A dreamy, cottagecore engagement session atop Lookout Mountain in Golden — drive-up, no hiking, and endlessly photogenic. Michelle wore her aunt's handmade 1970s wedding dress, adding dramatic sleeves that morning, and the golden light through the trees turned the whole afternoon into something out of a fantasy novel.

Matt planned for months to propose at Dream Lake, one of Rocky Mountain National Park's most beautiful spots — then a storm forecast forced a sunrise pivot and three busloads of teenagers turned up at the trailhead. The result was a surprise Dream Lake proposal (and an engagement session down the trail) with the most unexpected, cheering audience.

You can't say your vows at Dream Lake, but it might be the best place in Rocky Mountain National Park to get engaged, plan a proposal, or hike to for elopement portraits. A photographer's guide to the most photogenic mile in the park: the trail, the timed entry, the best light, and how to catch Hallett Peak mirrored in the water before the wind finds it.

Amanda and Matt got married at the courthouse. Then they drove three hours to Brainard with two dogs in tuxes and a marriage license that, in a plot twist, stayed home on the kitchen counter.

A sunrise engagement at Horsetooth Reservoir with two artists who were about to elope through Europe. Painter, musician, and an excellent custom ring.

The most dramatic alpine cirque in the Bear Lake corridor — and one of Rocky Mountain National Park's best spots for engagements, proposals, and elopement portraits (just not the ceremony itself). A photographer's guide to the hike past Nymph and Dream lakes, the timed entry, the seasons, and how to time the light before the wind finds the water.