Award Winning Image from a Maine Wedding in the Mountains

The amount of time I have on a wedding day for photos with the couple varies from having an abundance of time to sometimes having very little. That can be due to weather, timeline crunches or a simple change in plans – so while I prefer to have lots and lots of time with each couple, I know this isn’t always the reality. So on the days where time is at a premium, I look for creative ways to sneak in time to capture photos of newlyweds.

For Megan and Michael, they were not only up against a sun disappearing much faster than usual due to storms in the mountains, but also some timeline delays that led to us having a brief amount of time to photograph them. While we were able to get a couple photos of them out on the dock overlooking the mountain range with stormy skies in the background, I knew I was going to try and look for a spot in the reception to get a picture or two of them too.

When I saw the outdoor firepits with their glass walls holding the flame, I knew I’d found the spot! It got dark fast in the wooded reception due to the weather so while everyone was eating, my second photographer and I figured out some off-camera flash setups that would be a little different from my usual bonus time but would work with the darkness and still get a cool shot.

After we got everything all dialed in, I let the couple know that I’d love to pull them outside of the tent when the dance floor opened for a photo but that I’d be able to do it for them really quick – which is always welcomed once the party is in full swing!

Thankfully they were game and below is the picture I was able to make happen and then later win an award for – yay!

What you don’t see is the group of friends playfully cheering them on (we were literally right outside of the tent) and guests gathered at the other fire pits keeping warm. Instead, with the way I isolated them out and made the background all fade to black with my camera tricks, it becomes an intimate photo that kiiiinda reminds me of the kiss from Sixteen Candles where the world may be busy around them, but in their heads, it’s just the two of them.

Getting the space to be creative can be a harder thing to do towards the end of the wedding day since the couples have finally released all of those pre-wedding jitters and are mostly focused on the party (understandably!) but I love to try and make it happen, especially when we’ve found ourselves at a time crunch earlier in the day for some reason!

Thank you to the WPJA Artist Guild for recognizing this image as an award winner. If you’d like to see more from Megan + Michael’s Maine wedding day CLICK HERE

Maine & New Hampshire wedding photographer, I AM SARAH V Photography, photographs events for wildly in love couples seeking an NH & Maine wedding photographer with a photojournalism & cinematic approach. You can see more of my work online at www.iamsarahv.com or on Instagram. I photograph many locations including being a Maine wedding photographer and I would enjoy photographing your day too! If you’d like to contact me directly, please email me at hello@iamsarahv.com