Real Weddings | Ahwanee Hotel, Yosemite Valley, CA | Lake Tahoe Wedding Photographer Matt Theilen

Real Wedding Description

We met Shawna and Grant one evening in the Spring of 2009. At first, it was to be a typical wedding “client” meeting and after 3 hours of talking, sharing and laughing–we were hooked. They were hooked on us and we were hooked on them! Even though they hadn’t set a date or location — we knew we were going to photograph their wedding wherever and whenever it was going to happen.

Several months before our meeting, Grant had taken Shawna on a hike in Yosemite Valley and proposed overlooking the valley below. Naturally, Yosemite became significant to their relationship and since I had lived in Yosemite for several seasons in the 90’s, nothing in my mind could have been better than an engagement session in Tuolemne Meadows in the summer. They agreed and we were off for a whirlwind 24 hour engagement session along the Eastern slopes of the sierra and up into the park. The weather was true to form in early summer–a little rain near Mono Lake, snow in the high country, mist lifting up through the valley at Olmstead Point, and plenty of sun in between. We set up our tents in a campground near Lee Vining, made a fire and the photos didn’t stop until the next afternoon.

At this point Shawna and Grant still hadn’t nailed down a date and after several weeks of planning, they decided on a wedding in October at the Ahwahnee Hotel in the valley. My wife and I were ecstatic to photograph in a place that is so meaningful to us and also to our bride and groom.

Now a little bit about Shawna and Grant from a photographer’s perspective: they are the best “models” you could ask for. All they wanted was to get married and run around Yosemite and take posed portraits, jumping, running and laughing the entire time. They made so much time for photography that we were able to drive around the valley with them for hours before the reception started that evening. When we returned we were witness to some of the sweetest speeches and dances of all time.

This was truly an event that we’ll never forget and we’ve made life-long friends!