Tag Archive for: snow

Hyalite stargazing engagement portraits of Aysha and Brad

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I photographed the Hyalite stargazing engagement portraits of Aysha and Brad on the eve before the springtime road closure to Hyalite Canyon.

For Aysha, her love of Brad’s spontaneity and ability to make her laugh won her affection over quickly. Their relationship grew closer through their LDS faith, love of soccer and live music, and being together stargazing with each other in their Montana backyard. This couple is dedicated to their craft. Aysha helps run the family plumbing business and Brad is also working there as an electrician apprentice.

Brad summed up Aysha as nothing short of amazing and kept commenting on how much he cherished how every day, she gives everything her all.

After dating for seven months, they were engaged a few weeks back while next to a campfire.

For their Hyalite stargazing engagement portraits, we decided to highlight some of their favorite activities they love to experience together. We made a plan to meet up at the Hyalite Reservoir just outside of Bozeman for their nighttime, stargazing engagement portrait experience.

Upon our arrival at the snow-covered Hyalite parking lot, we were greeted with clear skies and a setting sun. We started by exploring the quiet, cold winter landscape with antique oil lanterns that lighted our path. As the stars came out over the frozen mountain scene, I made some long exposure photographs to make the sky really shine. Afterward, Brad made us a warm campfire to sit around. This couple came prepared with plenty of s’mores, cups of hot chocolate, and the arms of each other. We had found a perfect mountain atmosphere to showcase Aysha and Brad’s relationship.

It made for a really fun night.

Here are some of my favorite photographs I made during our evening together.

I’m so excited for these two and the good fortune that lies ahead for them. Congrats to Aysha and Brad! -M

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Lone Mountain Ranch Winter Wedding of Diane and William

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A few weeks back, I photographed the snowy Lone Mountain Ranch Winter Wedding of Diane and William in Big Sky, Montana.

When Diane and William contacted me about their wedding photography needs, these Florida residents informed me of their grand plans to head north for a snowy, horse-drawn sleigh-inspired outdoor wedding celebration. They were so excited!

The February winter weather in Montana did not disappoint. Their wedding day had over two feet of fresh snow to decorate the mountain landscape. I love a couple that goes against the grain and does an exciting destination wedding change up from their usual warmer climate.

These two medical professionals invited about forty of their closest friends and loved ones out to Lone Mountain Ranch for an intimate wedding weekend tucked away in the mountains in Big Sky, Montana.

Embracing their self-description of being, “numerically up there, been married before, yet still young at heart!” they opted to get adventurous with their Lone Mountain Ranch Winter wedding plans.

They both have cherished their time spent vacationing in Montana and couldn’t think of a better place to celebrate their union.

With excited smiles on their faces, their guests got all bundled up for a unique Montana experience. They loaded into horse-drawn sleighs that would bring them to a large opening on the mountainside where Diane and William’s small, intimate outdoor Montana wedding overlooking Lone Peak would take place. Everyone loved the unique experience that the horse-drawn sleighs provided. With relatives who had trouble being mobile, the sleighs allowed access to the beautiful outdoors while also offering wool blankets and a high-seat vantage point for the guests to watch the ceremony. It all worked out really well.

After a lovely snowy ceremony complete with communion, the entire wedding rode by sleigh to the nearby B-K cabin at Lone Mountain Ranch for the dinner reception. The crew at LMR created a lovely atmosphere combined with flower arrangements from Karen’s Floral Artistry that made the room feel really homey. The sweet bluegrass tunes from The Bridger Creek Boys serenaded the crowd throughout the evening. The fireplace and libations kept everyone cozy while the funny stories and laughter warmed their hearts. We had a fantastic time and capped off the evening with a sparkler exit for the newlyweds. I could not be more excited for these two. I was so grateful to be a part of their wedding celebration and I wish them all the best! -M

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Downtown Bozeman Montana Engagement Photo Session of Kiera and Collin

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Downtown Bozeman Montana Engagement Photo Session of Kiera and Collin
  • Downtown Bozeman Montana Engagement Photo Session of Kiera and Collin

Last week I photographed the Downtown Bozeman Montana Engagement Photo Session of my wedding clients Kiera and Collin.

I’ll be kicking off my 2016 wedding photography season when I get to document their wedding celebration in early January at the Gallatin River Lodge here in Bozeman, Montana. I’m so excited!

For their downtown Bozeman Montana engagement session, this couple wanted to highlight the downtown area where they love to go on dates with one another. We decided to explore some of the more colorful exteriors of the downtown Bozeman business scene. Cool temperatures and good light made for some lovely settings and nice portraits. When out photographing, I’m always looking for clean backgrounds that keep the attention on my clients in the camera frame. On this outing, we found numerous options that yielded great results. It was clear that Collin and Kiera were just smitten with one another and they both brought great energy and attitudes to our photo session. We spent most of the time laughing and cracking jokes with one another.

Here are some of my favorite photos from our session. I’m looking forward to Kiera and Collin’s wedding day this January at the Gallatin River Lodge! -Mike Greener

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Hyalite Winter Engagement Photos Session of Heather & Andrew

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Hyalite Canyon Winter Engagement Photo Session of Heather & Andrew

A few weeks back I got to photograph Heather & Andrew for their Hyalite Winter Engagement Photos Session outside Bozeman, Montana.

I’ll be photographing their 2016 wedding day at Chico Hot Springs next April. While they were in town for Thanksgiving with family, we found a window of time to drive to the nearby majestic rocky mountain canyon. The snow had just recently fallen a couple of days before and now cast a white blanket across the surrounding Hyalite Reservoir and Gallatin National Forest. It was a cool ice-covered scene to explore. With the mixed overcast clouds, I was able to play with the cooler winter color palette of the Montana landscape.

These two were a lot of fun during their Hyalite Winter Engagement Photos Session. I appreciate a wedding couple that is up for an adventure. I’m looking forward to documenting their wedding celebration this Spring. Congrats on your engagement you guys! -Mike

  • Hyalite Canyon Winter Engagement Photo Session of Heather & Andrew
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Bozeman Montana Winter Engagement Photos on the Gallatin River of Rachel & James

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Last weekend I had the pleasure of hanging out with Rachel & James and their excited young labrador puppy Deacon to make some fun engagement photos for them. These two lovebirds got engaged this past December and were planning their California Wine Country wedding later this summer from their home in Bozeman, Montana. While their wedding photos would be in the California sunshine, the two wanted to contrast their engagement photos with the beautiful snowy backdrop of Southwest Montana and hired me to help.  Montana is no stranger to the cold. This winter has been an exceptionally chilly one here around Bozeman often times dropping into the negative double digits. A good thing if you are a skier, (I am) but it can be a difficult task when you are trying to make pictures of people out in the elements and not have them look like they are freezing. Our photo shoot was scheduled a couple weeks ahead of time and I found myself the day before the shoot looking at a thermometer hover around -10 F and thinking my clients will turn into popsicles. Alas, the weather gods were on our side and as we drove out to the Gallatin River Sunday morning, the sun popped out from behind the clouds to give us a balmy 20 F degrees. Rachel and James, unphased and all smiles, bundled up and were ready to go. I love it when couples embrace the unexpected. I think their enthusiasm shined through in their images. We had a great morning adventure exploring the snow covered landscape and making photos. Such a fun day. Wish these guys all the best! -M

Go here to view their entire wedding engagement photos

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