So we're at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, MA. I photographed a wedding here in 2010 outdoors so I was very curious about how an indoor ceremony in the great room would look. If you're considering a fall wedding it's very important to think about the light when planning your timeline. Liz & Tim's wedding ceremony took place at 6pm and if we'd had to do pictures afterwards it would have been completely dark - luckily they were smart and we did all the pictures before :)
I have to give a shout out to Kezia Bacon-Bernstein, the wedding celebrant. Kezia was super organized (I was stoked to get a copy of the wedding ceremony in advance so I knew exactly what would be happening) and she also stood to the side of Liz and Tim for much of the ceremony which meant that not only did they face their friends and family but also that I got some clean pictures of the kiss. Thank you Kezia!
Kieran read e.e. cummings "i carry your heart with me" beautifully:
You don't need me to tell you that this was an emotional wedding ceremony - the pictures literally speak volumes:
Sarah read Autumn by Garrison Keillor. This was the first time I've heard this reading and I don't think you could find a better poem for an October wedding.
To continue the incredibly personal ceremony, Liz's cousins sang Songbird which if you're not familiar with you should be :) The incredible Ben from Avenna Studios was shooting with me for the day and the awesome image on the bottom right is his:
Couples that have already done their engagement pictures with me will know of my personal dislike of spare hands. You know what I mean - you see a beautiful picture of a couple but their hands are hanging limply by their sides. So I like the way Tim kissed Liz - like he meant it :)
Umm, happy much?
Regular blog readers will know I'm a sucker for grandparents. I have one amazing Grandmother (who I skyped with yesterday - my nan is down with the kids with her use of the interwebs) and I cannot WAIT to see her in a few weeks when we go back to the UK for Christmas! So I love these pictures of Liz and Tim with her grandmother:
Immediately after the ceremony Liz and Tim wanted to have a little alone time so they headed into the Orangerie. I didn't want to intrude but I figured a picture through the door with me hiding behind a large pot plant with my 70-200mm lens wouldn't be breaking the rules....
Ack, where to start on the food. I can't tell you how amazing the food was - from the tuna tartare cones and mini grilled cheese appetizers to the gazillion course tasting menu for dinner - wow.
I have to give a shout out to Kezia Bacon-Bernstein, the wedding celebrant. Kezia was super organized (I was stoked to get a copy of the wedding ceremony in advance so I knew exactly what would be happening) and she also stood to the side of Liz and Tim for much of the ceremony which meant that not only did they face their friends and family but also that I got some clean pictures of the kiss. Thank you Kezia!
Kieran read e.e. cummings "i carry your heart with me" beautifully:
You don't need me to tell you that this was an emotional wedding ceremony - the pictures literally speak volumes:
Sarah read Autumn by Garrison Keillor. This was the first time I've heard this reading and I don't think you could find a better poem for an October wedding.
To continue the incredibly personal ceremony, Liz's cousins sang Songbird which if you're not familiar with you should be :) The incredible Ben from Avenna Studios was shooting with me for the day and the awesome image on the bottom right is his:
Couples that have already done their engagement pictures with me will know of my personal dislike of spare hands. You know what I mean - you see a beautiful picture of a couple but their hands are hanging limply by their sides. So I like the way Tim kissed Liz - like he meant it :)
Umm, happy much?
Regular blog readers will know I'm a sucker for grandparents. I have one amazing Grandmother (who I skyped with yesterday - my nan is down with the kids with her use of the interwebs) and I cannot WAIT to see her in a few weeks when we go back to the UK for Christmas! So I love these pictures of Liz and Tim with her grandmother:
Immediately after the ceremony Liz and Tim wanted to have a little alone time so they headed into the Orangerie. I didn't want to intrude but I figured a picture through the door with me hiding behind a large pot plant with my 70-200mm lens wouldn't be breaking the rules....
Ack, where to start on the food. I can't tell you how amazing the food was - from the tuna tartare cones and mini grilled cheese appetizers to the gazillion course tasting menu for dinner - wow.
I blogged a while ago about my deadly pistachio allergy and whenever couples contact me about vendor meal options I usually just mention that I'm super flexible (chicken, beef, veg - after 6-8 hours of working with the rest of the reception to go any hot meal is welcome!) but if there are any pistachio nuts on the menu I'll bring my own food. Liz not only nixed the pistachios in the salad (I protested vehemently against this until she insisted she wasn't a huge pistachio fan) but insisted that Ben and I eat the WHOLE 9 course tasting menu. Oh those short ribs....and the risotto...mmm the pumpkin ravioli....
Loved the escort card tree:
Love Liz's reaction more. And adore Tim looking at Liz:
Possibly the most fierce bridesmaids entering cocktail hour:
The great room looked beautiful. Flowers by Michele Bernard who is always awesome:
Lots of cozy and happy moments during the toasts:
Let them eat cake!
We then headed into the lobby/reception area of Tower Hill for the dancing part of the evening. I was a little unsure of how this would work but it was a perfect space for partying! Incadence rocked it out with everything from the Black Eyed Peas to slow dances to "Don't Stop Believin'". Liz & Tim's dance lessons payed off:
I'll be completely honest. The next picture was a flash mis-fire. My off-camera flash (for backlight) fired but the on-camera flash didn't (totally normal occurrence when you're shooting a ton of images during the first dance!) but I like this image....
Parent dances. Ben caught the fabulous picture of Liz's Mom watching her dance with her Dad:
Just a few seconds after I took this picture Liz lifted up and flew across the room :)
Good times on the dance floor:
Guests were sent home with delicious cookies (and a thoughtful donation in their names to Heifer International) :
One last picture of the newlyweds:
Liz & Tim - your wedding was all kinds of awesome! It was so great to hear how you met in French class at school on your engagement shoot and then get to document your wedding day!!! Wishing you health, wealth, love and laughter!!!!
Loved the escort card tree:
Love Liz's reaction more. And adore Tim looking at Liz:
Possibly the most fierce bridesmaids entering cocktail hour:
The great room looked beautiful. Flowers by Michele Bernard who is always awesome:
Lots of cozy and happy moments during the toasts:
Let them eat cake!
We then headed into the lobby/reception area of Tower Hill for the dancing part of the evening. I was a little unsure of how this would work but it was a perfect space for partying! Incadence rocked it out with everything from the Black Eyed Peas to slow dances to "Don't Stop Believin'". Liz & Tim's dance lessons payed off:
I'll be completely honest. The next picture was a flash mis-fire. My off-camera flash (for backlight) fired but the on-camera flash didn't (totally normal occurrence when you're shooting a ton of images during the first dance!) but I like this image....
Parent dances. Ben caught the fabulous picture of Liz's Mom watching her dance with her Dad:
Just a few seconds after I took this picture Liz lifted up and flew across the room :)
Good times on the dance floor:
Guests were sent home with delicious cookies (and a thoughtful donation in their names to Heifer International) :
One last picture of the newlyweds:
Liz & Tim - your wedding was all kinds of awesome! It was so great to hear how you met in French class at school on your engagement shoot and then get to document your wedding day!!! Wishing you health, wealth, love and laughter!!!!
Oh Leah... I can't tell you how fabulous it is to re-live the evening with these photos - you captured everything!
ReplyDeleteAnd you should mis-fire more often! Your "oops" with the flash might just be the most perfect picture of the bunch!