When the girls came to get ready at the house and we started opening gifts, I put the camera down and let Mark take over so I could get teary eyed over the sweet gifts my sister had picked out for each individual friend. Dad had made trays from the horseshoes at my Mom's barn to hold the abundance of gifts.
Keithe watched as we all went through the sweet cards and jewerly. She was absolutely stunning just hanging out in pre-wedding casual attire, smiling all morning. We all got our hair done, got dressed, and waited to see Keithe's dress. I got to capture the moments Mom helped her get into her dress and thank god I made her tried it on previously so I could get the crying out of the way. I've seen beautiful brides and beautiful dresses but she looked like an absolute princess. And for all the crap I have to say about strapless dresses and yanking on them to keep them up, fake armpit fat, etc, it looked PERFECT on her.
And of course, the other beautiful woman of the day, my mother.. Between the two of them I was blinded by the glow they both seemed to be immersed in. As Keithe tied the sash around her waist, Dad came around the corner for a first look, eyes lit up with joy. Everyone was so happy all morning. Everything went absolutely perfectly.
The images that I got from the ceremony are incredible. I knew they would be great too, after seeing how beautiful the back yard looked first thing in the morning, the dew glimmering off the perfectly green grass. It was in my parents back yard; the same place my parents got married in over 30 years ago. The perfect weather dried the dew as the benches and hay bails and picnic blankets were put out for seating.
The ceremony was a complete blur to me, like a dream. When I could see through the happy-tears, I was shooting.
The ceremony was beautiful and non-traditional. The boy from Alabama (Jon) stepped on the glass and when everyone heard the smash, "Mazel Tov!" Keithe and Jon and the bridal party all got on the bus to head to the reception. Cocktail Hour was outside in the courtyard of Crompton Collection. We had a mini-formal shoot including bridal party and immediate family.
nIntros and First Dance absolutely flew by. My favorite father/daughter dance happened and I got teary-eyed again. With the rush of the day, I almost forgot to feed my second shooter, Mark, who was responsible for an incredibly successful Photo booth.
No mustaches were used in the making of this photo booth. (Yes, I do hate photo booth mustaches)
To add to the perfection of the night, the last song was "Call Me Al" by Paul Simon, bringing Mom, Dad, Keithe and me into a carousel of cotton-candy martini-induced last dance. The bridal party headed to the After Party at the beautifully redone bar at Beechwood Hotel. We noshed on the dessert and grilled cheese leftovers and said goodnight.
I would love to shoot more weddings like this. If you're a bride or groom looking for tips to make your wedding photogenic and blog-worthy, check out Wedding Schedding, my tips and photography-standpoint opinions: http://www.weddingschwedding.wordpress.com
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It was easy getting along with all the groomsmen as they loosened up in the backyard with a drink and Adam gave them all gifts.
Meanwhile, Val was upstairs in her home holding back tears with the anticipation of being with the man of her dreams.
The ceremony was one to remember. The reception, even more so. Their cake cutting was a BBQ themed cupcake style dessert spread. Check it out.
Last but not least we used their tire swing in the backyard to get some awesome silhouette-style photos of just the two of them, though keeping them away from the rest of their party was hard 'cause it was awwwwesome!
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Michael waited for his bride with a special gift that he actually forgot all about upon seeing Lisa. He had to be reminded to give it to her since he was so awe-struck!
I've got to say my favorite part was doing a shoot with the kids around the mountain. We thought they'd be hard to get to smile but we could barely keep them out of the shot! See the rest of the album for the wolf costume photo bombs, dinosaur cake, and more. :) Also - the very first Tom & J Slow-Mo Video booth video at the bottom of the page! Check it out!
Till next time,
J
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