Moraine Lake + Lake Minnewanka Elopement | Banff National Park
the hearnes » adventure elopement photographers
Erin + Duncan’s Intimate Elopement in Banff National Park | Sunrise Kayaking in Moraine Lake + Intimate Wedding Ceremony on Lake Minnewanka
Oh my goodness, Erin + Duncan’s Banff National Park elopement was honestly such a dream. From the beginning, these two fully trusted us with input for their wedding plans, which ended up being such an incredible day for the two of them, their guests, and everyone together (and us!!!). We started their day before the sun came up, eating Reese’s puffs and nailing down final details. Callen and Duncan hiked out to a little rock outcropping overlooking the beautiful lake, and Erin + I followed suit a few minutes later. They shared their first look a few minutes before the sun hit the gorgeous mountains behind them, and we spent about an hour exploring around, admiring the wildly perfect morning, and getting psyched for the rest of the day together!
After their sunrise first look, we made our way back to the cars to get the boats — and then proceeded to paddle around the lake while the beautiful clouds swirled in!! It was absolutely magical. Honestly, this lake can be a really popular spot for sunrise, and there were a lot of people lining the shore that morning, but once we got out on the water we felt like we had it all to ourselves. It was so fun to follow Erin and Duncan around on their boat, taking photos while they soaked it all in! After we got back to shore, Erin decided to do what she *always* does when we gets to an alpine lake…she went for a swim!! It was only right that she stayed true to herself, even on her wedding day. She convinced Duncan to join her, and the photos speak for themselves, these two had so much fun! They also both had different outfits for their afternoon ceremony, so that worked out well :) I honestly can’t stress enough how impressed we were — I was on the shore wearing gloves and a puffy!!! These two are wild.
After they dried off and got a little rest, we met back up for their afternoon ceremony on the shore of a different lake with some of their closest friends and family. We all hiked out to a sweet little clearing through some trees, right on the shore of the most gorgeous lake surrounded by mountains in every direction. They were joined by their incredible dog Ciko, who made the most handsome best man ever. Their ceremony was so sweet and had all of us in tears, and then we had so much fun taking photos of their guests and soaking in the beauty afterwards. As their guests made their way back to town for the reception, we took some more photos by the lake and with Erin + Duncan’s van! It was so fun to incorporate so many personal elements into their day. It felt 100% them, as if it were any other wonderful day on their vanlife journey, while clearly being the most special day of their lives. Their reception back in town was intimate and beautiful (and the food was delicious!!) and again, so perfectly them, right down to the cake that simply said “yeet” hahaha.
We are so grateful for these two and know that we’ve made life-long friends. Erin even came to visit us in Moab a few months ago, such a treat!! We’ll always remember their elopement as one that felt fully and unapologetically “them” in every way.
Instagram Posts about Erin + Duncan’s Banff National Park Elopement:
September 18, 2019
Erin has this thing she’s known for...she jumps and *swims* in every alpine lake she comes across. She’s swam in lakes all over their travels, including one deep in Denali National Park. She genuinely enjoys swimming in them, so much that Duncan often has to coax her out after a few minutes because, well, safety. She mentioned this to me a few days before their wedding, and I joked she’d probably throw a swimsuit on and jump into the lake after their ceremony.
Well, turns out Erin had one dress for their sunrise first look, and another one for their afternoon ceremony. And she had enough time to shower/wash up between the two. So, after we paddled boats around this lake, she suggested wading into the water a little bit. And I guess Duncan knew exactly where this was going, but I have to admit, I was still completely shocked as she walked farther and farther in, until she was fully swimming around. Mind you, I was on the shore wearing a puffy and gloves while I took these photos!! Callen hopped back in his boat and paddled out to them, and I watched in amazement from the shore as Duncan joined her, and these two swam in this freezing mountain lake in their wedding clothes like the absolute badasses they are.
These photos are some of my favorites we’ve taken, because while they may shock some people (and certain concerned the on-lookers), when Erin and Duncan’s family and friends saw them, they were not surprised one bit. They laughed that it wouldn’t be Erin and Duncan’s day without a dip in a frigid lake.
These are the types of photos we strive to get. The ones that might seem weird, or concerning, or a little too wild for the general population, but for the couple and the people that know them best...they’re just “them being them” but in wedding clothes. I’d say that’s the epitome of why I love adventure elopements so much. #HearnesTinyCouples
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October 7, 2019
This lake is pretty famous...and watching sunrise on the shore was not quite “intimate” as far as the amount of people nearby goes, but after a few photos of the epic alpine glow on the mountains and scrambling around the rocks, we inflated our kayaks and got out on the water an hour before the lake rentals opened up. We had the whole lake all to ourselves and easily forgot about the crowds on the shore.
Callen and I have loved using our extremely portable @kokopellipackraft all over the world, from Patagonia to Iceland to Alaska and now Canada. It’s especially a fun treat when we get to break them out for an elopement like this 💞 Watch until the end of the video to see the cutest little assistant ever 🥰
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October 21, 2019
These two photos were taken at about the same time. I actually had to edit myself out of the wide photo that Callen took while I was taking the close-up photo. This is one of many examples for why we think having two photographers is so rad for elopements!
Someone was asking the other day what makes us stand out in the elopement photography world. I thought through the typical things our couples often point to for why they chose us: editing style (we believe in true colors!), the experience we have in the places, our adventurous spirit, the fact that they knew we’d be friends before we ever even met up, and simply, we get some banger landscape photos that still feature the couple super well (the photos they want to hang on their walls). It was fun to realize that most of those reasons wouldn’t be possible if we weren’t a team. Our couples feel so comfortable with us because their time with us is like a double date, and being comfortable with us translates directly to having natural photos that feel like *them*. And because we have a lot of our personalities on social media, so they “know” is before they meet us (when someone does Callen’s infamous turkey call right out of the gate, we know we’ve done something right 😂). But another huge factor is the fact that with two photographers, we’re able to get really unique angles. It’s not rare that Callen runs up a hill, scales a rock, climbs a tree, or even paddles out into the water to get something different. It’s the type of photo that seems “non essential” in the moment, but typically ends up being our couples’ favorite in the gallery. I would guess more of Callen’s photos are hung on walls than mine, even though I’m the primary photographer.
It’s super fun for me to compare these photos and know that both are so important. I wouldn’t be able to pick which one to include in the final gallery, and I’m so glad I don’t have to.
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December 27, 2019
One of our favorite things about adventure elopements is how un-planned they are. When we’re working with a couple before their wedding, our emails are less about exact planning and more about ideas and options, giving them the freedom to create an ultimate adventure day. The timeline conversations aren’t traditional (“ok, at exactly 4:37 you must be finished with portraits and walking to the bridal suite you’ll be able to eat four bites of food at 4:52-4:56pm...”), but more like “the sun will hit the mountains at 6:45, so let’s do your first look a few minutes before that so you can watch the alpenglow over the lake together.” And then we typically have big blocks of time on their schedule like “7:30-9:30 Portraits/Adventuring around the lake” and while that open-ended amount of time might stress out some people, we know the potential for that “free time” and what it can mean to an adventurous couple on their elopement day.
Erin and Duncan’s ceremony was later in the afternoon, so their sunrise first look and morning adventure time was really low pressure and all focused on the two of them enjoying Banff together. Our only “plan” was their first look and some portraits as the sun came up. They’d mentioned they had a kayak in their van, and we had our two packrafts on hand always ready to go. This lake is really popular for canoeing, but the canoe rentals start at 9am and are pretty pricey, so we decided to inflate our three boats and go out on the water before the rentals. We had the lake to ourselves, far away from the sunrise photography crowds, and these two got to experience a bucket-list adventure the morning of their wedding with two buddies taking epic photos of them! After we got back to shore, Erin decided to go for a swim in the glacial melt water! She has a personal tradition of always swimming in alpine lakes, and they both had different outfits for their afternoon ceremony, so they took a chilly dip in their fancy clothes, much to the concern of a few on-looking tourists 😝
It was such a fun morning and we got some epic photos, but the best part was that it was completely true to them! We believe that’s how any wedding day should be.
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The Hearnes Adventure Photography is run by Abbi and Callen Hearne, a husband & wife wedding photography team with an emphasis on adventure. Unless stated otherwise, all blog and social media posts are written from the perspective of Abbi! Our photography style is adventurous, full of stoke, and centered around telling a true story. We are nomadic wedding photographers living on the road, which allows us to photograph your adventures anywhere in the world. We especially love the sierra mountains in California, southwestern desert in Utah, and the glacial landscape of Alaska. We have updated passports and are willing to travel anywhere in the world.
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