On family vacations you could always find my sister and I getting up before the crack of dawn to go hiking in national parks on family vacations. It’s nearly a tradition for us to pack our cameras and photograph sunrises wherever we go. When she decided to have an intimate wedding at home, we decided we needed to take a destination trip elsewhere for some scenic wedding photos we just couldn’t get in the midwest.
During research I stumbled upon a national park and state we hadn’t been to before – Glacier National Park in Montana. The views were incredible and it looked like photographers regularly took elopement photos in the area. The climate can be a little more tricky than we were used to, which proved to alter our original plans. I reached out to a local vendor for flowers for late May, Two Kays Flower Farm, but they let me know it was far too early in the season for them to have anything available for us. It was going to be too cold in the mountains as well, so we decided on a date in mid June – which they were happy to accommodate! We were incredibly lucky with the dates. The main road that runs through the park is closed to vehicles during winter/beginning of spring because of the snow, so there was a chance we weren’t going to be able to reach certain places in the park. But when the road is closed to vehicles, you are able to go biking instead through most of the park on that same road. I ended up booking electric bikes for my mom and I as an excursion(as a thank you to my mom, who came along to babysit my toddler). We went biking on June 15, and it just so happened that the road opened the next day to vehicles as projected a week prior, just in time for my sister and her husband to arrive to take their photos.
I found reference photos of locations for wedding photos, but honestly it was hard to pin point where exactly other photographers had taken their wedding couples. I ended up joining some facebook groups, and some locals were amazing to take time and point me in the right direction. After some consideration, we settled on Avalanche Lake and McDonald Lake which is close to West Glacier, along with Sun Point and Big Bend which is along the Going to the Sun Road. Some of these locations included some hiking and rough terrain, but we were prepared to go the extra mile and managed to finish our shoots in two days.
Speaking of the groups I joined, I found recommendations for something called the Share Shack near the West Glacier side, where tourists can drop off bear spray and other things they were unable to fly/travel with back home. We were able to borrow some bear spray instead of buying/renting it for our trip!
Anddddd, shout out to a local print shop in Whitefish Montana – Kintla Copy & Creative! Between wedding season shoots, work and getting prepared for this trip, I didnt plan ahead on doing a mock invitation for detail photos. While at the airport on Saturday, I shot them a message and asked if they would be able to print me up 4 invitations early that week and explained my situation, they were incredible and agreed to do it! I whipped up a design and sent it over, they had them ready in a VERY timely manner for a last minute order.
And the results? A dreamy elopement I won’t be topping anytime soon out in the midwest. I’m so thankful for the incredible locals and regulars to this park for making this trip MUCH easier on us with all the tips and suggestions made. I am ready to go back next year to get another glimpse of this amazing national park!
Florals: Two Kays Flower Farm
Photography & Graphic Design: Reign Creative Studios
Printing: Kintla Copy & Creative
Location: Glacier National Park, Montana
