Alaska Adventure Wedding Elopement Photographer

Alaska Adventure Winter Wedding Photo Shoot.

This all started with an idea. I needed to get out of my studio where I was stuck working non-stop. I needed to leave and shoot a personal project for me, to grow and stretch myself. I decided to fly to Alaska. I called my good friend Kevin who lives there and who was a climbing partner on our Denali expedition. I asked him to scout a location for me, which he kindly did. I had other ideas, but wasn’t quite sure what was possible. So, within three weeks, I put the word out on Facebook seeking a couple and makeup artist/hair stylist to travel to Alaska with me on their dime.

I honesty didn’t know what kind of images we would get, how our team would perform in cold weather (in the 20’s), or even if we could get anything worth our time. I did have a fear of failure, that I might return only with few nice photos in the snow. I even hesitated announcing it on Facebook, but I knew better than to let fear have a voice. Plus, no matter what, it was going to be an adventure. I had also never worked with my engaged couple before, Kyle and Caitland, as I didn’t want any professional models for this shoot, but rather a real couple. All these variables kept me guessing.

When we arrived in Alaska, a chilly snow storm dumped on us. My own breath came out like smoke. Arriving to my hotel made me want to sink in a hot tub and make excuses why we can’t shoot. But we came for a purpose, regardless of whether it would rain or snow, and we were packed. We had a small window of light to travel and shoot. We hiked into the mountain seven miles round trip while it was snowing off and on, quickly setup for our ice cave shoot, and then headed back. The remainder of the shoot was photographed at another location where we saw quite a few bald eagles while it snowed. I even photographed under my gortex jacket for some of it.

I’m excited to have worked with such a great team on this adventure and I will continue to shoot more. I’m also thankful to BHLDN who sponsored us with an amazing dress and accessories. The dress is the Calla Gown, the sash Pearly Primrose, the headpiece Honeysuckle Halo , and the Monterey Shawl wrap.

Also, I brought along my powerful Profoto B2 Light, which is portable when you’re hiking, as I did on our Everest Base Camp wedding. I bring the B2 light almost everywhere I go.

Couple: Caitland Brooks + Kyle Wolf
Makeup/Hair: Amy-lynn Hair Design
Dress and Accessories: BHLDN
Lighting: Profoto USA
Friend and Assistant: Kevin Sellers
Photographer and Project Leader: Charleton Churchill

(The first six images were taken with my Apple iPhone 6plus. The rest were taken by my Nikon D750.)