Shannon & Brandon’s Fall Mountain Wedding in Golden, Colorado

Weddings

February 9, 2024

October 13, 2023

This is the story of how Shannon and Brandon helped me become a Colorado wedding & elopement photographer.

Shannon and I met years ago when we both worked on the same team working with kids in holistic developmental neuropsychology. She was always so great to work with and even after we went our separate ways in our careers, we kept up with what the other was doing from afar.

So, when Shannon and Brandon got engaged back in May of 2022, I did what any former coworker would do–I commented on her Instagram post congratulating her. I don’t have a personal Instagram, so the comment came directly from my business account, and in the back of my head, I hoped she would at least consider me, if not only for a few seconds before moving on to bigger and better photographers.

When she messaged me a few days later, I took it as a sign that becoming a Colorado destination photographer was actually possible.

I was heavily pregnant with my 2nd kid at that point, and while I couldn’t fathom leaving my family for any period of time to travel, I knew that her interest in having me as a photographer was a sign that I needed to branch out. So, I ended up bringing my mom and two-month-old with me to Colorado for Shannon & Brandon’s engagement session in the foothills near Denver. Although the forecast called for thunderstorms to come straight through our location at the exact time as our session (something not nearly as common in the Denver metro as in the Midwest), we ended up narrowly escaping the weather and having the BEST engagement shoot. Shoutout to Shannon’s witchy hair stylist for working some literal magic and making the storm veer north of us. 🙌

Fast forward to October 2023–my nerves were at an all-time high because this was my first destination wedding.

I usually don’t get nervous before shooting a wedding, but this one was different. It was not only the first wedding I was traveling for, but I was also doing this for a friend, and I wanted to deliver my absolute best product. I ended up traveling with all of my lighting equipment because I’m a total off camera flash snob when it comes to reception lighting, hired a wedding content creator at the last possible second to take some behind the scenes footage of me (shoutout to Alyssa of Causey in Love for being AMAZING), and dove in headfirst.

Shannon and Brandon chose The Pines at Genesee as their venue.

The Pines at Genesee is a beautiful venue nestled in the edge of the Rocky Mountains right outside of Denver, filled with aspen trees and huge Ponderosa pines. Even though October’s weather is notoriously unpredictable, Shannon & Brandon’s Friday the 13th wedding ended up being chilly but sunny, and the aspens were in full color!

Our schedule was a little rushed at the beginning of the day since we didn’t have much time between when the venue opened and when the ceremony was set to happen. I’m sure this contributed to Brandon’s nerves, but there’s a lot to be said about Shannon’s calming presence–I felt a definite shift in the mood once they had their first look!

Their ceremony was so full of color and emotion.

The sun was shining through the pines right behind their ceremony space which made for the most magical setting. I don’t think any amount of planning could have gotten a better result. Brandon’s stepfather was their officiant and they chose Shannon’s mom to help them tie the knot during their handfasting ceremony. The love these two have for each other was made so obvious during their ceremony between the stories shared about the two of them and all of the sweet little exchanges between Shannon and Brandon. And let’s just have a moment for the colors Shannon chose–the muted tones were surprisingly colorful and all went together so well. The entire ceremony was so beautiful in so many ways.

The level of thought Shannon must have put into each detail was amazing.

Favors and guest books that sit and collect dust are a thing of the past–Shannon and Brandon chose plantable wildflower seed paper as party favors and a piece of wall art for their guest book. Colored glass vases and candle votives covered the tables along with flowers in their chosen color palette. Their Berry Chantilly Cream cake was covered in fresh berries and was probably the prettiest, freshest looking cake I’ve seen so far.

Although the reception room was full, it felt more like an intimate party.

We kicked off the night with a welcome from Shannon’s mom. During her welcome, she sang Dona Nobis Pacem, since it’s a song their family sings often. The whole room joined in the round and totally gave me chills. After dinner, there were a few heartfelt speeches by friends and family, and I learned that guests had traveled from all around the world to be there.

Shannon eats gluten-free, and all of their desserts were the best gluten-free treats I’ve ever tasted! Not only was their wedding cake gluten-free, but they also had gluten-free lemon blueberry and raspberry almond cupcakes and three types of macarons–triple berry, raspberry, and blueberry mascarpone. They also chose classic signature cocktails–an old fashioned and a margarita.

Shannon is a super talented dancer, so their first dance was obviously choreographed. This is the moment that Brandon was most anxious about but they both executed it perfectly! Shannon’s dance with her dad was so sweet, and Brandon ended up dancing with his mom AND stepmom, which was the cutest way to end the formal dancing portion of the day.

Shannon and Brandon’s friends and family know how to get down!

I’m fairly certain every single guest was on the dance floor at some point, even her grandpa who’s in a wheelchair! Since Shannon is a dancer, it makes sense that her friends and family would be, too.

Shannon & Brandon’s coverage was only 6 hours long and I was so sad when my time was done, but so grateful that they chose me to fly all the way from St. Louis to photograph their beautiful Colorado wedding. Here’s to a lifetime of love and happiness, Shannon & Brandon!