For every session I have with a couple, there are questions I ask, even for a styled elopement like I shot with Erin & Josh. Some of these questions are ones I ask of all my couples and others are inspired by the specific couple, completely dependent on who they are as people, who they are as a couple, and how they present their love to the world.
Their Mount Arabia elopement was such a fun time filled with a variety of environments and beautiful moments. I’ve wanted to shoot at Mount Arabia for the longest time, and now that I’ve been I’m dying to go back. There was so much to explore and we didn’t even see half of it. We started at the very beginning of the walk up, finding little spots between pools of water and oases of trees and tons and tons of rock surfaces. It was like being on another planet!
We wound our way up to the very top of the hill, grabbing spots of light along the way, dancing on the rocks, and once we reached the top, the two exchanged love notes and rings. Erin & Josh were barefoot the entire time, something they asked me about while we were planning because they like to feel close to the earth, a sentiment I am behind 100%.
This session was a styled elopement with the intent of showing that, when it comes to your elopement, the possibilities are endless. You don’t have to travel far, and you don’t have to endlessly plan. This was such a simple and awesome day, and it was very fitting to this couple and what their love looks like.
What makes your relationship special?
We both carry one another, encourage one another, and seek to magnify joy whenever and wherever possible. We both love to laugh, so there are jokes and silliness every day. We send texts throughout the day, often words of affirmation, sometimes relaying struggles, always with the intention of deepening our understanding of one another as individuals.
Tell me about some of your dreams and hopes for the future.
We have talked a lot about sharing our lives with one another and building a life together. We walk confidently into each day knowing with full transparency our commitment to one another. We dream of having many an animal/critter in our home, a child or two in the veeeery distant future, and a continued commitment to our individual art forms. We want to live with free minds- untethered to the mainstream materialistic ideologies of the current system. We crave to live meaningful, open lives. Open to the divine operating all around us, open to the outpourings of the cosmos, open to the needs of our community, open to the needs of our friends and our families, and open to one another. Our values are in alignment, and we both have a willingness to say yes to the unknown and to leap forward (or in any direction, really) with hope.
- Raven is an Atlanta Wedding and Elopement Photographer who captures real people on their totally unique and completely awesome wedding day. She travels throughout Georgia, including Athens, North Georgia, Dahlonega and beyond, documenting love.
