The Call family is one big family! All five of the individual familiescame from five different states to meet up in Angel Fire, New Mexico for an extended family vacation! These travelers literally took planes, trains, and automobiles to make it out to this little mountain town. The 14 children and 10 adults all stayed in one rental home together and were ready when I arrived. Although we at times there was chaos, we captured some great photos and made precious memories for this huge family.
These portraits are of my mom and dad!! It was less than seven degrees out, which is the coldest weather I’ve ever shot my camera in. My camera (Canon, of course) worked perfectly and I was wearing a parka so I was fine, it was my parents who really had to suffer (thank goodness I work fast and we took less than ten photos)! The snowfall the day before provided us with beautiful backgrounds and high contrast as the wood on the house and the dark evergreens were covered with snow.
Mother Nature is not always cooperative at every single wedding. This beautiful bride, Maia, was smiley and flexible as her tiny pandemic wedding processional happened at a different time than originally thought because of the October winds and rains!. And true to being a New Mexican during a pandemic, Maia and her brother originally walked down the aisle wearing their masks, not even thinking of removing them temporarily.
Maia and her sister-in-law had beautiful hair, which was brilliant on a cloudy day in which Taos Mountain played peekaboo with Taos Bed and Breakfast Hacienda del Sol.
It was the hottest day of 2020 during this midafternoon vow renewal and elopement package, the grass was crunchy and the earth radiated extreme New Mexico heat at 104 degrees. This couple was as cool as cucumbers at their vow renewal at Bareiss Gallery at the blinking-light in Taos, NM. Katy and Daniel and their cutest-in-the-world baby had a pandemic get away from Colorado to Taos, NM for their private ceremony in front of sacred Taos Mountain. After this couples initial wedding five years ago, these two went through hell and back. This ceremony was a symbol of their renewal and promise of love and light. Although officiant Dan Jones, and I were suffering from the heat, this husband and wife were so into each other and only noticed one another and the babbling of their baby. After the wedding ceremony, this couple had a champagne toast with the owner of Bareiss Gallery and we ran around the sculpture garden for a few fun shots. Cheers to this awesome family and their new vows to give their love strength and story.
Many times there is a doggy-friend who, after the bride and groom, is the most important personality at the wedding. In our consultations, we often ask if there is a special animal friend who should be included in the photos, because we KNOW that is a picture that you will miss after your wedding if you don’t get it! Dogs are best friends, and dear family members and should be included in ALL celebrations, as these buddies would like to think! We’ve shot weddings where the dogs are the best men, maid-of-honors, ring bearers, and flower girls, and we’ve learned that some dogs take their wedding position very seriously. We’ve known weddings who have changed venues because their dog wasn’t allowed to walk down the aisle. We’ve photographed excited, anxious, and nervous dogs. Many dogs are camera shy! And we will never forget when the dog ran away, WITH the rings (no worries, she was found before the ceremony)!
So please, bring your dog and count on a few pictures with your baby. A dog is definitely a special and honored guest at a wedding when they are included. So here’s to wedding dogs and Happily Fur-ever After!!!
These precious ladies gave us some toothless grins despite the 28 degree weather! We edited these photos down to 106 fantastic photos–we took them in only 40 minutes (including breaks in the warm car)! The photographers here click VERY QUICKLY during these outdoor photo sessions in the wintertime!
This was a shoot we couldn’t miss as it’s the 2nd baby milestone, sitting up! The next milestone is nine months old, when the babies are standing up during holding onto something. Happy 1/2 Birthday to these princesses!!
