Tahoe Mountain Club Wedding

Over the past few years something has changed drastically in our photography business. Andy and I got to know our couples on a whole different level. In the process, we found that it shifted both how we show up at weddings, and the stories we capture for our couples and their families wedding day.

This was surely the case with Aja and Doug who planned their wedding in just a few months, choosing to focus only on the things that really mattered to them. After relocating to the Tahoe area to live where they vacation, their Tahoe Mountain Club wedding was the perfect location, just a mile down the road from their beautiful new home. When we spoke about their wedding day vision which was all about close family, long time friends, good wine, savory food, celebrating old and new love, and embracing the beauty of Tahoe – we knew they were our couple!

What I didn’t know at the time was how deeply I’d be touched by their family story and wedding. Aja told me about the cake topper which had been in her family for generations and had sat atop 7 other wedding cakes in her family. Her Grandparents received it as a wedding gift when they married over 65 years earlier. “You know, I was only 16 when I got married, but I turned 17 the very next week” her grandmother told me with a giggle after I took a portrait of her and her husband, “and it was hard work, but we did it!”

When I downloaded the photographs in lightroom after the wedding, I was filled with so much joy because I KNEW how important these photographs will be to her family legacy.

During the ceremony, her Grandmother had everyone laughing when she stood up to talk about love. “When I got married, the advice I received was to never go to bed angry…. YEAH RIGHT! That went out the window the first week! You WILL get angry…..” she went on to talk about the realness of loving a spouse and keeping love alive for a lifetime. About the rawness of dealing with conflict in relationship, and how knowing the good and bad parts of someone is what makes love real. I cried and laughed and felt a huge wave of “YES” come through me- becuase this is something Andy and I talk about all the time… Love is real, it’s not always fairies and butterflies. But we truly believe the fight for the good stuff is incredibly worth it!

Tahoe Mountain Club wedding photos bride getting ready PJ's at Grey's Crossing wedding photos xo Melanie + Andy