Costa Rica Trip // Exploring the Cloud Forests of Monteverde and La Fortuna

Thinking about travel right now amid the pandemic is a strange bittersweet thing. I am thankful to be safe at home. I’m thankful that our home has a backyard where I can sit in the sun. I’m thankful for all the opportunities I’ve had to travel up until now. But I’m also deeply missing exploring new places— both close to home and far away. My spouse and I had a trip scheduled for this April to Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon, which, as everyone had to do, we canceled. Exploring new places has always been a way for us to bond with each other, but I haven’t always prioritized traveling with my friends in the same way that I do my spouse. After this Costa Rica trip, it’s safe to say I am going to start traveling with friends more often— once it's safe and responsible to do so.

I took this adventure with three amazing women— we all met in the art department at U of L a decade ago. Crys Ludwick is an exceptional photographer— she documents weddings, families, and almost everything else. She is a powerhouse, the most supportive friend, a huge nerd, and a very adaptable driver. Any photo you see of me in this post was taken by her and I'm hugely thankful to have some images of me running around with a camera in hand. KTB is the art handler and maintenance woman for KMAC and is possibly the most capable person I know. She is the first person you would want to pick for your apocalypse team, looks tough but has the biggest heart, and is my go-to hiking companion. Sara Pitt is an amazing developer at Mightily. Under normal circumstances, she is at my house for dinner or drinks at least once a week. She is incredibly open, loves very deeply, is notably goofy, and is obsessed with her dog Lucy who is a very good girl. Pitt & I traveled to Peru together two years ago and it was such an amazing time.

I didn't know how much this trip would mean to me beforehand, but it deepened our friendships in a way I can't really describe. When you travel together, you get to see all the sides of someone. It's a really special thing to be open and vulnerable and silly and still be accepted and loved. I’m really thankful to have friends in my life who challenge me, support me, love me, and make me laugh so hard I can’t swim. 

On this trip, we hiked 28 miles, climbed up 4,260 steps, & saw more than a dozen waterfalls. I tried canyoning, zip-lining, and surfing for the first time. We made it through random injuries, cold showers, and bird attacks. We got to go on a night hike, walked on the hanging bridges, and went horseback riding along the beach. As a plant lover, getting to hike through the rainforest was one of my favorite experiences....seeing my houseplants out in the wild felt like a celebrity spotting every time. I also loved the feeling of swimming in a cool waterfall after a long hike. I could go on and on, but I think I should get to the photos before I ramble too much more.

Portugal Trip // Exploring the Azores, Lisbon, and the Algarve

My spouse had a ticket to visit Portugal back in 2010 (just a few months before we started dating)... but then that volcano in Iceland erupted and halted all flights to Europe for a few days. Long story short, they never ended up being able to visit until now. It's been a bucket list location for a while since their grandmother is from Portugal (and of course I’ve heard all about the perfect weather, clear water, great food, etc.)

Scheduling this trip in the middle of the fall wedding season was certainly a decision I questioned more than once, but ultimately it was the perfect way to recharge. It's really easy to fall victim to burnout in the wedding industry, especially for photographers, but I know I owe it to myself (and to my clients) to genuinely be enthusiastic about what I do. Because I make it a priority to schedule time off for myself, I am lucky enough to almost always love what I'm doing and to bring all my best energy to each couple I work with.

On this trip, we started and ended in Lisbon where we visited art museums and galleries, ate all the tapas, enjoyed live Fado music, relaxed on the balconies of our Airbnbs, and oohed and ahhed at all the gorgeous tile. We explored castles, their gardens, and greenhouses in Sintra— as well as a labyrinth of tunnels beneath one of those castles. In the Azores, we soaked in sub-tropical hot springs on a chilly day (and then ate a stew cooked in the geothermal water!), took many a foggy hike, walked along a crater lake, and swam under a waterfall at the end of a trail. In the Algarve, we stayed inside a windmill built in 1900 by our host's great grandfather, wandered along red rocky cliffs and through caves and tunnels leading to hidden beaches, and braved the chilly ocean water. It was one of my favorite vacations we've been on and I'm so excited to share some of the images with you all!

If you're wanted to see more travel photos, you can see images from our other adventures in the travel section of my blog.

Iceland Trip // Exploring the Southern Coast and Golden Circle

As a wedding photographer, Iceland has been on my bucket list of places to travel for a long, long time. My spouse Bobby and I planned a 10 day trip along the Southern Coast and I'm still over the moon that I got to photograph Jennifer & Tyler's engagement session while we were there! We spent the eight days we had to ourselves seeing as much as possible along the Golden Circle and Southern Coast.

We enjoyed getting to visit all those high traffic tourist locations like Geysir, Gullfoss, Seljalandsfoss, and Reynisfjara because they are obviously stunning...but boy did those crowds get to me. The places that ended up really staying with me were the ones that allowed us to experience the landscape more privately and the ones that made us feel like we discovered something new. 

One of my favorite experiences while we were there combined both of those things. We had plans to go on a specific trail, not realizing it was down an f-road. Since we didn't have a 4x4 vehicle, we pulled over at the next hike we saw instead. We walked down a gorgeous ravine, full of rowan trees, moss, & ferns, and found ourselves climbing up a couple small waterfalls with the help of ropes. It was magical enough finding this waterfall at the end of the hike, but being able to enjoy the whole experience completely alone made it incredible. I didn't take a ton of photos during this hike, but we set up the tripod once we made it to the final waterfall and got this image of the two of us snuggling and watching the falls. We ended up climbing up on top of the cliffs around the ravine, up to the mountain ridge, and then along it until we reached another waterfall and ravine. We spent four hours exploring and only ran into one other couple for a few minutes. We even made it back to the car before the storm rolled in. 

I can say without a doubt that Iceland lives up to all the hype and more. It was one of the most beautiful landscapes I've ever experienced - it's right up there with Peru for me. If you are planning a trip of your own, please familiarize yourself with what you need to know before visiting the country as well as Leave No Trace guidelines for visiting anywhere. Specifically, in Iceland, you've got to be careful not to step on the moss since it can take decades or longer to regrow. With strong ocean currents, thirty active volcanoes, huge waterfalls, glacier lagoons, and geothermic hot springs you also need to make sure you are behaving in a way that protects yourself as well as the landscape.