With low, flat plains and remnants of prairie life next door to modern cities and high-rise buildings, Nebraska is the state of choice for Midwesterners who like a slice of Americana with their modernity. Nebraska's unique urban-with-a-rural-backyard geography also makes it an ideal setting for your engagement or wedding photos. If you're looking for a state that will perfectly capture the romance of your big day amidst a dramatic natural background, you've come to the right place. Nebraska is filled with popular historical and cultural sites that your Nebraska wedding photographer will use to perfect effect in your engagement or wedding photos. You don't have to leave the city to get a taste of the country, though - many Omaha residents choose to shoot their engagement photos or host wedding receptions and parties at Lauritzen Gardens, Omaha Botanical Center - what better way to celebrate a joyous occasion than by surrounding yourself with acres and acres of flowers?
Nebraska's capital, Lincoln, offers even more opportunity for memorable wedding photos. The flagship campus of the University of Nebraska system, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), announced in 2010 that it will join the prestigious Big Ten Athletic Conference in 2011; Lincoln residents are thrilled, and there's never been a better time to be on campus. A Nebraska wedding photographer would direct couples with a flair for the dramatic to UNL's Behlen Observatory, an astronomical observatory open to the public (check specific dates on the school's site). It's a particularly good backdrop for engagement photos. The UNL's Sheldon Museum of Art, which houses a prominent collection of 19th century and contemporary American art and features a Sculpture Garden also offers a great opportunity for out-of-the-ordinary engagement and wedding photography.
Nebraskans who want their big day to include a bit of the state's natural beauty should check out Indian Cave State Park, located in Shubert. The park encompasses 3,000 acres along the Missouri River - plenty of room for even the largest wedding party. The historically-minded might be directed by their Nebraska wedding photographer to the Wessels Living History Farm in York (which, like Shubert, is in the Southeast region of the state). Guided tours reveal a peek into pioneer life, and the area's rustic beauty makes it the perfect setting for a wedding. A great deal of north-central Nebraska is covered by the Sand Hills, a prairie set on grass-stabilized sand dunes; most the area has never been plowed, and it retains the same natural beauty that it's displayed for hundreds of years. Many Nebraskans - and Nebraska wedding photographers - consider the Sand Hills Nebraska's most perfect area for engagement parties or weddings. Valentine, located in Northwestern Nebraska, is the home of the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge, an area that the Sand Hills encompasses. The 19,000+ acre wildlife refuge is home to many types of flora and fauna and, as such, makes an exotic backdrop for engagement and wedding photos.
Heading 'Out West' has the same connotations - almost - today in Nebraska that it did 200 years ago. The stark splendor of pioneer-era Western Nebraska is preserved in Lewellen's Ash Hollow State Park, whose ground is studded with wagon ruts. The geographical piece de resistance of Western Nebraska is Bayard's Chimney Rock National Historic Site. Chimney Rock is a geographical formation that, at its highest point, rises 4,226 feet above sea level. As any Nebraska wedding photographer will tell you, there's no place in the state more dramatic or historically important (it served as a landmark along the Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail and California Trail) to take engagement or wedding photos.