I'm a lover of color, family, love, laughter + sunshine.
I also live on coffee + tacos, but what mom of toddlers doesn't?1
-Candice
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Sarah and her husband Buck were planning on taking a vacation in the beautiful state of Colorado, so they reached out to me for a very special anniversary session. Sarah is a wedding photographer based in Washington, DC so it was an honor to have her in front of my lens. We started the day down the road from Sarah’s family home…in a field of sunflowers. And ended the session with perfect morning light in Estes Park. Yeah, I’m okay waking up at 5:30am for that. 😉
Earlier that morning, I was prepping for an all day chat with Christy. It involved a coffee run, cleaning up dog toys, lighting candles, making sure my home was welcoming and what I would want to walk into after flying a thousand miles. Christy flew out from Wisconsin with her husband to have a mentoring session with me and recharge. It was such an honor to be even considered a “teacher” of something, anything.
I loved sharing what I learned over the years, and my favorite part of the day was photographing her and her husband! With thick clouds threatening to cut our sunset time short, we headed down the road from my house to one of my favorite locations. We ran though fields, battled mosquitoes (I might of lost that one), and chased the pretty golden light.
Justine + Jonathan’s nerd-tastic wedding was down to earth and perfectly them. They rented a house in Los Angeles for the weekend and invited their friends and family to watch them tie the knot! During the wedding day I saw the One Ring, two adorable Hobbits run around, and guests dancing with wands from Harry Potter. It was pretty cool if you ask me.
Venue: Private Estate || Coordinator: Joanne || Florist: The Flower Man || Hair/Makeup: Tina Tom | Cake: Portos Glendale
Jennica and Sergio have been together for 12 years, and even though some of that time was long distance, they are the type of couple that goofs around and loves on each other without restraint. As a photographer of love, this kinda thing makes my day.
Cuddles are awesome yo.
We started at Myrtle Creek Garden + Nursery in Fallbrook, California…and found out the company also owned Green Gables Wedding Estate (it’s where Jennica and Sergio are getting married next march!). The nursery is one of those locations where you can take 1/2 a day and just sit in the garden, it’s so relaxing and peaceful. If I didn’t live out of state I would of also taken a few plants home with me! The same owners run Twin Oaks House and Garden + Green Gables Wedding Estate!
At the end of the day, as Jay and I were driving away back to our AirBnb in Toronto I was thinking to myself that we were so lucky to be surrounded by such a loving group of individuals. It was an honor to be able to travel to a new city for Jen + Andrews wedding, and it all came to be because I photographed the proposal of Andrew’s best friend Chris. Funny how things work.
Thank you Jennifer + Andrew, thank you. Your wedding day was perfectly planned and you guys kept me grinning from ear to ear the entire day!
Venue: Eagle’s Nest Golf Club | Coordinator: Anastasia,Eagle’s Nest Golf Club | Florist: Lillian Floral Art Studio | Hair/Makeup: Bridal Secretary | Cake: Truffle Cake & Pastry| DJ: Fil de Guzman/DJ Bloo | Wedding Dress: Paris Fashion, Main Street Unionville, Markham, Ontario | Bridesmaid Dresses: The Bridal Studio, Richmond Hill, Ontario | Photobooth: PhotoBooth STAR | Favours: Starbucks| Sparklers: Victory Fireworks
Even before I walked into the Denver Country Club, my jaw dropped when I saw the beautiful reception tent. I might of even danced a little bit when I saw my favorite chairs. Yes, I nerd out over nice chairs. Throughout the day, I didn’t stop dancing. Kara of Kara Pearson Photography invited me to help her photograph the wedding of Kelsey + Dan, and I’m so grateful to have been a part of such a beautiful day. One new thing I learned about is a Southern Tradition of burying a bottle of bourbon! You can read more about it below:
Kevin and Tiffany can be added to one of the success stories on Match.com. They met 3 years ago and then they got engaged in Hawaii in 2014. One year later, they decided to get married at Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach, Ca. A romantic, elegant venue with a beautiful lake surrounded by a golf course. We chose this venue because it took our breathe away the first time we came here to check out the venue. Tiffany also wanted Tiffany Blue as her wedding color so the elegance of the venue made it a perfect match.
Venue: Old Ranch Country Club || Coordinator: Lauren Kadowaki || Florist: City of Commerce Flowers, INC. || Hair/Makeup: Hanna Choi Makeup || Cake: Sweet Traders || DJ: The Phatal DJ – Josh Pagtalunan || Bridemaids Dresses: The Peppy Studio || Wedding Dress: Mon Amie Bridal Salon || Lighting: Uplighting- De-Lighted
Megan + Jack “tied the knot” at one of the most beautiful locations in Colorado I’ve ever seen. The Home Ranch in Steamboat Springs, Colorado is a working dude ranch + luxury ranch rental where you can rent the entire property for all of your guests. It’s stunning and the people are even better than the view.
Venue: The Home Ranch || Florist & table design: Tall Tulips Flower Shop ||Coordinator: Lora Reichley – Last Call Floral + Events || Dress: Jenny Packham via Little White Dress Bridal Shop || Band: Missed The Boat
I met Leslie + Gal last December at Carly + Zack’s Disneyland Wedding, and since then Leslie has been the sweetest bride a girl can ask for! Leslie + Gal planned a personal, family centered event at Stephen S Wise Temple in Los Angeles, California. During the ceremony, the Rabi told personal stories of Leslie as a child, and family laughed at the memories!
Jewish weddings hold a soft spot in my heart, and nobody can beat the crazy dance floor! The grand entrance turned into a 30+ minute packed dance party + Hora! By the end of it I *might* have joined in!
It was a pretty good day filled with an amazing amount of portrait time. My favorite. 🙂
Venue: Monument Hill Country Club || Florist: Cathy Thurlby || Everything Else: DIY ||
Originally I wasn’t going to blog this welcome party…especially after being blown away by Krista + Michaels wedding day at the Lombardi House. But, I loooooooove shooting welcome parties. Or as I like to call them, extended cocktail hours of awesome.
As a main shooter, I don’t get the chance to photograph cocktail hours very often. I’m normally running around like crazy wrapping up portraits or setting up for the reception. But I love them. For reals. What other time do I get to joke + laugh with guests, and then switch gears and watch the crowds for a laugh or heartfelt hug?
When Krista + Micheal hired me for their Welcome Party I was excited to photograph at the Bates Motel again…but more-so I was excited to really get to know their friends + family. I heard inside jokes (why someone brought bananas with Krista’s name on them to the wedding), learned that Krista’s dad had a group friends he vacationed with every year for like 17 years, + got the scoop from Aunt Carol on who was who. Seriously, knowing and being around love fills my heart.
Universe: One day I want to only photograph entire wedding weekends. Because when you have 100+ of your friends and family fly in for your event, the things worth remembering don’t happen within 6 hours on your wedding day.
It was normal Colorado Mountain weather, sporadic rain clouds with pockets of beautiful blue skies. But those little rain clouds weren’t going to stop Teri + Ryan from getting married that day. After 8 years, they knew this was the perfect time for them. They drove down from Iowa with their close friends and family in tow.
Elopements are a photographers dream (or at least my dream!), we spend time photographing the sweet ceremony and then have the opportunity to drive around and explore a beautiful place – no stress, just beautiful couples portraits. Congratulations Teri + Ryan! And thank you for sharing that Summer Shandy with me, thats now my favorite seasonal airport drink! 😉
Location: Estes Park – Rocky Mountain National Park – Sprague Lake || Makeup: Dotted With Hearts Makeup Artistry || Dress Designer: Mori Lee ||
Hello and welcome!
A Northern Colorado and Fort Collins Wedding Photographer for couples that love color, laughter and relaxed moments. Candice Benjamin Photography
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© - Content and images in this blog are copyright Candice Benjamin Photography, LLC. unless stated otherwise. Feel free to repost or share images for non-commercial purpose, but please make sure to link back to this website and its original post.
Northern Colorado Photographer located in Greeley, CO
So fun and so colorful! That golden light with her golden dress is seriously breathtaking!
Wow! Amazing dress…the shot of them on the road…the lighting…so stunning!
Holy WOW! I dont even know what else to say. This session is stunning beyond words!
I love the vibrancy of the sunflower shots and the gentleness of the mountain photos. It’s so great to have amazing photos from both locations.
What? No way. These are too perfect! Her dress, the light, the landscape. Love!
The shots where you can see the whole sunflower field are just phenomenal. Amazing session! I love their look and their chemistry!
Oh my gosh!!! I love this session so much! I love the sunflowers! I LOVE her dress! These two are adorable!
Seriously now with that gold dress, wowowow!
Wow! These are gorgeous! And you hit up quite a range of locations. That dress is beautiful too!
What a beautiful couple! Those sunflower fields are amazing!
Her dress is gorgeous! I love the mountain inspired images the most! The lighting and posing is perfect
What a fun shoot! The color is amazing! Beautiful work!
Candice, all of these are amazing, but I am soooo in love with the sunflowers…just gorgeous!
BUT those wide shots in the sunflowers, doe!!!!
Oh. My. Goodness!! Everything here is amazing. I love when clients are open to things…and I love her dress.
Absolutely stunning photos! I feel like they’re right in the heart of Rocky Mountain National Park!
What a GORGEOUS, GORGEOUS session! I love the sunflowers, love the rocks, love the mountain views, WOW her freaking dress!!!! I love every image of the post. Wonderful job.