When Trish reached out to me, I was midway to the Denali Highway headed on a caribou hunt. And in her email, she told me about how her fiancé Ed had JUST proposed to her on a caribou hunt the week before! From that moment I knew it was meant to be – I was so so ready for their rustic Alaskan wedding!

Trish + Ed’s Sweet Love Story

One of my FAVORITE things is when couples talk about their story in their initial inquiries! It makes me smile from ear to ear every time and I get overly excited – so you can imagine I loved how much Trish told me about her & Ed’s relationship.

They both grew up in Nome, Alaska, but never really interacted until they moved back years later to pursue their careers.

“We love being outdoors. Hiking, fishing, hunting, camping. . . we love a good adventure.”

And she wasn’t kidding!! In order for me to even get to the wedding, I flew into Nome, drove 2+ hours to Council, and crossed the river in a giant army truck & a boat. They were ready for a truly epic adventure no matter what it took!

They’d been dreaming up a beautiful, whimsical, rustic barn wedding, and MAN did they make that happen!!

Their Rustic Alaskan Wedding in Nome, Alaska

When the wedding day eventually came, it was one to remember, let me tell you!!

Trish + Ed did a sweet first look under umbrellas, in the middle of the prettiest green trees – and of course they included their sweet pup, Darby!

After taking some gorgeous portraits before the ceremony, they tied the knot under a white tent in front of a beautiful wooden arbor, decorated with pink drapery & florals, with all their loved ones watching.

And would you believe that Trish hand-made most of her details?! Every little detail was very special and dear to her, and truly brought their dream day together.

Fun fact: Trish + Ed did a choreographed dance for their first dance – which she said she highly recommends for other couples! Especially if dancing makes you nervous and you’d rather have a plan in place, this is a fantastic route to go for your time on the dance floor.

Winter Wedding Portraits at Eklutna Lake

One thing Trish + Ed actually missed out on on their wedding day was bridal portraits in the river! The day was SO rainy and the river got too high that we couldn’t take photos in the water like we originally planned.

Sooo Plan B went into motion! We met out at Eklutna Lake a couple of months later and had TONS of fun in the water to make their water session dreams come true. This post-wedding session was such a blast since there was no wedding-day-stress or pressure on Trish + Ed at all – they could just have fun!

If you’d get into the frigid waters of Alaska for epic photos, I think we’d be a good fit 😉 Reach out here to start planning your Alaska wedding or Alaska adventure photoshoot!

The Crazy Nome, Alaska Weather We Had

The weather we had on their wedding day was seriously some of the craziest weather I’ve experienced on a wedding day!! It was the rainiest, monsoon-style wedding EVER – like I said, the river rose a ton – around 12 inches overnight. The wind was gusting sideways, it was cold, and man it was wet, but everyone who traveled into this little town for the wedding truly made the best of it. There’s a reason people only live in Council in the summertime!