A Fall Mountain Wedding in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Every once in a while, this job takes us pretty far from our little corner of North Georgia.
This time? Colorado. 🏔️
And we're definitely not complaining.
These two chose Colorado Springs for their fall wedding, surrounded by mountains, changing leaves, and the people they wanted there to celebrate with them. The day was held at Rhize Weddings, tucked into the Colorado landscape with the mountains basically demanding to be included in every photo.
So naturally, we obliged. 😂
It was colorful, relaxed, a little adventurous, and one heck of a reason to get on a plane with entirely too much camera gear.
Getting Married Somewhere That Means Something to You
We talk a lot about couples doing things their way, and destination weddings are a pretty great example of that.
You don't have to get married close to home simply because that's where you live.
Maybe there's a place you've traveled to together a hundred times.
Maybe you're bringing everyone to the town where you got engaged.
Maybe your families live in different places anyway, so everybody is going to have to travel regardless.
Or maybe you looked at the mountains in Colorado and thought:
Yep. There.
Valid reason, if you ask us.
For these two, Colorado Springs became the backdrop for an entire wedding weekend with their people—and we got to come along for the ride.
A Fall Wedding in the Colorado Mountains
We photograph a LOT of mountains here in North Georgia.
Colorado mountains are...not quite the same. 😂
Everything just feels bigger.
And in the fall, you get this combination of mountain views, golden leaves, evergreens, and that crisp fall light that makes it very difficult for two photographers to put their cameras down.
Not that we were trying particularly hard.
But what we loved about this day wasn't simply that Colorado was beautiful.
The wedding still felt like them.
That's something we want couples to remember when they're planning a destination wedding. The location can be incredible without becoming the entire point of the day.
You're still getting married.
Your people are still there.
Someone is probably still going to cry during the ceremony.
Your best friend is still going to do something ridiculous.
And we'll still be watching for all of it.
The mountains just happen to be hanging out in the background.
A Wedding Day at Rhize Weddings
Rhize Weddings gave these two a place to celebrate surrounded by the landscape they'd traveled all the way to Colorado for.
And from a photography standpoint, there was plenty for us to play with.
We could photograph the two of them with the mountains and fall scenery, then turn our attention right back to everything happening with their family and friends.
That's an important balance for us.
When you're getting married somewhere beautiful, of course we're going to photograph the heck out of the scenery.
But we don't want your gallery to look like a Colorado tourism campaign that you happened to wander into wearing wedding clothes. 😂
The place is part of the story.
You two are still the story.
Sneaking Away for Mountain Portraits
Okay, though.
We were in Colorado.
Obviously we were going to steal these two away for a little exploring.
One of our favorite things to do on a wedding day is sneak away from everything for a few minutes and give our couples a chance to actually be together.
No guests asking questions.
No timeline decisions.
No one needing anything from you.
Just:
Holy crap. We got married.
And when those few minutes happen to include Colorado mountain views and fall color?
Even better.
We gave them enough direction that they didn't have to wonder what the heck they were supposed to be doing, and then let them settle into being themselves.
That's generally where the good stuff happens.
Destination Wedding Doesn't Have to Mean a Giant Production
The phrase “destination wedding” can make it sound like you need a weeklong itinerary, matching welcome bags, twelve planned activities, and a spreadsheet that requires its own project manager.
You really don't.
A destination wedding can be as elaborate—or as simple—as you want it to be.
At its core, you're just choosing to bring your wedding somewhere other than home.
Maybe that means a full weekend with everyone you know.
Maybe it means renting a house with your closest people.
Maybe it's 20 guests.
Maybe it's 100.
Just like everything else we've been saying around here:
There isn't one correct way to do this.
A Few Things We'd Think About Before Planning a Colorado Destination Wedding
Travel does add a few extra moving pieces to a wedding, so there are some things worth thinking about before everybody starts buying plane tickets.
Give yourselves some breathing room.
If possible, arriving before the day immediately before your wedding gives you a buffer for travel delays—and gives you a chance to actually enjoy being there.
Remember the altitude.
If you and your guests are coming from somewhere much closer to sea level, give yourselves some time to adjust, stay hydrated, and don't plan the world's most aggressive hike immediately after stepping off the plane.
Have a weather backup.
This applies to North Georgia too, but mountain weather can have opinions. Make sure your backup plan is something you'd genuinely be happy with.
Don't schedule every second of the trip.
You brought everyone somewhere beautiful. Give yourselves some time to actually experience it.
And from the photographer side of things, we'll help build photography into the day without turning your destination wedding into one giant photoshoot.
Yes, We'll Travel for Your Wedding
North Georgia is home, and it's where you'll find us most of the time.
But home base doesn't mean home only.
We love getting to photograph our couples in places that matter to them—whether that's a waterfall an hour away, a backyard down the road, or a mountain wedding on the other side of the country.
So if you've been thinking about getting married somewhere that requires us to dust off the suitcases?
Tell us where we're going.
We're Jessica + Cory, a husband-and-wife photography team based in North Georgia, photographing weddings and elopements for couples who want to do things their way.
And apparently sometimes that way involves flying to Colorado with a truly unreasonable amount of camera equipment.
We're in. 🏔️
Venue: Rhize Weddings
