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Queer. Plant enthusiast. Travel junkie. 98% tea.
Scroll down to learn more about me (hi, I'm Rachel), my approach to photography, and how we can make your elopement a reality.
Meet your elopement photographer
/ ride or die
Meet your elopement photographer / ride or die
about
I'm an Irish woman living with my British partner, our three-legged dog, and a houseplant collection that we'll never admit is "getting out of control."
The house is covered in dog fur and books, and seriously, not joking about the plant situation. ...We're running out of surfaces and floor space.
I grew up watching BBC crime dramas and never really stopped.
Running around in the mountains makes me happy (and usually there are tears). Getting to share those adventures with eloping couples makes me the happiest.
I'm the "B" in LGBTQ; all love is love, and you are so so welcome here, my darlings xx
I'm rachel
I love getting to know my couples before their elopement for a few reasons: for starters, your elopement is about you, not about me.
And the better I know you, the more likely I am to suss out the perfect location for you. Plus, if we aren't total strangers, it's not going to be weird when I'm third-wheeling your elopement.
connection is key
I don't ask Mr. Google to spit out the most popular trail in the area. No thanks.
I spend a staggering amount of time scouring maps and satellite images, driving and hiking around, and amassing a collection of locations that will suit any type of elopement, any couple's preference. ...It's kind of a huge part of my job.
I'm not just a photographer, I'm like your weird but fun aunt who lives in a cabin and knows how many trees are between here and that one rock she really likes.
location, location, location
The way I actually take photos is more of a documentary style. I'll offer suggestions and tips, but for the most part, I document how you and your partner are interacting with each other and with the environment. I'm not into orchestrating fake moments; your photos are going to look like you.
Next: all of your photos will be professionally edited, and I favour a true-to-life look. They aren't going to mimic whichever weird trend is taking off on Instagram. Why? Because I want you to be able to flip back through your album in 50 years and still love the photos. I don't want you to think "oof, those early 2000's, right? People were into some weird shit."
My photography style
I love getting to know my couples before their elopement for a few reasons: for starters, your elopement is about you, not about me.
And the better I know you, the more likely I am to suss out the perfect location for you. Plus, if we aren't total strangers, it's not going to be weird when I'm third-wheeling your elopement.
connection is key
I don't ask Mr. Google to spit out the most popular trail in the area. No thanks.
I spend a staggering amount of time scouring maps and satellite images, driving and hiking around, and amassing a collection of locations that will suit any type of elopement, any couple's preference. ...It's kind of a huge part of my job.
I'm not just a photographer, I'm like your weird but fun aunt who lives in a cabin and knows how many trees are between here and that one rock she really likes.
location, location, location
The way I actually take photos is more of a documentary style. I'll offer suggestions and tips, but for the most part, I document how you and your partner are interacting with each other and with the environment. I'm not into orchestrating fake moments; your photos are going to look like you.
Next: all of your photos will be professionally edited, and I favour a true-to-life look. They aren't going to mimic whichever weird trend is taking off on Instagram. Why? Because I want you to be able to flip back through your album in 50 years and still love the photos. I don't want you to think "oof, those early 2000's, right? People were into some weird shit."
My photography style
"Solar Rose Co."
Where in the name of pants did that come from? What does it mean?
I've always been a little off-kilter. Drawn to the road less traveled, saying "yes" every time someone tells me "no," mulishly stubborn in my convictions. There's always been that voice inside tugging me toward what I really want to do, and once I hear it, I can't ignore it. No matter what other people think.
I live for the raised eyebrow.
It was no surprise to anyone when my partner and I chose to elope instead of having a big, traditional wedding. it just wasn't our style. Getting married in front of a big pile of rocks by the sea absolutely was.
The compass tattoo on my back isn't about traveling, although with 16+ countries stamped in my passports and counting, I'm all about it. The compass is about the internal sense of direction that we all have. (...not literally, in my case. Can't navigate my way out of a paper bag with a map.) It's the drive that so many of us have to live life on our own terms. The voice that says, "This, this right here is the call we need to make. This right here is the choice that'll take us where we want to go."
I started photographing elopements because I knew I wasn't alone. I knew there were other couples out there who were attuned to what they really wanted, who knew that a big, fussy wedding wasn't for them. Who were brave enough to choose a different way to get married, one that reflected who they were and what mattered to them.
I'm not personally one for "woo woo" or life by the stars, but in the end, all of those different beliefs are rooted in the same thing, aren't they? Whether you're religious, spiritual, atheist, or cosmic, you're here (...on my website, not on this planet) because something is driving you to make this incredible choice and elope.
And I think you should listen to it.
ABOUT THE STUDIO
