When you schedule an outdoor wedding in Lake Tahoe in winter and it snows, you have three options: reschedule, relocate or proceed as planned. And we tell our couples that we are good no matter what, and that we will show up, no matter what! Matthew and Jennifer elected to proceed as planned so that's what we did!
Kurt and Heather planned their wedding a few months in advance, and it was just what they ordered: family and close friends attending and a splendid time in Lake Tahoe.
The bride and groom did not want to see one another before the wedding so we took care of that.
Then the ceremony began.
After the ceremony we had fun taking photos of everyone. Even dogs are a welcome and cherished part of our weddings!
This couple contacted us just a few weeks before the wedding wondering if it was too late to arrange their elopement. Of course not! That is the very definition of elopement: Last minute, yet still intimate and very much their own. And that is what we specialize in.
We had great weather on the early spring day they chose for their wedding.
Congratulations and a big thank you to to Michaela and Domenic!
Yes, elopements can happen with very little notice, at least they can with us. Sam and Sydney called me the day before they wanted to get married and I was so happy to be able to accommodate their request to get married with one day's notice! They did have a big wedding planned for later in the year, but wanted this ceremony to be special, just the two of them, and I was very grateful to be able to participate!
One of the joys of not having a physical wedding chapel is that we can go anywhere to do a wedding, and accommodate just about any request! This couple, Cheryl and Doug, wanted to have horses at their wedding. The horses you see in these photos are actually my horses, and Cheryl and Doug got married on my property out near Topaz Lake. It was perfect and they thoroughly enjoyed themselves! My horse Sonny is very loving and wanted to be a part of this wedding. He was never very far away from our activities.
What interesting times we live in! And weddings are no exception. This last summer many of our weddings were rescheduled or relocated due to fires, evacuations, smoke and COVID. As winter progresses, we are finding that indoor weddings are much more practical and pleasant than outdoor ones. Who knows what this next summer will bring?
It seems that flexibility is the name of the game with elopements these days. As Lake Tahoe becomes more and more crowded, we are finding places off the beaten track that are just as beautiful in their own way as Tahoe. The last thing we want for our wedding couples is a wedding that is full of stress because you can’t find a place to park!
While in years past we primarily did weddings only in Lake Tahoe, we are now finding many other wonderful places to hold small elopements. If you are seeking a lake, consider Topaz Lake or Washoe Lake. If you are looking for a park setting, consider one of the many parks in Carson City. If you want the peace of the high desert, I’ve got some wonderful ideas for you!
It doesn’t matter what is going on out there in the world. If you want to elope, I want to help you!
Here it is August already! The summer is not yet over but we have certainly enjoyed officiating weddings at so many wonderful places! Here are some of the places we have been: Wellington, Nevada; Reno, Nevada; Carson Valley, Nevada, Genoa, Nevada, Incline Village, Nevada, the Tahoe Biltmore in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Tahoe Vista, California, Truckee, California and private homes in both California and Nevada. We've been to meadows, beaches, overlook points and hotel rooms; we have even done a wedding in a parking lot and next to a trolley car!
About 95% of the work we do is with smaller, more intimate weddings, and we like it that way. Not all of our weddings have professional photography done, so we don't have photos of all of them. But when Image Angels does the photography, you can bet we've got some awesome photos!
This particular wedding was held in July, in Lake Tahoe, on a bluff overlooking the lake. The photography was done by Image Angels, with Pete Rezac doing the ceremony photos and Karen Linsley doing the portraits.
I really enjoyed being with this couple. We were making chit chat as we progressed along doing the photos, and at one point I asked the bride what she wanted to do for a living. She replied, with an impish little grin on her face, "I want to be a trophy wife!"
Cute couple, all the way around. I hope you enjoy the photos.
Most folks in the wedding business are a bit slow this time of year. The wedding business is definitely seasonal. This is the time when web sites are typically updated, advertising is chosen and implemented, marketing programs designed and begun. And most vendors are also booking weddings right now. With couples having gotten engaged over the holiday season, many are now making arrangements for their weddings to happen this summer, spring or fall. I've noticed a plethora of posts about receptions: the latest cake trends, information about DJs, decorating ideas and themes. And while I can appreciate a donut wall as much as the next person, the truth is that most of the weddings we are privileged to officiate at and photograph do not have receptions. Some of our weddings are the couple only, some have a few guests, and most never have more than twenty or so guests. Why is this? It's our specialty. We specifically market to those folks. I believe that even elopements deserve great photography and a heartfelt ceremony. Gone are the days of tacky "quickie" weddings. Well, actually there are still some folks who do provide those kinds of services, but we aren't one of them. We just want to see our couples have a great wedding experience, and awesome photos to back it up. You might say that our weddings are intimate. It's a good word for it. So if you are seeking a special kind of wedding, one in which the ceremony will be tailored to fit you and one in which you will have awesome photography to preserve those memories and show the family and friends left back home, check us out. We will go just about anywhere to accommodate you, and can help suggest some places if you are stuck or unfamiliar with the area. We will treat you the same as if you were one of those big production weddings, with dignity and willingness to be of service. We do same gender weddings, weddings with dogs, weddings in the snow, weddings on the beach, weddings with horses. We have done weddings with young couples, and weddings with couples in their golden years, and everything in between.
Here are some photos of recent weddings.
I know you are busy with the holidays. But did you know that as soon as Christmas and New Year’s are done, wedding vendors are going to get flooded with calls? According to surveys, 66% of all wedding couples get engaged during the time between December 23 and New Year’s Day. With an estimated 2.3 million couples getting married every year, that boils down to 1,518,000 couples getting engaged very soon. Here in Northern Nevada, according to the County Clerks that issue wedding licenses, in 2018 there were 6,750 wedding licenses sold in Washoe County and Douglas County issued 4,079 in 2017 (figures not available for 2018). In El Dorado County, which is where most Lake Tahoe weddings happen, they issued 3,076 wedding licenses. That’s almost 14,000 weddings just in this area alone. This area meaning South Lake Tahoe both the California and Nevada sides, Reno, Carson City and the Carson Valley. That means you and 13,999 other couples will be searching for vendors in this area in early 2019. Simply put, after the first of the year, our phone will be ringing off the hook and our email box flooded with brides wanting information. The earlier you call and secure your reservations, the more choices you will have. Call us now to check out our services and packages! 530-906-9336 We service the entire Lake Tahoe, Carson Valley and Reno areas.
Another aspect to consider is that you have many more choices now that you did before. Back in the heydey of weddings in this area, those wedding numbers were triple what they are now. And there were fewer vendors to service all those weddings. Now, you have at least three times as many photographers, wedding officiants, hair dressers and makeup artists, florists and bakers to choose from. Those kinds of numbers mean you have lots of choices, but they also mean things might get a bit confusing for you.
Let me try and simplify things a bit. ...continue reading
Now that winter has arrived we are beginning to do snowy winter weddings! Winter weddings have their own unique form of beauty that consists of SNOW!
Remember to wear your long johns and snow boots, and your wedding can be just as beautiful as a summer wedding.
Here are few shots of some of our winter weddings:
Venues: Edgewood, Heavenly, Logan Shoals Vista Point, Zephyr Cove