Our nephew’s wedding was lovely…Intimate and touching..Rich, as you probably know, acted as the photographer.  We spent the day before the wedding touring the aquarium with the bride and groom, deciding which photos they wanted taken, and where.  Ultimately, some of the spots were changed, as it was so hot, and the outside photos for the women in the bridal party ended with everyone getting bitten by mosquitos..and sweating…Not the look you’re going for in a wedding.. Luckily, they were the first to be photographed, so they had over an hour to sit and relax..and have some water to stay hydrated, haha..  We originally planned a sunset photo of the bride and groom outdoors, but decision was made by the bride and groom to skip it to avoid heat stroke…I’m telling you, it was hot out there.  At one point, the bride’s father and brother both pointed to my forehead and said “there’s a huge mosquito on you..”  YIKES!! Every woman’s dream, to have a huge bug bite in the middle of their forehead and itching like crazy while trying to keep the flow of photographs going…

I wish you could have seen what Rich called his Bible…He had gone to every website on weddings and printed every list a photograph had offered for possible photos.  There were at least nine typed pages of photos.  On Thursday afternoon, I sat with the bride and groom, and we went through the lists, one by one, and the eliminated ones that they didn’t care about, which was so helpful.  The time between the wedding and reception was absolutely crucial, as that was when we were taking all of the formal photos of the entire party, the parents with the bride and groom, and ones of just the bride and groom..We were given about ten minutes at the venue before we were told to move so they could put up dinner tables, and so every second counted.  It turned out that ten minutes was more like three, as the aquarium woman started taking down chairs and putting up tables immediately after the ceremony.  It made taking those photos a time crunch, and ultimately, the bride decided to move to another local, which was so much smarter.  It also took us away from the guests so we could do the posed photos and not be interrupted.  The guests were supposed to be filling out the wishes (remember that video I made?) while the photos were being done, and the guests were also free to roam the aquarium.  There was supposed to be one of those lines you see in theaters, that stop people from proceeding into another area, but someone took it down, so the guests started finding their way to us.   And then the photo requests started.  We had such a short time for everyone to rest, and this was it .  Our nephew has planter plantar fasciitis (a painful foot condition), and really would have benefited from sitting down at that point… I only had a few more photos of friends that they wanted individual photos with, and then the gates opened up.  It was so funny, that I eventually went to the rest of the guests and offered individual photos with the bride and groom, because if they later found out others had them and they didn’t, I thought some people might be offended.  The bride and groom were so gracious and smiled through all of it, even when they were probably crying in the inside from pain….Luckily, with less than fifty guests, it wasn’t horrible, and they made it back for their introduction to the reception with maybe five minutes to spare.

The ordained minister was the bride’s brother, and he did a great job for never doing anything like this before, and especially, on his sister’s big day.

The most difficult part of the wedding was lighting, as the aquarium promised us they would have track lighting on during the wedding so you’d be able to clearly see the bridal party.  I really wish that they had been more honest with us about the lighting, as there was one set of track lighting about halfway between the bridal party and where the guest seating ended, so it was almost impossible to have time to focus on the bridesmaids as they entered, since they went from dark to light in an instant.  We’d decided the day before, that if the lights weren’t better, Rich would hold his hand up, the bridesmaid would pause long enough for him to take a quick photo and proceed.  The aquarium “wedding planner” told the women not to stop or look at Rich as they approached.  Anyone who has ever been in a wedding knows that’s their one chance for a nice photo of themselves, so we said, “stop and look right at Rich with your biggest smile,” and they did….Such nice friends of the brides, and so helpful.  One of the bridesmaids had read somewhere that you should bring a large Hefty garbage bag with you, so if the bride ever needed to go to the restroom, one of the bridesmaids would put the back of her gown in the Hefty bag so the gown is protected from its surroundings, and also giving that bridesmaid the opportunity to hold the front of the dress off the floor…Such a smart idea (and probably one most brides wouldn’t want to think about, but it really was helpful…)  Still, the bride said going to the restroom with an entourage was kind of embarrassing, and I’d bet it was..

All of the things I made for the wedding were well received, and I’m happy I helped…Now it’s up to Rich to get his photos edited and ready for the public.  I’m attaching one photo, but keep in mind, it’s not one of Rich’s, it’s one a guest sent….I’ll be sure to upload a couple of Rich’s in the near future.  Thanks for bearing with me through the wedding and all of the wedding related videos….Can’t tell you how much it’s meant to me to get all of the well wishes and good lucks from all of you…

• Uncategorized