Mission Ranch Wedding | Carmel, CA
A Modern, Spring Wedding on the Coast of California—
We started our 2024 wedding season off with a bang, celebrating Sarah and Harrison the first weekend of May in none other than Carmel. With much of our wedding career based in San Luis Obispo, we’d travelled through this area dozens of times on our way to Big Sur but had never spent much time in Carmel itself, until this weekend. We are so grateful Sarah and Harrison flew us in and did us the honor of allowing us to be part of their celebration.
We met the couple last summer when Sarah was in another wedding of ours in SLO, and, after we delivered those photos, they decided they wanted us to be their photographers too! We’ve said it before and we’ll say it a million times over, doing multiple weddings in the same friend group brings us immense joy. We love getting to know whole circles of people, and being welcomed by familiar faces every time we walk into a wedding day. There is a unique aspect of comfortability in the group once they’ve worked with us a few times as well, and it is so fun to see that translate into powerful moments and images.
Sarah and Harrison met at Cal Poly, and were part of the same, very close friend group throughout the years they studied in San Luis. Though they remained just friends in college, they did share a close bond with each other that proved to be strong enough to continue after they graduated. After graduation, they lived about 45 minutes apart, and Harrison would come into town often to reunite with the same college friend group. At Sarah’s birthday party one year, she confessed her feelings for him, and was excited to find out they were mutual. The two made things official on New Year’s Eve in Austin later that year, and the rest is history.
In the planning of their wedding day, Sarah and Harrison had a beautiful and specific vision they absolutely nailed with the help of Atlas Design Studio. As their friends and immediate family are such an integral part in who they are, as well as their relationship, they wanted to honor those people and ensure they were able to experience the day alongside them throughout. They also included little physical and celebratory touches to honor their families and heritage.
The morning of Sarah and Harrison’s Mission Ranch wedding brought heavy rain, something rather uncommon for Carmel. Our weather apps continued to show promise of it letting up, but the rain hung around. Luckily, these two weren’t stressed or swayed by the weather, and all they cared to do was live in the moment surrounded by their people. We made due as well, moving forward with photographing more formal elements of the day with the help of picturesque clear umbrellas. The bridesmaids’ cool blue satin dresses and the groomsmen in striking black tuxedos couldn’t have complimented the weather better! These are honestly some of our favorite bridal party photos to date, as rain at weddings isn’t something we see often with the bulk of our work happening in Arizona and California.
Joseph and I did pray for some sun before the day began, and right before the ceremony, the sun broke out of the clouds, burning the remaining foul weather off and creating a perfect setting. Mission Ranch’s iconic sheep came back out to pasture, and the most stunning spring scene was set for Sarah and Harrison to be married. Surrounded by their 150 guests, these two gorgeous people became one, and the party was on! An Aperol Spritz tower welcomed everyone into the reception, and we had a stunning, cloudless evening to bring in one heck of a celebration! Toasts and laughs and dinner were shared in the barn before we moved into the dancing venue, where the Lucky Devils Band kicked off an electric evening.
For this gallery, Sarah asked us to play into the cooler coastal nature Carmel boasts. She and Harrison also hoped for as few posed moments and photos as possible. They trusted us in our fly on the wall element, and I am so happy with the results. To me, these photos tell the emotional story of the entire day, while also leaning into the sleek, modern feel of the design and crowd who made it what it was. I hope you enjoy a snapshot of what it felt like to be at Sarah and Harrison’s Mission Ranch Wedding—
A special thank you to the incredible team who made this day possible, some of Carmel’s very best wedding vendors.
Venue & Catering - Mission Ranch / Coordination - Atlas Design Co. / Flowers - Love and Flowers by Angie / Dessert - Dutch Door Donuts / Entertainment - Lucky Devils Band / Beauty - Draper Beauty / Dress - Miosa Bride Sacramento, Justin Alexander / Groom’s Outfit - Tuxedo Den
LOOKING FOR A CARMEL WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER? EXPLORE OUR PACKAGES AND INQUIRE WITH US!
Hi there! We’re Katie & Joseph, traveling wedding photographers based in Phoenix.
We are big fans of documenting wedding days in an unposed, raw, genuine, and honest way that allows our couples to maximize their experience on their day while also receiving a gallery full of stunning images that communicate how it felt to be there.
Though we’re based in Arizona, we’ll travel anywhere, like the Carmel/Big Sur area for a good love story (and dance party). We invite you to follow the links below to learn more about us and our services, and to get in contact with us!
