Amelia + Zack's Crow Creek Mine Wedding

Amelia and Zack’s gorgeous Crow Creek Mine wedding in Girdwood fell into my lap in an unusual way. Usually when I shoot a wedding, I’ve been in contact with the Bride and Groom for months beforehand. We’ve talked timelines and their vision, and I go into the wedding day feeling very prepared. But one week before their wedding, I ran into my friend and fellow photographer, Brendan Smith, and he was panicking because his second shooter for an upcoming wedding had cancelled. I’ve never been a second shooter for anyone, but thought it sounded like fun and Crow Creek is one of my absolute favorite venues.

When I met Amelia, she was getting her hair done at the Girdwood Salon. I didn’t meet Zack until right before his first look. But they were so much fun, and so sweet, and didn’t mind that Brendan’s tagalong photographer was me. In fact, we hit it off beautifully! The great thing, I learned, about being a second for another photographer is getting to do things you wouldn’t normally do. For example, I would have NEVER ducked into the trees during the ceremony and shot from behind the couple for the majority of it because it would be too risky in that I might miss some really important shots. But in this case, I knew Brendan had the front view covered and it would even make his life a little bit easier if he didn’t have to worry about getting me in the shot.

Amelia and Zack’s wedding was so full of emotion— (Zack’s contact fell out during their first look from crying, which just doesn’t get better than that!) and there wasn’t a dry eye during their ceremony. I’m so glad things worked out the way they did and that I got to be a part of it! To check out more of their photos, head on over to brendansmith.photography