Elyse & Rick Go Out West | A Moab Elopement

Somewhere way out in the sun-baked-west, Elyse + Rick shared forever promises with each other. The first time we talked, they told me that they wanted photographs of them IN the landscape, photos that showed what it was like to be moving through that space together. I hope we created just that.

We met at an Airbnb tucked back alongside a sheer red cliff, where they strolled under the shade of a lone giant cottonwood tree. A symbol of life in this desert landscape. Survivalists will tell you where a cottonwood tree grows, if you dig down far enough you will find water. Isn’t that what we are doing when we enter into companionship with another? Becoming a beacon of hope on this journey together- walk with me, and you will never thirst. It will be work, but I will never leave you to the elements. As these thoughts floated through my mind, Rick reminded Elyse it was time for her to put on more sunscreen and I laughed to myself at it all. I want to romanticize things, but in the end, it doesn’t need to be poetic. We are just looking for someone to gently remind us to put on some damn sunscreen.

As the day unfolded, they read letters from their friends and family under a long dead Juniper, it’s upturned branches provided some context to the cliff edge they were near. The sun set. They shared vows. An absolute blissful day in the Utah desert.

Thank you Elyse + Rick, for sharing your hearts with me.