve been there when countless couples promise their lives to each other, but nothing has ever matched the spontaneity and the excitement that took over these two during these ten minutes. These ten minutes were a fresh take on the (for me at least) very familiar. Let love rule the day and set the schedule. #yosemite #yosemitewedding #yosemitesunset #tunnelviewwedding #winterwedding #covidwedding #dayuse #yosemiteweddingphotographer #intimatewedding #elopeinyosemite

If you're into dramatic scenes, winter sunsets at Tunnel View don't mess around. We only spent an hour together in the park, but I knew this is where we would finish. #yosemitewedding #yosemite #yosemitesunset #tunnelview #elope #elopeinyosemite #sunsetwedding #sunsetelopement #dramaticweddingphotography #mountainwedding

An intimate wedding and giggling together in nature. These two park rangers know how to do a wedding :) #yosemite #yosemitenationalpark #intimatewedding #yosemitewedding #fallwedding #fallcolors #yosemitefall #sierrawedding #elope #elopeinyosemite #covidwedding

In the midst of these crazy tunes, it's refreshing to my soul to witness the simplicity of a sunrise elopement. Just two people and everything else fades away. #elopeinyosemite #elopement #yosemitesunrise #yosemite #glacierpoint #glacierpointwedding #glacierpointsunrise #yosemitenationalpark #halfdome #sierrawedding #californiawedding #elopementphotographer