Some couples come to us already knowing exactly what they want. Andi and Zak were that couple, and what they wanted was everything Crested Butte had to offer in a single summer morning: mountain views, wildflowers, an alpine lake, a waterfall, and their corgi mix, Alphie, featured throughout.
Andi is a nurse. Zak is an occupational therapist. They met on Hinge, had their first date at a park in Golden, Colorado, then walked to a brewery. Zak brought Alphie. Andi says it was love at first sight.
By the time they arrived in Crested Butte for their engagement session, Andi had been coming to the valley every summer for five years. Zak was visiting for only the second time. They brought their Tacoma, which is ready for mountain adventures, and a dog who wore his bandana proudly.
They also had something we don’t always get to see on day one: a couple that is laid back and completely, unself-consciously themselves together. The kind of pair that sits on the same side of the booth and doesn’t think twice about it. Our job on a session like this isn’t to create feelings or force poses; it’s simply to highlight a love that already thrives.
We started high. The kind of high where you can see ridge after ridge stacking up behind you, and the orange of the sneezeweed is still catching first light. Andi had requested wildflowers, mountains, and water — and we weren’t about to shortchange her on any of them.
Zak is naturally easy in front of a lens. Andi describes herself as a little shy at first, but “warm up quickly” is an understatement — within minutes, they were spinning, laughing, lifting each other, and generally making our jobs effortless. Alphie, for his part, sat directly between them in nearly every wide shot with the focused energy of a dog who understands his role completely.
The sunrise light in peak summer is something we never take for granted — warm and directional in the early hours, with just enough haze on the peaks to give the background that layered depth. We worked the ridgeline until the sun climbed, then headed down toward the lake.
The lake stop is always a shift in mood. The forest closes in, the light filters differently, and everything gets a little quieter and more elemental. We positioned them in the wildflower corridor along the shoreline where the orange blooms and the deep blue of the water frame the scene.
Andi and Zak didn’t need any direction here. They stood together, looked out across the water, and it looked exactly like what it was: two people who are genuinely comfortable being still together.
We saved the waterfall for last, and that was the right call. The energy shifted again — cooler, more dramatic, the rush of the water loud enough that you’re leaning in to be heard. We got the dip kiss on the rocks, the close portrait in the mist, and the wide environmental shot through the treeline that shows just how tucked-away and wild this spot actually is.
One image from this section — the intentionally soft, movement-forward frame with the waterfall filling the entire background — is one of our favorites from the full gallery.
Zak sourced Andi’s ring through Brilliant Earth, and every stone is lab-grown — a choice that mattered to her. The center stone is a blue diamond, flanked by two white diamond side stones on a gold band with organic, branch-like detailing. It photographs like it was made for Crested Butte: something elemental, something considered, something that looks stunning when highlighted with the natural wood texture.
Alphie is a corgi mix. He wore a striped serape bandana. He sat between his people in the wildflowers, rode on Zak’s arm during the golden hour portraits, and sprinted alongside them in the wide meadow frames with the kind of unbothered joy that makes every image better. He is extremely good at this.
We welcome dogs at every session, and we mean it. Bringing your dog isn’t a logistical consideration — it’s usually just the right call.
Location: Wildflower meadows, alpine lake, and waterfall near Crested Butte, Colorado Season: Peak summer wildflower season Session type: Sunrise multi-location engagement session Photographers: Lydia & T — Mountain Magic Media Website: mountainmagicmedia.com
If you’re looking for a Crested Butte engagement photographer — or a team that knows every wildflower meadow, lake, and waterfall in the Gunnison Valley — we’d love to hear from you.
