Getting to meet Courtney and Daniel for their autumn Triple Creek Ranch wedding in Darby Montana was such a treat, and despite it being a fairly rainy day, these two didn’t let it faze them one bit. They just smiled and laughed and said it added to the charm of their day, and I couldn’t agree more!

Because it was raining, they chose to get married on a balcony overlooking the valley – and it was such a perfect ceremony. Courtney and Daniel had so much love in their eyes for one another, and were happier than happy after they got to seal it all with a kiss.

Courtney and Daniel both grew up on opposite coasts, but met online about four and a half years ago, and now both live in South Carolina. When I asked them what had drawn them to get married in Montana, Courtney told me that she really wanted an autumn wedding, and after seeing my fall images from the ranch online, it sealed the deal for them.

We all had such a great time going on a tour of the ranch, finding fantastic little pockets of that autumn color Courtney and Daniel love so much, and dodging a few raindrops here and there. (Courtney joked that her dress was getting heavier and heavier as we got rained on more and more throughout our shoot! To her credit, though, you’d never know it – she didn’t let the rain bother her at all!)

I think one of my most favorite things about documenting their day was just how lovingly Daniel looked at Courtney – even when she didn’t notice. That always says so much to me, and to see these two so in love was the icing on the proverbial cake!

At one point we decided to stop over by a horse pasture and say hi to all the horses and foals who were hanging out watching our antics. A mama and a baby became pretty curious about what we were up to, so they began to meander our direction. One little foal had us all cracking up as he refused to eat the treat he’d been given, and instead decided to play with it, and give us a great show, with his teeth and treat as the main attraction. What a hoot!

Courtney and Daniel! Thank you again for such a lovely afternoon with you both! I absolutely adored getting to meet you and had a blast with you as we got to make these images for you! Here’s to you two, an incredibly happy lifetime ahead, and perhaps more Montana visits in the future! :) Congratulations again to you both!

Vendor Information for Courtney and Daniel’s Autumn Triple Creek Ranch Wedding:

Venue: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
Florist: Flower Happy Floral, Hamilton, Montana

On the Docket:

Weddings and portraits! Stay posted!

Cheers,

-Kristine

Lisa and Doug’s small wedding at Triple Creek Ranch was a beautiful start to their marriage, and, as they had planned, a gorgeous start to autumn in Montana, too!

Coming from Boise, they had heard about Triple Creek Ranch from a friend of theirs, and decided it was the perfect place to be married. And I’d have to say, they chose well! The aspens had just started to fade to golden, the maples on the ranch were in full splendor with brilliant oranges and reds, and even the grasses and bushes in the forest were turning color too.

Lisa and Doug chose to promise their forevers to one another at the tip-top of the ranch, overlooking the mountains beyond. Horses grazed in the pasture behind them, and a small breeze blew through the trees as they shared their vows.

Lisa customized her vows a touch and told Doug that she was so thankful for every moment in her life that had brought her to him – it was so touching and the two of them both choked up a little. Doug surprised her with a wedding band she had not seen yet, which had everyone laughing at his super smooth move, and soon Lisa and Doug got to exchange a kiss for the first time as husband and wife.

Afterwards we zipped around the ranch to find little pockets of color and make some fun images of these two basking in their newlywed glow, and enjoyed looking out over the views, and admiring the antics of the ranch’s new foals.

Lisa and Doug – congratulations again on your autumn nuptials! Here’s to many happy years ahead for you!

Vendor Information:

Venue: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
Florist: Flower Happy Floral, Hamilton, Montana

On the Docket:

Elopements, weddings, portraits and editorial work! Stay tuned!

Cheers,

-Kristine

I say this a lot, I know, but it really couldn’t have been a more perfect, beautiful day for HJ and John’s intimate wedding at the Triple Creek Ranch in Darby Montana. They were so excited and happy to be married, and their friends were just as gleeful to see these two tie the knot, so to speak.

As I chatted with them a bit, I learned that HJ is Scottish and John is Irish, and they met on an airplane 13 years ago. (This is now becoming a theme for several of my couples – perhaps I need to start traveling more? Haha!) They’ve visited the ranch four times in the past five years so it seemed particularly fitting that they be married there, too.

Not only did their friends and the owners of the ranch attend their ceremony, but a few friendly souls of the equine persuasion looked on as well from below the deck.

To witness their ceremony was so special – it was filled with personal notes from family members bestowing well-wishes on HJ and John, was full of touching sentiments, laughter and tears, and was punctuated by personal touches. HJ and John read together from “Benedictus: A Book of Blessings” by John O’Donohue, and before exchanging rings, they passed them from friend to friend to hold and infuse them with their own goodwill, which was especially moving.

After they celebrated their new union with laughter and hugs, everyone walked down to visit the horses below, which was so sweet. Some of HJ and John’s favorite fellows were there waiting for them, and ready to shower them with horsey kisses, and try their best to steal a few flowers from HJ’s (apparently scrumptious-looking) bouquet.

Their friends also surprised them with a Native American blanket ceremony and another blessing, and they were welcomed inside to the beat of a Native American drum.

To top off their celebration, HJ and John’s friends treated them to champagne toasts, the new couple had fun checking out the oversized wooden carving of a pistol (which made for some hilarious moments), and they had fun mingling and laughing as they got to enjoy their newlywed status.

HJ and John! What a pleasure it was to meet you both! I hope you had a lovely remainder of your time at the ranch and in the states, and congratulations again! What an honor it was to get to document this day for you!

Vendor Information:

Venue: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
Florist: Flower Happy Floral, Hamilton, Montana

On the Docket:

Weddings, portraits and more! Stay posted!

Cheers,

-Kristine

Susan was so much fun to talk to over the phone when she contacted me about photographing her intimate Triple Creek Ranch Wedding in Darby Montana to her fiancé, Randy. She was bubbly, excited, and eager to get married in Montana! (She and Randy are from Tennessee and live at the base of the Smoky Mountains there.) So it didn’t surprise me one bit when, upon meeting the two of them, we hit it off immediately and had such a great time photographing their nuptials.

Prior to their ceremony I photographed both Susan and Randy separately around the ranch to take in the vistas, the gorgeous forested areas around the property, and of course, the horses!

Before we knew it, it was time for their ceremony. Susan walked up to the observation deck at the ranch, beaming, and as Randy turned to see his bride for the first time, a giant smile spread across his face.

The two spoke their vows to one another high above the valley, beneath the towering canopy of trees, sealed it all with a kiss, and celebrated their newlywed moment with a dance. These two are so truly in love, and getting to witness such sweet moments between them just had me grinning from ear to ear – love is so beautiful!

After they officially signed their marriage license, it was time to zip around the ranch and make some more images of Susan and Randy together. We had a great time exploring some of the gorgeous locations around the property, and had a blast visiting the horses. Susan has always loved and had horses, so she was particularly excited to meet the ranch’s herd, and they turned out to be just as eager to meet her! She’s definitely a horse whisperer!

They topped off their celebration with a visit to the chef’s table for dinner where they were treated to champagne and a meal, all in view of the kitchen.

Susan and Randy! What an absolute pleasure it was to meet you both and get to document this wonderful day in your lives! Thank you again, and I hope you have a fabulous party to celebrate back in Tennessee! Cheers to you two!

Vendor Information:

Venue: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
Flowers: Flower Happy, Hamilton, Montana

On the Docket:

Portraits, weddings and more! Stay posted!

Cheers,

-Kristine

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I ADORE. AdoreAdoreAdore elopements. And I absolutely loved everything about Katherine Ann and David’s elopement at Triple Creek Ranch in Darby Montana. They came to the ranch by way of Colorado, and were treated to some of Montana’s finest fall colors for their special day.

We started out the day by photographing Katherine Ann as she was getting ready, and once all the buttons were buttoned and the shoes were fastened, we headed down the road to surprise David, who was ever-so-patiently waiting to see his beautiful bride for the first time. There was laughter, there were tears, there were hugs. And it was perfect.

Upon seeing one another, Katherine Ann and David were eager to go and get married! So we headed down the mountain a bit and the two walked hand in hand down to the pond to say their vows to one another with the mountains as their backdrop. As is fitting for these two, there was more laughter and a few more sneaky little tears, and soon they were pronounced husband and wife, each sporting smiles a mile wide.

To celebrate, we all partook in some champagne toasts beneath the golden aspen trees as Katherine Ann and David signed their license to make it all truly official.

We continued on our photo adventures around the ranch, came across some friendly horses (who were particularly interested in dining on Katherine Ann’s bouquet), and even made time for a first dance looking out over the valley and treetops. To top off a perfect day, Katherine Ann and David enjoyed celebratory cocktails at the ranch’s bar.

Katherine Ann and David! My goodness! What a truly wonderful, wonderful day it was for you both. I absolutely loved getting to document such a wonderful moment in your lives, and had such a great time hanging out with you while making these images. Y’all make me smile! :) Here’s to many fond Montana memories, with return visits in the future! Cheers to you two!

On the docket: weddings and portraits! Stay tuned!

Cheers,

-Kristine

Upon first chatting with Kristina and Ben about their upcoming Darby Montana elopement at the Triple Creek Ranch, I knew that we’d have such a fabulous time making images for the two of them. They love the outdoors, are beyond sweet, and were really excited about visiting Montana for the first time. It also didn’t hurt that Kristina’s a fellow redhead, and we even share the same initials! I tell you, Meant. To. Be! (And as Kristina would say, “Kismet!”)

The day of their elopement arrived, and I think we were all a little nervous about how the weather would behave (or misbehave). It had been raining for days and days (which, in Montana, you must be grateful for, even if it might hamper photos), but mother nature decided to give us all a break, and let us off with a few sprinkles here and there, and some super lush landscapes.

And truly – it couldn’t have been a more beautiful, perfect day for Kristina and Ben. Partly because of our location, but really because of how happy and joyful and in love these two are. The scenery was just the icing on the cake. Kristina and Ben beamed at each other as they spoke their vows amidst a few softly falling raindrops (and the splash of a fish in the pond behind them!). Kristina became a little choked up, but her tears were happy ones, and soon she and Ben were pronounced husband and wife, and we (officiant, ranch hand, photographer and Kristina and Ben) all cheered together for the two happy newlyweds.

One of my favorite things about elopements is how much freedom we have to just play, explore and have an absolute blast making images. And we did all of that and then some. Dodging the raindrops, we dashed around the ranch, laughing all the way, zipped on down to the water, waved at some elk, went in search of some cool rocks, said hello to some bighorn sheep, and got ourselves up close and personal to the rapidly running river once again. Words don’t do it justice to say that this was a completely wonderful day!

Kristina and Ben – I know I’ve said it before, probably about a bazillion times – but thank you so much for inviting me to document this truly special, beautiful day in your lives. It was such a pleasure to get to meet you both, and I loved every single second of the time we got to run around making images for you two. Here’s to a lifetime of happiness and many, many more Montana visits in the future! :)

On the docket: portraits and weddings galore! Stay posted!

Cheers,

-Kristine