bridal portraits in Yosemite National Park
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Enchanting Yosemite National Park Wedding

Jonathan + Sarah
June 4, 2011
Yosemite National Park

I’m so excited to give you two of my very favorite things today: 1) a Yosemite National Park Wedding, and 2) said wedding shot by the talented Emily Heizer.

I had a conversation with Emily about the so-called lack of details of this wedding. Are you kidding me? It’s in Yosemite National Park, the crown jewel of the National Park system! How many details do you need? That’s what makes mountain weddings particularly amazing. The mountains provide enough visual impact that you often don’t need a lot of details.

Still Emily was able to capture many of the small moments that make this wedding absolutely enchanting, from the details of the hand-fasting ceremony to the lovely bridesmaids bouquets. I just LOVE Emily’s work!

P.S. Do you love Emily’s work too? You’re in Luck, she’s having an $1,800 “Summer Sale” anywhere in the US! Click on her banner ad for more details. Enjoy!

dancing at a yosemite wedding bridal portraits in Yosemite National Park Hand fasting Wedding Ceremony in Yosemite National Park multi-colored bridesmaids dresses at a Yosemite wedding

purple calla lily boutonniere

ring exchange and first kiss at a Yosemite wedidng ring exchange at a yosemite wedding tears at a yosemite wedding bride and groom in a meadow at Yosemite National Park bridal portraits and rings at Yosemite National Park bride and groom gaze upon a Yosemite meadow yosemite bride yosemite bride smiles bride and groom in Yosemite purple calla lily bouquet yosemite bride takes a picture of her groom Bridal portraits on the Mist Trail in Yosemite clouds clear for a bride and groom in Yosemite National Park

From The Photographer

Not all that long ago, Jonathan and Sarah hiked Half Dome together, coming in from Glacier Point in Yosemite. When they reached the end of their 17.5 mile journey, Jonathan proposed.

They immediately began planning their wedding, which they really would have loved to have taken place on top of Half Dome, but given the logistics, thought Glacier Point would be just as nice! They set the date for June 4th and began planning.

2011 ended up being an extremely wet, and extremely long, cold winter, and when June rolled around, half of the roads into Yosemite were still struggling to even open due to snow, and Glacier Point was totally snowed in, with ice all over the roads and with freezing winds. Apparently getting married on TOP of the mountain was not in the cards for Jon and Sarah!

Instead, they were able to quickly make other arrangements and married instead in the Mountain Room at Yosemite Lodge, with almost a view of El Capitain from the floor to ceiling glass windows. It still poured buckets of rain all day, and all of the pictures had to be taken under overhangs around the Lodge, but we got it done! Everyone cried during the ceremony, and the custom made rings they exchanged showed the special span of mountain ranges that encircled them at the moment at which they took their vows — including Half Dome.

The next day, Jonathan and Sarah did a secondary photography session to try and make up for all of the missed opportunities because of the wedding-day rain. We ran around meadows all over the park, hiked up waterfalls (I, photographer, even kneeled down IN a waterfall since it had flooded the trail up past our ankles!) and bride Sarah borrowed my Hunter rain boots to run around in so she wouldn’t be entirely soaking wet! It was wonderful and romantic and beautiful!

Team Wedding