A same-sex pagan elopement at the Kirkjufell

Reflections on the day

Katherine and Kaeli dreamed of eloping in Iceland for a very long time, and wanted to have a heartfelt pagan ceremony in an iconic place. Initially, we planned their elopement in February, but life threw them a curved ball and we had to postpone in August. But it was truly the best idea, as February is generally a very windy and stormy month, and the day they chose did not disappoint: half of Iceland was on red alert due to a huge snow storm and it would have been impossible to go outside on that day (we would have made the best of it of course, and what is more Icelandic than a snow storm on your wedding day right?). So I would say they had a very good intuition!
However, their elopement day in August wasn’t a piece of cake either, as it was one of those days when it rains the whole day, whatever you’re doing, sun shining or not. But to be truly fair, it made for absolutely incredible atmospheres and shots, and since it was not freezing cold, just misty, they totally pulled it off!
We met in the beginning of the afternoon at a beautiful waterfall to start our photography journey. We took a few shots, then started an incredible your of a little piece of Iceland, stopping at pre-definded spots in the timeline I created, and some other spontaneous ones where the light and the atmosphere was totally magical.
After several hours exploring the most beautiful places of this little piece of Iceland, Kaeli changed into another suit as she wanted to wear the same attire as Katherine to exchange her vows. Then it was ceremony time! It was very important for Katherine and Kaeli to integrate a very Icelandic landmark into their ceremony, and the Kirkjufell is definitely one of them! We first chose to do it by the waterfall, but the wind made it absolutely impossible to get close to the water, so we chose to walk up high in the mountains to find a beautiful viewpoint on the Kirkjufell mountain. We followed one of my favorite hiking trails, all the way to a small overlook on the Witch’s hat mountain, and we settled.
The celebrant was no other than the high priestess of the Pagan organization in Iceland. It was an honor to witness such a beautiful and raw Pagan ceremony, that integrated all 4 elements: fire with 5 candles lit around the couple, in a star composition. Earth, with the mountains surrounding us and the stones below our feel. Air, with the wind hitting our bodies and refreshing our breaths. Water, with the rain pouring on our heads to help us enter in communion with nature and being just one with what we witnessed during the ceremony. Then it was time for Pagan wedding songs, Pagan wedding rituals like a hand-fasting ceremony, holding the ring of life and pouring water back into the earth. It was a true emotional moment, and as the rain washed away our tears one last time, Katherine said softly: “it’s like the earth is crying of happiness with us!”. And that concluded a beautiful and magical Pagan elopement in one of the most beautiful places in Iceland.