Ok, so I’ll admit most people don’t set out to plan a Smokey Lake Louise wedding, but the reality is it’s happening more often in the past few years. When there isn’t enough snow and rain, the likelihood of wildfires is real. Mid-July until September can be very smokey int he mountains. Though the fires are burning a few hours away (although they have gotten a bit close in recent years), the smokey can travel vast distances. It’s not uncommon to see the smoke in Lake Louise, in Banff, in Canmore and even into the neighbouring provinces. As photographers, we have absolutely no control over the the smoke or the weather.We’d love to give those clear, pristine photos people see online but when we are fighting weather and smoke, it just can’t happen. There are places that you can go that don’t look as smokey, there’s always that options to change locations. Lake Louise is a particularly tricky spot when it’s smokey, especially on a sunny day, because the light falls behind the mountains and the lake, basically the view everyone wants, but all of that light dissipates in the smoke, thus losing the view. There is no way to bring it back. I can’t light it differently to make those hidden mountains show up. I can’t make it any less bright. This doesn’t mean it’s not beautiful still, it’s just different. So for Suzie & Ben’s smokey Lake Louise wedding, you can see the full effects of the wildfire smoke at play. Until it rains or the wind shifts, that smoke will take over Lake Louise.

We had a brief ceremony on the upper meadow and it was basically a whiteout behind us with the smoke. There was no view to be had. It didn’t matter that they travelled from Europe to get married there. That smoke wasn’t going away and the view was gone. But they still got married and it was still an amazing day. We used the the paths and the trees more and made photos that I love. It was nice to not just fixate on that same back drop for every photo. These are some of my favourite photos from Suzie & Ben’s smokey Lake Louise wedding. It wasn’t the first smokey wedding I’ve photographed and I’m sad to say it won’t be the last. As time goes on, these forest fires are becoming our reality. Fingers crossed we get lots of rain this year and people become smarter and stop doing things that cause these fires to start in the first place.

This little girl really wanted a photo with the princess! That’s something you can expect to happen when you get married at Lake Louise.

With all of that smoke bouncing the light around, it was hard to get the water to look like that turquoise you see in photos so often. The water was just looking super pale. So I decided to hike up my skirt and wade out into that crazy cold water to my thighs to try to get a different angle to make the water show up better. That 5 minutes was rough out in the cold water but I do love see the shore from a different angle! And I left the random people in this shot, because they truly are everywhere and it’s hard to not get a tourist in the photos when you shoot at these kind of locations.

Smokey Lake Louise Wedding Vendors:

Lake Louise Wedding Planner: Something New Weddings
Lake Louise Wedding Commissioner: Aydin Odyakmaz
Florals: Forget Me Not Flowers
Wedding Venue: Lake Louise
Hair & Make-up: Mountain Beauties

Are you newly engaged and are thinking about planning a Smokey Lake Louise wedding? I would love to photograph your summer elopement or intimate wedding in the Canadian Rocky Mountains! Please get in touch for more information on Banff elopement wedding packages or for other mountain wedding destinations like Canmore, Kananaskis, Emerald Lake, Lake Louise, Peyto Lake or Moraine Lake. If you aren’t in the market for a summer elopement, I also do couples, anniversary sessions & proposals!

I’m also booking weddings & portraits in Calgary if you aren’t heading to the mountains! I’d love to be your Calgary wedding photographer!

Looking for more Lake Louise wedding photos? Check out this Chateau Lake Louise Wedding! How about this winter Lake Louise elopement! Maybe this Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise winter wedding! Or this Lake Louise outdoor wedding! How about this Lake Louise summer wedding! Or this Lake Louise elopement with the ceremony on the Balcony of the Belvedere Suite! Maybe this windy Lake Louise wedding!