Love Stories

You never know exactly what a wedding day will be like. It’s one of the joys of the job. Each week is so different from the last. I come armed with my timelines brimming with details, and yet it’s the often the unwritten things that are the most wonderful.  One week, we raced around the city in the blistering heat to capture the prettiest portraits. The next week, I took pictures of a penguin. This week featured live music & kolo dancing.

You never know quite what it will be. Some weddings are all about the wow-shots. The careful orchestration, the details, the breathtaking locations; those are beautiful, and I love them.  And other weddings, well. Some weddings are all about the moments. Bill & Shanna’s was one of those.

It was about when her father took both of her hands in his and said, “You are just as beautiful as the day you were born.” It was their names, repeated over and over and song and in blessing during the ceremony. It was about how his brother and sister gave a speech that brought everyone first to laughter and then to tears. It was  friendship and spoken truths in the cigar smoke and twilight. It was the way their family & friends surrounded them on the dance floor with a sheer joy that took my breath away.

There truly are no words for how beautiful this day was, and how poignant. I can’t even begin to tell you how much it meant to be able to share it with them.