spacenet wedding over a canyon in moab | utah adventure wedding photographer

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kim + ryan's wedding 400 feet above the moab desert | adventurous spacenet elopement | galia lahav bride | moab, utah wedding photographer

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kim + ryan got married on a space net 400 feet above the desert near Moab, Utah. their story has taken the world by storm! you can find a news story about their wedding here. to see their pre-wedding day first look and bridal session, click here. see more from their wedding here.

since posting, this wedding has made lots of press! you can find it all over the web, including:

People Magazine // Cosmopolitan // Green wedding shoes // My modern Met // Buzzfeed // Design bloom // APLUS // Simplemost // California's FOX KTVU // Bored Panda

I honestly don't know where to begin with Kim + Ryan's Moab wedding, but I'll start with this: it's pretty obvious the wedding was epic, amazing, and crazy, but I hope that you take your time looking through these photos to see beyond the shock-factor because this wedding is a very accurate representation of nearly every reason we've fallen so deeply in love with Moab. I found myself feeling emotional multiple times throughout this weekend and while editing the photos not only because of my love for Kim + Ryan, but also my love for this community. The way everyone came together, put forth their talents, pitched in, and did everything in their power to pull this off honestly amazes me. Kim, the bride, is an absolutely visionary. She dreams big and comes up with huge, incredible ideas. Ryan, her groom, is a do-er. He makes things happen and has a blast problem-solving to figure it all out. They make an amazing team, which was definitely evident throughout the entire wedding planning process. 

Kim and Ryan fell in love in Moab at this high-lining festival, GGBY, a few years ago and got engaged on the net at the festival last year (see our photos from GGBY 2016 here), so it only felt right to get married on the net the day before the official festival started. They worked closely with Andy Lewis, the best man and inventor/creative mastermind behind the space net, to plan a real wedding ceremony on the net 400 feet above the canyon. After throwing around a lot of ideas, they decided they'd use the original net and add an "aisle" so they could walk out to it. One of the things Kim loves about the festival is the amount of things going on in the relatively condensed space, so she wanted to encourage that vibe during their ceremony. Three of their friends (linked below) preformed aerial stunts below the net on silks, while a few friends did acro-yoga on the cliff edges, a friend painted the event live in the desert, a friend played flute, another blew giant bubbles nearby, some friends walked high-lines and some just hung in the dead airspace to watch the ceremony. Friends flew over in paragliders while some played instruments on the cliffs. As they ended there ceremony, exchanging "Hell Yeahs" instead of "I Dos," 10 BASE jumper "flower girls" lined along the cliff edges in tutus and jumped off one-by-one, releasing 5,000 flower petals that had been packed in their parachutes. Kim wore the most gorgeous Galia Lahav dress and a custom matching veil, which made her look like a total goddess in the typically rugged desert environment. 

The entire wedding was an awesome show, all while remaining intimate and true to Kim + Ryan. These two are so charismatic, and Kim is a mix between bad-ass desert dirtbag and hot-as-hell glam queen, while Ryan looks at her like she hung the moon. This wedding day is an amazing reflection of their personalities and I honestly hope it inspires more couples to ditch the status quo and plan a wedding day that infuses their passions, hobbies, interests, and personalities into every detail. Kim and Ryan will forever be able to look back on this day knowing it was 100% them. Their family + friends that were present got to learn more about them, which is something I would hope for any couple that chooses to have guests at their wedding. The thing is, you don't have to listen to anything the wedding industry (or your family + friends) tell you to do. Other than a few legal steps, you should plan your wedding in whatever way YOU want and make sure it represents YOU. We're all for throwing tradition to the wind and planning a unique wedding.

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If you're considering eloping somewhere unique, Moab is honestly the best place. We spend a majority of our nomadic life here, exploring every corner of the desert around Canyonlands and Arches National Parks, Bears Ears National Monument, and the BLM lands in between. We have an always-growing list of perfect places for cliff-side intimate weddings, adventurous hike-in elopements, and stunning portraits all over the Utah desert.

Moab, Utah Elopement Photographers: The Hearnes Adventure Photography

Bride + Groom: Kimberly Weglin and Ryan Jenks

Bride's Dress + Veil: Lily Rose by Galia Lahav and custom Galia Lahav veil

Bridal Store: Kinsley James Couture Bridal

Spacenet Venue + Construction: "Sketchy" Andy Lewis

Bridesmaids Flowers, Planning, Paper goods, Hand-Written Signs, Styling: Kimberly Weglin (the bride)

Bride's Bouquet: The Faux Bouquets

Bride's Hair: Kate Victoria

Ombre Groom + Groomsmen Tuxes: Generation Tux

Videographer: Scott Rogers

Aerialists: Liz Thomas, Caroline Dignes, and Aleta French

BASE Jumpers: Danny Weiland, David Laffargue, Joe Nesbitt, Jimmy Peterson, J.P. Sutjak, Scotty Bob, Nick Williamson, Taz, and Andi Greyling

Location: BLM Desert near Moab, Utah

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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. They live on the road as full-time nomads in their big white van, allowing them to serve a large portion of the western US including California, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. They believe love is the greatest adventure and strive to create photos that are epic, romantic, true, and timeless.

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elopement bridals in moab, utah | desert adventure wedding photographer

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kim + ryan's first look bridal session in the moab desert | adventurous utah elopement | galia lahav bride | utah spacenet wedding | moab, utah intimate wedding photographer

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kim + ryan got married on a space net 400 feet above the desert near Moab, Utah. their story has taken the world by storm! you can find a news story about their wedding here. I will be blogging the wedding day later this week and will link to it in this post as soon as it's available. see more here.

When we were preparing for Kim + Ryan's epic wedding weekend in Moab, we knew the actual day of their wedding would have a lot of moving parts and it would be difficult to get a good number of sunset portraits with them. One of the most gorgeous and exciting details of their wedding day was Kim's insane Galia Lahav dress, so I suggested they do a "first look" and wedding portrait session with us in the desert a few days before the wedding. Kim and Ryan were totally on board (which became the theme for their wedding weekend - it was amazing how much they trusted me with everything!) so we picked a spot that would be super different than their wedding location and that would be "classic Moab." I can't think of a more iconic location than Castle Valley, so we met them out there a few hours before sunset. As we were driving out, it was pretty obvious that a storm was approaching, but we figured we could shoot until it started raining and be happy with whatever we got! In typical Moab fashion, the storm began with moody clouds and 40+ mile per hour winds, which made for some amazing photos! We got a full hour of shooting before it started raining and we ran back to the cars just in time. 

Not only did Kim have her amazing dress (Lily Rose by Galia Lahav) but she was also wearing a custom cathedral-length veil to match. Some people might think we were crazy going out into the desert in a wind storm with a cathedral length veil, but I always say weather is meant to be embraced and some of these photos are my favorites we've ever taken because of the wind! There was no need for fake veil flips or directions to make our bride + groom laugh...that wind pretty much did my job for me ;) Anyone who knows these two knows they're madly in love, and despite this being our first time shooting together (which is funny considering how much we've shot since then!!), they were immediately comfortable in front of the camera. I loved watching them do their thing, embracing the crazy Utah desert winds, laughing, holding tight on the veil, and truly enjoying each other as if I wasn't there. Once we felt a few raindrops, we ran back to the cars and by the time we piled in their van the storm was in full swing.

Callen and I ended up sitting through it for a few minutes before driving back and it was crazy crazy!! Shaking the van and blowing dust in every direction. Looking through these photos, we are so so glad everyone took the time to make a pre-wedding session happen because while we did get some amazing photos on their wedding day, these ones are so different! Future wedding couples - if your day is going to have a lot of guests or a packed timeline, we highly reccomend considering a pre-wedding or post-wedding bridal session nearby. It's a great way to get a huge variety in portraits and just get more photos!

If you're considering eloping somewhere unique, Moab is honestly the best place. We spend a majority of our nomadic life here, exploring every corner of the desert around Canyonlands and Arches National Parks, Bears Ears National Monument, and the BLM lands in between. We have an always-growing list of perfect places for cliff-side intimate weddings, adventurous hike-in elopements, and stunning portraits all over the Utah desert.

Moab, Utah Elopement Photographers: The Hearnes Adventure Photography

Bride: Kimberly Weglin

Bride's Dress + Veil: Lily Rose by Galia Lahav and custom Galia Lahav veil

Bridal Store: Kinsley James Couture Bridal

Ombre Groom + Groomsmen Tuxes: Generation Tux

Bride's Bouquet: The Faux Bouquets

Location: BLM Desert near Moab, Utah

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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. They live on the road as full-time nomads in their big white van, allowing them to serve a large portion of the western US including California, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. They believe love is the greatest adventure and strive to create photos that are epic, romantic, true, and timeless.

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intimate wedding in yosemite valley | national park wedding photographer

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chris + jen's intimate yosemite wedding | first look in el cap meadow + ceremony on cathedral beach + dinner at the majestic yosemite hotel | yosemite adventure wedding photographer

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When we booked Chris + Jen's wedding exactly one year in advance, I thought I was going to lose my mind waiting for it to finally come around! I will never forget the moment a few years ago when I saw this wedding from Grant Daniels and realized people could get married in Yosemite National Park. I was a budding photographer and was completely obsessed with Yosemite, but lived in Texas so I pretty much dismissed the idea of ever shooting a wedding there as a dream too big for me to fulfill. Well, a few years, a lot of travel and even more photography practice + work later, Yosemite is now our highest-requested and booked location! We still feel the need to pinch ourselves sometimes when we get to do this amazing job in such a beautiful place, and Chris + Jen's intimate wedding in the valley was no exception. 

I'd be remiss if I said anything else without mentioning that Jen + Chris invited us over for the most delicious food and festivities at their cabin the night before their wedding and we had so much fun getting to know their family + friends. We felt welcome immediately and it made for such a fun dynamic the day of their wedding feeling like we were part of the family. They chose to do their first look in El Cap Meadow, underneath the world's most glorious monolith (Jen's dad loved telling everyone that their photographer had climbed el cap that week!) and shared some sweet moments together before hiking the valley loop trail to Cathedral Beach for their ceremony. After Jen's dad walked her from the woods down to the beach, they said their vows and promised each other forever next to the quiet Merced River with El Cap behind them surrounded by their closest family and friends (who traveled from places all over, included Hawaii and Alaska!). Afterwards, we ventured around the valley together taking photos until the sun went down. We ended the night with a delicious dinner at the Majestic Yosemite Hotel (previously know as the Ahwahnee) and once again were made to feel like family. We had such an amazing time getting to know these two and I am honestly a little sad it's over - but I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other again soon. Maybe in Hawaii :)

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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. They live on the road as full-time nomads in their big white van, allowing them to serve a large portion of the western US including California, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. They believe love is the greatest adventure and strive to create photos that are epic, romantic, true, and timeless.

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adventure elopement in yosemite national park | destination wedding photographer

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vicky + ben's adventurous yosemite elopement | sunrise first look at glacier point | sunset wedding ceremony at taft point | destination elopement photographer

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I am not sure where to even start with Vicky + Ben's gorgeous elopement day, but I will mention that these two earned the spot of our shortest-notice booking at just three weeks in advance! I should give them a trophy! Everything about their day - from the short notice to the perfect sunset - was pretty much our dream elopement. We knew from the first e-mail that we were meant for each other and within a few minutes of shaking hands in the dark Glacier Point parking lot we were fast friends. These two decided to make a road trip out of their wedding, so they drove all the way from their home in Georgia hitting some awesome spots like Horseshoe Bend, Arches National Park in Moab, and the Bonneville Salt Flats. They chose to elope in Yosemite and after multiple different ideas decided that a hike-out elopement on the side of a giant cliff felt perfect for them. Ben is a fellow skydiver, so of course we talked about BASE jumping pretty much every time we found ourselves at a sheer edge!

We spent the morning at Glacier Point, soaking in the gorgeous sunrise and embracing the chilly wind. The nearby wildfires made for some really rad fog-like haze and since they eloped on a weekday, we didn't see many other people until we were leaving. We did a few hours of portraits in the morning and then met back up that afternoon to hike out for their ceremony at Taft Point. We love when our couples are down for this split-time elopement schedule because it allows for better lighting, two different locations, and they get to chill out for some of their day together without any distractions. We had so much fun hiking out with them and walking around the edges to pick a ceremony spot. I will never get tired of waching couples see a place for the first time, knowing that it will forever hold a sacred spot in their hearts as the place they got married. It's honestly one of my favorite things about this job! Despite a full parking lot and passing a few people on the trail, the area was pretty much empty for their ceremony which just added to the sweetness and the assurance they had made the right decision for a private wedding day. They promised forever to each other with El Cap and a trickling Yosemite Falls as their witness, their only decorations being the trees and rocks around them. It was perfect. After their ceremony, and an announcement to the world that they were married (their officiant literally shouted it from the mountain top!), they spend the rest of the evening dancing around, cuddling, and taking in the sweeping views around them. The wildfires made for a crazy pinky-purple sunset that seemed to last forever. We ended their day with a chilly hike back through the forest with headlamps and meaningful conversations knowing full well we had just made some great new friends. Vicky + Ben, you two are some of the best around. We are thankful to know you and so thankful you found us three weeks before your elopement day :)

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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. They live on the road as full-time nomads in their big white van, allowing them to serve a large portion of the western US including California, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. They believe love is the greatest adventure and strive to create photos that are epic, romantic, true, and timeless.

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intimate wedding at glacier point | yosemite national park | destination wedding photographer

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tyson + ky's intimate yosemite wedding | sunrise ceremony at glacier point | sunset portraits at taft point | yosemite adventure elopement photographer

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Tyson and Ky's intimate wedding at Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park is honestly a textbook example of the vision Callen and I had when we started this whole crazy thing. We had such a blast watching them take in Yosemite's beauty for the first time followed by even greater excitement during their first look. There's something special about convincing your favorite people to travel across the country to join you as you promise forever. The closeness of this group was so evident during this sunrise ceremony. And did I mention their sweet daughter had the most precious matching bouquet? I mean, cuteness level over 9,000. We got to hang out with this fun group and enjoy some of the most awesome cloud coverage into the morning before taking a brief intermission and meeting back up with just Tyson and Kyletha for some sunset portraits at Taft Point.

Taft Point is an adventurous couples' dream location. The hike-in is guaranteed to ombre a bride's dress into a granite grey, the views are spectacular, and the sheer nature of the cliffs is certain to up the adventure ante. We love hiking with our couples because of the sweet conversations it facilitates. Tyson and Ky shared their hopes and ideas for their future together and we are so grateful to get to work with such awesome people. We couldn't be more pleased with how beautiful this day was with these two!

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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. They live on the road as full-time nomads in their big white van, allowing them to serve a large portion of the western US including California, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming. They believe love is the greatest adventure and strive to create photos that are epic, romantic, true, and timeless.

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