Part 1 – The (Almost) Flooded Wedding

As a wedding photographer, I see a lot of love and beauty during wedding days. However, I also see some strange and crazy things as well!  In this blog series, Adventures of a Wedding Photographer, I am going to share some of the craziest things that have happened to me while photographing weddings. Hopefully these stories will help future brides relax and realize that no wedding day is perfect. You just have to be ready to laugh it off and enjoy your day, no matter how crazy things get!

Gooseberry Park Moorhead

The very first wedding I ever photographed was on a beautiful summer day in Gooseberry Park. Gooseberry Park is a beautiful park located in one of the many bends of the Red River. It has a huge field, great trees along the river, and a large, covered shelter perfect for wedding ceremonies. Gooseberry also has a bridge that connects it to another picture-perfect park across the river. A walking bridge connects Gooseberry and Lindenwood Park, so the plan was to take photos on both sides of the river!

As the wedding day got closer, my bride texted me that they were keeping an eye on the rising river. Heavy rains were causing the Red River to creep towards the Gooseberry Park Shelter. I drove to the location to check it out and the water was just a few feet from the edge of the shelter! I couldn’t believe how close the water had gotten. If the water continued to rise, the wedding would no longer be able to be at the park. The bride and groom were very calm about the entire situation. We continued to monitor the water levels and I drove out to the park a few times leading up to the big day.

The Week of the Wedding

The week of the wedding the water finally stopped rising. However, the Red River was within inches of the Gooseberry shelter!  It’s almost like Mother Nature knew the shelter needed to be dry that Saturday. The only issue we faced now was the walking bridge to the neighboring Lindenwood Park. Due to the high waters, the park district had raised the bridge making it impossible to cross the river. Our plan to use both parks for pictures would no longer be an option. Due to the high water, we could not use the trees along the river for photos. It was time to get creative and find as many perfect locations in the park that were still dry!

When the wedding day finally arrived, no one cared that the river was so close or that things were a little muddy. It was a beautiful wedding and we found plenty of locations for photos! Now it is just a fun memory of the wedding ceremony that was almost in the river. That wedding taught me a lot about back-up plans and getting creative. Whether it is finding new photo locations last minute or preparing to move the wedding ceremony, wedding days are all about flexibility!

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Alecs Kay Photography is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer in Fargo, ND

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