Average Photography Price Point is $5,000-8,000, but let’s talk about your budget and needs and find a win-win.
Michael brings a unique skill set and perspective to his adventure elopements and weddings that sets him apart from a typical wedding photographer. Michael is an outdoor enthusiast and brings decades of experience exploring various landscapes. His knowledge of the land is something that cannot be taught, and most certainly cannot be duplicated by simply taking a traditional wedding shoot outdoors. One of the things that really sets Michael apart from a traditional wedding photographer is his unique understanding of natural light, landscape, and weather. This understanding allows him to maneuver and anticipate conditions as he shoots in both familiar and new locations. Michael’s ability to scout and select beautiful and “off the beaten path” locations is a clear reflection of his decades of experience as an outdoor photographer, his passion for making connections through shared exploration, and his genuine respect for the land.
- Kristin De More

Couples
Take the breaks off and let's get lost in a wild landscape and make epic images. Fly a drone, bring my water housing, or you can cross a river, climb a mountain or swim in a waterfall. It's so fun to let loose and capture your connection without anything keeping you from your craziest, goofiest and best selves. These sessions are often used as an engagement portraits and sometimes proposals, which are so exciting.
Starting at $2,995Elopements
These authentic moments are filled with more than just adventure thrills, there is weight in the words and tears that are shared. The epic locations that we explore together become your sacred touch points, places and moments you never forget and you have the photographs to cherish for a lifetime. These moments are yours to treasure and tell your unique love story. This is your grand adventure to craft and celebrate the way you choose.
Starting at $4,995

Weddings
This tradition spans the ages and has been a rite of passage that crosses culture and epochs. It's also one hell of a party full of friends, family and loved ones. It is not often that we are given the opportunity to call all those closest to us to come together, and your wedding is just this; your once in a lifetime calling card to get the whole band together, to celebrate the joy you have discovered in another.
Starting at $5,995LGBTQ Adventure Elopements and Weddings
Michael Morse photographer believes in Marriage Equality and I have been trusted by many couples in the LGBTQ community to photograph their adventure elopements and weddings. I feel honored to be an ally for all couples. I have learned so much about partnership and the meaning of marriage from being a part of LGBTQ adventure elopements.
Most of my couples hire me because they feel a connection to my style of photography and values. I believe love is the thing we are doing right in the world. I want to craft sacred and bold experiences in nature with my couples. I feel deeply we are a part of something bigger and I aim to stand in awe of this beautiful truth. I hope you can see and feel this come through in my photography. My early years as a wedding photographer made me feel I did not fit in the industry and I did not fit. The weddings felt like a show of trite trends, formalities and reaching deep to impress. I did not enjoy being a part of these traditional and formal golf course and yacht club celebrations. Now that I have found my grove and my people as an adventure elopement and wedding photographer, I deeply enjoy my work and clients. I get to be fully myself, and I feel valued now! It seems this feeling becomes contiguous and my clients get to be themselves on their celebration day, they feel valued, we feel a mutual feeling of belonging. Belonging with each other in these moments, belonging in nature, chasing beauty and its life changing.
Destination Weddings & Elopements
"The earth has music for those who listen . . ."
William Shakespeare
As an adventure and destination wedding photographer, I focus on crafting authentic portraits set to the music of nature. The wilderness beckons the romantic heart and there’s just nothing more satisfying than capturing the joy of two souls entering a new chapter in their journey, especially while surrounded by incredible mountain vistas, towering redwoods or perhaps the beauty of the wild ocean.
Pushing the boundaries of wedding and elopement photography inspires me! Sometimes my couples even introduce me to an undiscovered landscape, breathing so much life into my heart. Sometimes couples bring friends and family, sometimes it’s just the two of them, me and my camera, but we always bond as we share these wild spaces while creating unforgettable images.
Some of my favorite adventure portrait sessions end with us laughing over a cold beer and waiting for an opportunity to capture just one last photograph under the stars. My photography and editing style is unique, timeless and, always, flattering. These will be images you will be proud to revisit and display for a lifetime. Whether you crave an alpine wedding surrounding by friends and family or prefer to share your vows privately in a beautiful wilderness setting, I’m happy to help create these images and experiences.
Elopement Photography – Capturing & Crafting Your Ultimate Adventure
"Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back . . ."
Plato
What does your heart seek? A California alpine elopement? A Pacific Northwest elopement? Perhaps a back-country Colorado elopement? These amazing locations are among my areas of specialization.
Throughout the last 25 years, I have developed an intimate knowledge of the Western United States landscape, and feel grateful that couples feel compelled to exchange their vows in these magical, inspiring places and they bring me along for the ride.
Being able to share these wild spaces with my clients has been such a fulfilling experience. I never intended to monetize my passion to explore nature, it has turned out to be valuable for couples that long to be married in these enchanting locations that I have come understand intimately.
And, I’m happy to say that those hundreds of golf course, hotel and yacht club weddings provided me with the experience and hours needed to become an expert event photographer. I have simply found that nature is the best place to put my skill set to use.
Some of my favorite spots include the San Juan Mountains near Telluride, which offer such a unique mix of southwestern color with a jagged awe. Throughout the last 10 years, I have spent extensive time in the San Juan Mountains and continue to find inspiration among these peaks.
Growing up in the Sierra Mountains, I find that these vistas truly comfort my soul beyond words. Perhaps John Muir said it best, “going to the mountains is going home.” Yosemite, particularly, is a spot that speaks to my heart.
These two locations, Telluride and Yosemite, are where I spend the most time.
I LOVE A GOOD STORY. LET ME HELP TELL YOURS.
For the last 15 years, we have traveled the world capturing extraordinary moments in clients’ lives. Adventuring on bikes, boards, and boots are ways we connect with nature and friends. When Michael is not behind the camera, you’ll find us in the mountains or in the ocean. We are grateful to be a part of clients’ destination weddings, participate in humanitarian projects, and spend time in nature as part of our career. Each year, we donate a portion of time and income to collaborations with global non-profits. This work has taken us to places ranging from Nepal and Sri Lanka to Greece and New Orleans. The resulting photographs raise social awareness of humanitarian crises, help monitor situations on the ground, and tell the critically important human stories behind the headlines.
Whether your story takes us to an exotic destination or simply around the corner, Michael will work with you to understand your vision and deliver images that hit the mark. Every wedding, every couple, and every family has a unique story. We help tell yours through compelling, authentic photos in nature. In addition to creating beautiful images, we work hard to create experiences in nature that are meaningful and unforgettable.
Telluride Elopements
Being a Telluride elopement photographer is all about crafting and collaborating on an unforgettable adventure with my clients. I take them to iconic vistas that showcase the majestic nature of this area. Sometimes my clients have specific locations in mind, and sometimes they rely on my intimate knowledge of the Telluride area.
There are many ways to access the Telluride elopement landscape – 4x4, gondola, hiking, snowshoes, snowmobiles or skis. For some photography sessions, we stay on paved roads, while for other portraits sessions, the wedding dress is packed into a backpack until we reach the peak of a mountain. I find the experience of being a Telluride elopement photographer so live-giving and a dream come true.
Yosemite Elopements
To be honest, to be a Yosemite elopement photography requires a lifetime of knowledge about this amazing national park. Yosemite literally receives millions of visitors each year and to gracefully navigate this traffic can be an art unto itself. I have little nooks and vistas that I take my clients to that I have spent a lifetime discovering. Sure, I know how to ask a crowd to politely move aside, but I choose to avoid the crowd all together on these Yosemite adventures.
I know my clients find that being able to trust me to help plan, schedule and scout locations for their wedding day is an important reason they value my services. I enjoy unlocking these grand alpine adventures and taking couples to spaces they likely would never find on their own.
Other Possibilities . . .
While I spend much of my time working as a Telluride elopement photographer or as a Yosemite elopement photographer, I’m up for just about any adventure. We can head to the Pacific Northwest and snap photos in an untamed Oregon rainforest or perhaps along the beaches of La Push in the Olympic National Park.
Whether your dream is an elopement with a romantic Hawaiian vista in the background or you long for the allure of the Italian Alps, I’m up for just about any adventure. Whether you love Mammoth, Tahoe, Aspen, Fiji, Baja or somewhere else, let’s talk about the possibilities. I love a good story, let me tell yours . . .
Wedding Photography – Timeless Images to Treasure for a Lifetime
"Love is like a friendship caught on fire . . ."
Jeremy Taylor
It’s your dream come true – your destination wedding day. I enjoy pushing the boundaries of what you imagined wedding photography could be. I bring 20 years of exploration and photography experience to the table and know how to craft an experience that will exceed your expectations.
As a professional wedding photographer, I believe it’s my job to help capture the essence of each couple’s spirit and this is an art that is always evolving and is a grand adventure in itself.
While I showcase meaningful images on my website that spark my own passion, I understand that there are many other components that must be documented as a wedding photographer. After capturing more than 500 weddings, I have mastery of all the expectations you have as well as some you didn’t even realize you had.
I know how to move through a shot list without using it, how to capture your details creatively, and I have different strategies for different segments of the event. If you would like to see examples of a full wedding I have shot, please feel free to ask and I can share a link. I would like to share a wedding that is relevant to yours so that you can envision what you should expect to receive when you hire me to be your wedding photographer.
While I have completed hundreds of traditional weddings, it’s the destination events that truly spark my passion. Two of my favorite spots for a destination wedding are Yosemite and Telluride, which truly provide some of the most magical and romantic backdrops on earth.
Telluride Weddings – Every time I return to the mountains surrounding Telluride, I am surprised by something new – an amazing sunrise, the flicking of light as it dances across a mountain stream, or just the movement of clouds casting shadows on the mountain peaks.
It’s a fantastic venue for a destination wedding. A picture-perfect historic mountain town that looks amazing every season of the year. As a Telluride wedding photographer, I have spent extensive time exploring Telluride and the surrounding San Juan Mountains and am not only familiar with the dramatic landscapes, but also the many outstanding wedding venues. I am grateful to be on many of the Telluride-area vendor lists and happy that they trust me as a preferred vendor.
Yosemite Weddings – I grew up in the Sierras, and any time I have the opportunity to shoot a Yosemite wedding, it’s like coming home. Whether you choose to hold your ceremony and reception inside the park or somewhere outside the park, I am a Yosemite wedding photographer with the experience necessary to capture exceptional images of your ceremony and reception in addition to the landscape portraits we will create.
As a Yosemite wedding photographer, I fully understand the challenges of capturing amazing images in a park that is often full of other tourists there to enjoy this natural wonder. I’ve spent years exploring Yosemite, and for your landscape portraits, I can find some secret spots and unique vistas that you likely would never find on your own.
Additional Destinations
While I love the Sierras and the San Juan’s, the world is full of promising wedding destinations and I have been grateful to capture timeless images for couples at various spots around the globe.
Whether you love the slopes of Mammoth or Tahoe or long for a wedding by the sea or perhaps Haleakala at sunrise, I am happy to come along for the journey. As a destination wedding photographer, I have traveled to the Italian Alps, the Baja coast, the shores of Hawaii, Pacific Northwest rainforests and much more. Give me a call and let’s discover a destination wedding spot that truly speaks to your souls.
Photography Style
"You don’t take a photograph, you make it . . ."
Ansel Adams
My photography style has been described as mountain rustic and timeless. I create images with a vintage flair and a classic ambiance, photography that will still be viewed as authentic when the latest editing trends have passed. That said, I am always learning about the latest trends and editing techniques and using them to inform how I process your images.
Photographing people in grand landscapes is a unique skill set that requires me to blend multiple photographic disciplines – landscape work and portrait work. Often, a photographer is good at one type of photography, but not able to blend methods without sacrificing important components in each sphere. Fortunately, I have a knack for incorporating portraits in epic landscapes.
I believe that if you are choosing to elope or have a wedding in an awe-inspiring setting, you desire to show it off well, it’s an important part of the matrimonial experience. Striking a balance between landscape and portrait photography is an art, and it’s important to find a photographer who does this well.
I always include a variety of grand landscapes, portraits, candid shots, journalistic images, romantic compositions and a few silly, whimsical shots to capture the excitement of the day. The primary intention is to craft a fun adventure for my clients while creating unforgettable images at the same time. Your portrait session isn’t just a photoshoot; it’s an event to relive again and again.
PRAISE
Best wedding photographer we could ever have asked for!
He was one of the best parts about our wedding day. He was able to capture our wedding day in a way we didn’t think possible. He’s just a super cool guy! He was able to see pictures that we didn’t even think about. When we received our photos, we were amazed. We would hire Mike again in a second!
Unique, heartfelt, and filled with smiles!
Mike was so utterly fantastic! Not only did he make us feel like we were old friends of his, but also like we were models for a day. His experience and artistic eye make for gorgeous one-of-a-kind photos, that don’t just capture the wedding, but make the memories art! We have so many beautiful and creative photos that we get to cherish.
The Best!!!
Don’t let his laid back, surfer boy looks and attitude fool you. He is friendly, easy going and great to work with, but also very professional and knows exactly what he is doing!!! I couldn’t have been any happier with the final results!! When all is said and done, it’s the pictures that will last forever 🙂 Thank You, Mike Morse!!
A truly spectacular job!
Mike’s skill as an artist is undeniable and to have him there was a delight. He had a smile on his face from beginning to end. Mike’s skill as a photographer is incredible. Whenever my wife and I share our wedding album someone is always sure to demand to know who photographed it. Pure skill aside, Mike, was absolutely respectful and courteous to everyone. Mike had a natural authority that was cheerful, firm, and very respectful. I would highly recommend Mike.
Best pictures of the best day!
Our entire family loved working with Mike and he made everyone feel comfortable and like they made a new friend that night. Mike’s keen eye for lighting and spontaneous jumping through the bushes to capture the perfect look on someone’s face, and adding in his professional love for photography. I recommend him whole-heartedly for your wedding. Truly professional and I must say patient with some of my bridezilla antics!