Wedding Waterfall Session || Alex and Starr
There’s always an argument to sneak away on your big day for a wedding waterfall session, and that’s exactly what Alex, Starr, and I did.
It was a gorgeous early-June afternoon in Upstate NY, and being nature lovers, it was a priority for Alex and Starr to escape to the outdoors, even for a small bit of time.
They chose a nearby location and one of their favorite hikes in the Finger Lakes region: Tinker Falls. Tinker Falls is an impressive natural rock ampitheater located in Cortland County, crowned with a 50-foot waterfall, and it is an easy, 0.6-mile out-and-back trail.
The route weaves you through a gorgeous section of woods, a soft bed of earth beneath your feet and a canopy of greens above your head, and it showcases the most heavenly light breaking through the treetops like shafts of fairy dust.
Building a window in your timeline for portraits like this couldn’t be more essential, whether your first look, mid-day, or at golden hour. Usually a 30-min to 1-hour window, this time is where the creative juices flow, your personality shines, and the magic is made. It’s an opportunity to sneak away from the busyness of your wedding, the never-ending greetings from guests, and the clinking of glasses to have a private and intimate moment together.
REASONS TO CONSIDER A WEDDING ATTIRE SESSION FOR YOUR BIG DAY:
If you don’t have time in your wedding itinerary to spare for this, I’d highly recommend a wedding attire session. Sometimes referred to as a day-after session, this is a second photoshoot where we meetup the day after your wedding for a more “full-blown” photoshoot in your wedding clothes.
If you have a location that’s too far of a drive from your venue, or where you risk the possibility of getting your dress dirty, this is also a great option! Often times we’ll chose a waterfall, nature overlook, or another special location that speaks to you as a couple. After selecting a meetup time, we’ll give ourselves 1-2 hours of uninterrupted time to focus on your relationship, celebrate your marriage, and make some art.
HERE ARE A FEW THINGS TO REMEMBER WHEN PLANNING YOUR WEDDING ATTIRE SESSION:
Makeup and hair: Your MUAH won’t be on anymore from your wedding, so you have two options: 1) you can re-hire your beauticians for our wedding attire session the next day or 2) you can take a more minimalistic approach and go au-naturel (or at least more-naturel 😉) for the wedding attire session
Changing tent: If we’re doing a hike for your session, then your best bet is wearing comfortable clothes/sneakers and packing your wedding clothes to change into. In this scenario, I’ll provide a portable changing tent for you to change your clothes once we’ve reached our destination.
Headlamps: The optimal shoot times are sunrise or sunset when lighting is best, but that may mean hiking in the dark. If we opt to shoot early in the morning or later in the day, we will likely need headlamps for hiking in the dark.
A wedding attire session is perfect not only for the adventurous couple, but for the couple who wants more time, focus, and energy on their wedding photos. It is the perfect opportunity to get more mileage out of your wedding day, wedding attire, and wedding experience and also get epic wedding images that will pass down from generation to generation.
If you’re anything like Starr and Alex, you won’t regret your decision and will treasure the escape of solitude, tranquility, and beauty. Check out this Laid Back Yosemite Elopement for more wedding waterfall inspiration!
