A May wedding in the high country

As promised last week, today's blog includes more photographs from the wedding I shot near Alpine, Arizona at Hannagan Meadow Lodge.  I had not been to this particular area of Arizona before, but had searched the internet for photographs and information about the lodge.  That way, I was armed with some facts before arriving on the scene.

At 9,100 feet elevation in the White Mountains of Arizona, Hannagan's is base camp for people from all over the Southwest who fish, hike, horseback ride, and snowmobile. The wedding I was honored to photograph was actually the first the Hannagan's staff had done.  Chairs were set up in front of a wooden platform or deck in an open grassy area between tall conifer trees.  The platform provided level ground for the ceremony itself.  Its proximity between the main building from which the groom and grooms men, parents, and grandparents were arriving, and another set of cabins from which the bride, her father, and bridesmaids were arriving, made it ideal.

As everyone who has ever tried to photograph anything at high elevation knows, the light can be stunning or it can be very unkind.  In tall trees, what I call "hatchet lighting" abounds - blindingly bright light combined with dark shadows.  It can make exposure a challenge.  A lens hood is invaluable and a photographer's best friend in situations such as this, and I was giddy to have one for my 70-200 mm lens.  The wedding took place at 3 p.m.  I had watched what the sun did the previous afternoon and had a basic plan for getting the best shots of the ceremony.  Here are a few of the results.

As you can see, the groom is partially in shadow, and the sun is directly on the bride's dress.  The lens hood kept the western light from hitting the lens directly, giving a softer look.

Although in both images, the western exposure amps up the whiteness of the bride's dress, the faces are in a soft complete shadow - almost the perfect light for a portrait.  Then, there are those winning smiles...

Compare that to the full, literally "in your face" light of the open meadow.  These shots were made almost two hours later than the others during the ceremony.  Very different but wonderful. 

Thanks, Cathy and Javier!

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image