The Ritz Carlton Lake Tahoe is an ideal location for anyone wanting an all-inclusive wedding at a venue with world-class service. I photographed this wedding on a warm summer evening with beautiful light shining through the pine trees. The bride and groom traveled from out-of-state to get married in Lake Tahoe. They chose the Woods ceremony site for an intimate destination wedding with their closest friends and family.
Getting Ready
On the afternoon of the wedding, I met the bride where she was getting ready. One of the things I like about the hotel rooms at the Ritz Carlton is the abundance of natural light. The large, floor-to-ceiling windows mean that I can capture all the special moments as they happen without resorting to flash or high-ISO settings.
During this part of the day, I like to combine multiple layers of story-telling into one composition. In the foreground of this photo, the maid of honor helps the bride. In the background, the bride’s friend and a flower girl look on with anticipation and excitement.
Layering different stories into a single photo is one of the most interesting yet challenging aspects of being a professional photographer. It takes patience for the right moment, an artistic eye, and technical skills to make everything line up within the frame. If done well, the result is a more powerful story-telling image.
I love this candid portrait of the bride in her wedding dress. The soft window light short lights her from camera-left. This technique highlights her facial features while a wide aperture blurs out the background.
As the mother of the bride approached, I anticipated an emotional interaction between the two of them. In order to capture the moment, I quietly moved into position and composed my shot.
After capturing this photo of the flower girls helping the bride with her wedding dress, I headed downstairs to the meet the groom.
Ceremony at the Woods
This is one of my favorite ceremony locations at the Ritz Carlton Lake Tahoe. The towering pine trees filter the afternoon sunlight, creating a beautifully backlit scene. This bride and groom wanted a late afternoon ceremony that began at 6:30pm. Although this is later than the standard ceremony time at most Lake Tahoe wedding venues, the Ritz Carlton will happily accommodate special requests like this.
Once the ceremony began, wedding guests passed around a small box with the wedding rings inside. This wedding tradition allows each friend or family member to make a wish for the happy couple. As each person holds the box, they say a prayer before passing it on.
When I photograph a wedding ceremony, I quietly and respectfully move around the scene. This way I can capture genuine expressions and important details like the bride and groom holding hands.
As everyone will tell you, a wedding day goes by so fast! This couple took a moment during their ceremony to be present, look at all of their guests and, simply appreciate the day.
The pastel floral arch was a picturesque backdrop for this ceremony. It framed the couple nicely as they recessed down the aisle!
After I made a few portraits of the bride and groom, they grabbed a quick selfie of themselves as well.
Fireside Terrace Cocktail Hour
The Fireside Terrace is one of the ceremony locations at Ritz Carlton. The space is also available for cocktail hour. The fireplace creates a nice atmosphere as guests enjoy champagne and hors d’oeuvres.
Since a few guests could not attend the wedding, the bride and groom spoke with them by video chat during the cocktail hour.
Pines Ballroom Wedding Reception
The Pines Ballroom is ideal for wedding receptions of up to 180 guests. It includes a private outdoor terrace with sunset views beyond the gondola towers.
Upon their grand entrance, the bride and groom wowed everyone with a choreographed first dance together.
After a few speeches, the bride and groom cut their wedding cake.
Next, the DJ turned down the lights and turned up the music. This was an awesome dance party with colorful lights and glowing LED fiber optic wands!
Wedding Photography Packages
This couple hired me for 8 hours. During this time, I photographed the bride getting ready, the ceremony, and the reception. If you are planning at wedding at the Ritz Carlton Lake Tahoe, then let’s talk!
For starters, let’s find out if I am available on your date. Swing my by my contact page and shoot me a message. If you would like to see more photos from this venue, check out my Ritz Carlton wedding photography page. Similarly, you can find more examples of my work on my main portfolio page.
