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Celeste made the most of her flowing white gown as we explored the Columbia River Gorge today. She climbed trees, waded in Oneonta Gorge, stood in front of Latourell Falls and Horsetail Falls, walked through the forest, ran down the road, and played with the falling leaves which are making the Gorge glow with color. We had a fabulous time, and she drew a lot of curious looks from the hikers (along with a few “Congratulations!” and “You go girl, I wish I’d done something cool with my wedding dress!”). I love Celeste’s hair. If I didn’t like her so much, I might try to steal it!

Her dress made it through in style, with a few muddy inches at the bottom but still in fine shape for dry cleaning and re-boxing. I can’t even tell you how much I love these non-destructive “Trash the Dress” sessions.

Here is the gorgeous Celeste:

Crisse is the single mother of two beautiful children, and an incredibly talented photographer (her loving shots of her daughter are amazing). She’s been carrying a huge box around for awhile now, containing her beautiful wedding dress from years ago. She loves that dress–it’s obvious by the way she talks about it and looks at it.

A few weeks back, we were talking about how much I’ve grown to love my “trash the dress” sessions and how I want to make them less destructive. Sure, we can go out to an unusual situation, but we don’t have to ruin the dress unless the bride chooses to. How about making memories and really getting the most out of this gorgeous (not to mention expensive) thing you’ve fallen in love with, having pictures that aren’t just of the wedding day but of something you pick? Princess, damsel in distress, warrior, poet, lady, girl, (Twelfth Night and Viola, which is what this reminds me of)… whatever part you want to play, but carrying the fantasy into a world of your choosing.

We brought her dress to a beach around Neah Bay on the Olympic Peninsula. Canada is in the background, with golden and bald eagles swirling over our heads. Crisse was absolutely radiant.

The brilliant thing? Her dress is far from being trashed. The hem got a little wet, but it could be drycleaned and good as new. How wonderful is it that we can do this without being destructive, unless we choose to be?

I’ve been working on a non-destructive term for “Trash the Dress” ever since my last blog post about it. I’m still working on it, but a good friend likened the process to falling in love all over again with a gown you thought you’d only get to wear the once. It’s a great concept, and I can’t tell you how much I love these sessions: seeing the girls’ eyes light up as they open the box, slipping back into the fairytale. It’s beautiful, and really, really touching. I can’t wait to continue the adventures.

All images copyright 2010 to Ara Roselani

When I first heard about “Trash the Dress” as a photography concept, I immediately thought, “I would never get my $500/$5,000/$500,000+ dress dirty! Are you kidding?” A bit later, it circled around in my brain as I set out for a hike above one of my favorite waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge. Wouldn’t it be cool if a bride stood facing the waterfall with her veil streaming out behind her? That’s stuff of fairy tales, right? I’m all about fairy tales.

It took a few months, but I found someone willing to do it. We got Sarah’s hair done at Pigment Salon and took a few shots around Portland before heading out to the Gorge. It was chilly and a bit rainy, so we had Horsetail Falls all to ourselves. The waterfall pounded with fresh snowmelt, sending billowing mist in waves of electricity through the air. Sarah and I laughed and laughed as we let her veil go–the blast from the waterfall blew it in flying wings out behind her. She looked like a princess. A few shutter snaps later, we piled back in the car with the heat on full. We were both incredibly happy–Sarah had the time of her life in a dress that would otherwise be in a box in a closet, and I had a mental vision come to life. Now her mom wants a large print for the living room.

After I’d pulled the pictures up and found the favorite, something really profound occurred to me. The idea of having an amazing portrait session in this beautiful dress you fell in love with and got married in, in a setting that’s really meaningful to you, providing closure to that time in your life. How many of us stuff our amazing dresses in a box in our closet/attic/basement and only bring them out once in awhile as a memory? Why not create photographic memories with this dress that last just as long, and maybe give us a chance to have fun in it instead of worrying what will get spilled on it?

Theresa wanted to give this a try with her dress after I showed her Sarah’s waterfall adventure. Her wedding was several years ago, and she was ready to take the dress back out of the closet. Why not on the back of her beautiful horse?

I now have a gentler view of “Trash the Dress”–instead of spilling paint on a dress, taking scissors to it, or tearing it to bits for the sake of art, I offer something potentially more meaningful: do what you love, where you just happen to be wearing your wedding dress. Maybe we shouldn’t even call it “Trash the Dress” with its negative connotations of destruction–maybe we could “reimagine” or “reinvent” the dress instead (I’ve also heard it called “Cherish the Dress”). Oh, and (hopefully) obviously, if you want to save the dress for your daughter or simply have no desire to get the dress of your dreams dirty, I would never push this option.

So, my lovely brides, what adventures can you, your dress and a camera share past your wedding day?

Larger versions of these photos are also in my portfolio.