What a fun summer day. I meet the Gregorie family at the Court of the Patriarchs trailhead for a family session in Zion National Park. This locaiton is great for families that don’t want to hike very far or have small kids. July & August is so hot in Southern Utah, but this location is perfect when the sun goes behind the cliffs and cools everything down. 
There is a hiking trail pretty close to where I live and I always looked out at the views and thought, “this would be an awesome place to do a photo session, I need to take a couple out here.” It’s a bit of a hike so I needed a couple that was willing to make the trek with me. When Sarah & Brigham came along I knew they would be perfect. They are both really into fitness and have the most positive attitudes.
I had this idea of how the session would look in my head and it exceeded all my own expectations. So excited I finally got to shoot here!
We had some amazing vendors help out for this session.
Bouquet | @bybloomers
Gown | @belltowerbridal
Ribbons | @emmalinhco
Makeup | @makeup.bychantel
Sarah is an amazingly talented hairstylist at Lunatic Fringe so she did her won hair for this session. She really is the best in St. Geroge so if you want a cut, color or both ask for Sarah Nielsen!
Tarah & James had their wedding at True North which is surrounded by the stunning landscape of Zion National Park. This is one of my very favorite Southern Utah wedding venues. Growing up here, I am drawn to this area more and more because of how secluded it feels compared to the main parts of Zion that most tourists go to. When I was a kid me and my family would often be hiking alone. But the secrets out, and now everyone knows how amazing it is here. This location reminds me of the Zion I knew as a kid, secluded, wild and beautiful.
I can’t say enough good things about this couple. They are just the sweetest people ever, and their wedding was so much fun. There were so many cute personal touches like the custom boutonnieres and the bride’s herb-filled bouquet followed by the dancing in the rain! The groom is actually a news anchor in Alaska and he made a very cool announcement when he got back and shared some photos. Pretty cool, my first time being on TV! You can view the video here.
James sent me the story of him and Tarah. I just love getting these from my clients, because in the end, it’s all about the couple and their story. I’m just lucky enough to get to capture some of it.
“Tarah and I found each other on Match.com. Actually, let it be known, I found her. About a year later, in May of 2015, I proposed inside Zion National Park during a late afternoon hike. I had been carrying the ring around for a few days, waiting for just the right time and spot. When the opportunity presented itself, I set my camera on a tripod and told Tarah to pose for a picture with me. With the remote shutter, I took a few nervous test shots before getting down on a knee to propose. She said yes! Proposal aside, we would fall in love with Zion. It officially became our “Happy Place” and eventually the backdrop of our stunning destination wedding.” -James Gaddis
Location: True North Zion Villa
Cake: Mary Lou’s Cakes
Caterer: Kitchen 435
DJ: Festival Sounds
Florist: Bloomers
Hair & Makeup: Tracy’s Hair and Makeup
Rental Company: St. George Party Rentals
Wedding Coordinator: Laura, Forevermore Events
I had the pleasure of photographing Kyle & Garett’s formal session in Zion National Park a while back. I can’t believe I never blogged this one because we hit the fall colors perfectly, and these two are just amazing and I had so much fun working with them. In this session we did two locations, the first was an area that I’ve found by hiking around, and the 2nd is the Canyon Overlook Trail.
For those of you who are thinking about scheduling a fall photo session in Zion National Park here are a few things to consider. This session was taken on October 14th. There are two sides to Zion, the “Canyon” section and the “East Side”. Most of my sessions are on the East Side for a few reasons. 1- You can drive your car and not have to deal with the shuttles as you do in the canyon. 2- There are much fewer people up here which is a huge plus. 3- The east side of the park is higher in elevation so its cooler in the summer. 4- The landscape is easier to photograph in general since there is more light.
Since it is higher in elevation the leaves change up here in October, and in the Canyon, they start changing in November. The east side has more reds and the canyon has mostly yellows. Here is a link to an example of a canyon Elopement on November 9th so you can compare the two.
Boutonnieres: By Bloomers