Bio Image Credit: The Kitcheners

Iceland Ice Cave Wedding

Styrmir Kári & Heiðdís are well-known Iceland wedding photographers who live in Reykjavik. So if anyone is perfectly suited to photographed an Iceland ice cave wedding, it is certainly these two.

As you’ll read below, Tarsilia – the bride – was 31 weeks pregnant which makes this story that much more remarkable. Then, there’s there ceremony location which is one of the most spectacular spots you’ll ever see – make sure you scroll the end to check it out.

If you’re not already following Styrmir Kári & Heiðdís, we encourage you to do so and if you want to learn more about them, here is a short interview we did with them a while back

*** Note – Do not attempt to walk in or around a glacier without a certified guide. You are risking death and no epic banger for the ‘gram is worth that. ***

Words & Images by Styrmir Kári & Heiðdís

This elopement took place, like all our weddings, in our home country of Iceland but what made it special and challenging to us was that the bride and groom wanted to hike up a glacier and have their ceremony in an ice cave in late November and the bride would be 31 weeks pregnant at the time.

Your first thought is of course excitement for the dope photos you can create but then the logistical nightmare of pulling something like this off kicks in and you quickly start to think of all the things that could go wrong, the weather, the road conditions, the very limited daylight hours, unpredictable nature of glaciers and the list goes on.

Thankfully we had the help of very knowledgable guides to help with the planning and being with us on the day.

Steady Focus

After all our worries about the weather and light things turned out to be perfect on the day. Clear skies the whole day and the light was that special kind that only Iceland can produce in the winter time.

But that still left us with all the other factors to worry about and to be completely honest we never felt that “ah-ha, we’ve got it” moment during the day. Not until we looked through the photos back home. But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, it made us push ourselves harder and not quit trying to make the photos represent the day truthfully.

Safety First

One of the biggest challenges during the day rose when we came to the ice cave and it was time to pick out the exact spot for the ceremony. The floor of an ice cave is carved out by rivers so it’s uneven to say the least.

Due to the popularity of the ice caves we only had a very narrow window of privacy before the next tour group would fill the cave. So quickly we narrow it down to two options.

The safe, more comfortable spot with easy lighting or the more dangerous one with the epic views illuminated by the low winter sun. After a quick discussion with the officiant and the couple we opted for the epic one and had to embrace the challenges that followed. Placing the couple at the edge of a crevasse, harsh light and no comfortable spot for us to work from.

The Team

Guide: Icepath

Glacier Guide / Driver: South Adventure

Nordic Chieftain: Haukur Bragason

Florist: Þórdís Z

The Conditions You’re Given

We try to enter each shoot with a blank slate and let the couple and the conditions on each day work as our inspiration.

And when working with a wonderful, easy going and adventurous couple in some of the most epic landscapes this planet has to offer, inspiration comes easy.