ADVENTURE IN THE VERZASCA VALLEY

An unforgettable intimate wedding from California to Ticino, Switzerland. A wonderful couple, wrote me that they decided to celebrate their love with an intimate elopement, surrounded only by their closest family. I immediately knew that this was going to be a memorable day and definitely what I love to do most with my work: tell a story.

The Bride had a special connection to Switzerland: her grandmother was born here, between the deep blue of Lake Maggiore and the lush green of the surrounding mountains. And then, the dress. Not just any dress, but the very one her grandmother had worn on her wedding day, brought back to life with tailor-made adjustments to fit her perfectly. A perfect mix of tradition and modernity, past and present. I love it when a dress tells a story. But there was also another detail: in her bouquet she had a little frame with the picture of her grandmother, on one side and the picture of their dog on the other side: this made literally my heart melt.

The garden of a villa overlooking the lake in Minusio was the stage for the ceremony. But if that were not enough: the music for their ceremony was played by an Alphorn Player or Alphorn. Something more Swiss than this is not possible to have: I swear.

After we set off for the Verzasca Valley, a place straight out of a postcard. And here, in Sonogno, among stone alleys and houses frozen in time, we did most of the photo session.

My favorite shots? Probably ones by the waterfall named La Froda, near Sonogno, where the Bride, barefoot on the smooth rocks, laughed amid the splashes while the Groom held her. Smiles were the ever-present motif of this whole day. Seeing these two beautiful souls looking into each other’s eyes and smiling all the time, having fun and experiencing a memorable day is what I will also carry with me and hope to give back with my photos.

But it didn’t end there: in our preparatory emails before the big day, I had told the bride about a very typical Ticino restaurant, Grotto Efra. In this historic place you can eat typical dishes from the region and the valley, and needless to say, it is an enchanted place, truly fairytale-like. The icing on the cake was in the bride’s reply telling me that she found trace of this place right in her grandmother’s diary: it was meant to be.

Here the full Gallery

Getting Ready and Ceremony: Villa Margherita – Minusio, Switzerland

Dinner at Grotto Efra, Sonogno

Looking for the perfect place for your Bridal photoshoot or Elopement? Check out my List of beloved locations in Switzerland