First wedding of the new year, and it’s a two-parter: yesterday morning I met Kendra and Mero and their families at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral for their wedding ceremony, and tomorrow we head up to the Silcox Hut above Timberline Lodge for their wedding reception! It was a blustery but lovely morning for their church ceremony (which just happened to be in my neighborhood!), and it was great fun to see some new wedding traditions and meet some of the happy couple’s family. Looking forward to their big day tomorrow!
I knew from my very first contact with Joelle that I was going to be absolutely delighted to photograph her winter wedding at Union/Pine in SE Portland. For one thing, my portfolio was filled with her friends and neighbors – a friend from high school, her former across-the-street neighbors, her godson, and several colleagues – not only is it super fun when that happens (Portland can feel like such a small town at times!), but it’s also always nice to see old photography clients all dressed up for wedding festivities. Also, I was super taken with her story – she told me that she and her fiancé James had been together for many years, but were consciously waiting until all their friends could be legally married before making it official. Once the supreme court’s decision legalized gay marriage earlier this year, they set about tying the knot!
I couldn’t have been more delighted to spend Sarah and Becca’s big day with them. These two lovely ladies met in elementary school, so it was fitting that they should tie the knot at McMenamins Kennedy School, a converted elementary school in NE Portland, Oregon. After a beautiful wedding ceremony in the courtyard (during which – I admit it – I joined in on some of the happy tears), the celebration in the school gym was lively and fun, filled with laughter, love, beautiful people and beautiful things. As a side note, this was only my second time photographing a gay wedding (and my first here in Portland) but I hope to photograph many more in the years to come!
Meagan and Cody are from the Seattle area, but decided to make Portland, Oregon their “destination wedding” – and I’m so glad they did! They got married in a beautiful ceremony at McMenamins Edgefield’s Blackberry Meadow and followed with a lovely and fun reception at Blackberry Hall. I think my favorite part was when we stole away during dinner to take some photos with just the happy couple in the Edgefield vineyards during the last, golden light of the day (though the amazing, colorful Voodoo Doughnuts display was pretty awesome – and a very Portland touch!).
Ben + Leora got married this summer on a beautiful, windy day in late August. Despite having to roll with a few punches, weather-wise, it was an amazing day, full of friends and family, live klezmer music, delicious Tastebud pizza and decadent Baker & Spice cake. It was lovely to get to celebrate with these two, and to see some familiar faces from Leora’s friend Neon’s wedding, which I photographed a few years ago. (I love it when my clients tell their friends about me! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.) And even the tricky weather was mostly a win for me, since I love those dramatic skies in my photography. Congratulations, you two, and thanks for having me!
When Riki and Jacob contacted me about photographing their wedding, they were living in Jerusalem, visiting family and learning more about their Jewish faith and heritage, so I was very excited to work with them – I love weddings with different stories and traditions. I think my favorite thing about Jewish weddings (and Jews in general) is the propensity to break into songs of celebration (I tend to break into song a fair amount myself, but it’s hardly ever the case that a hundred people in the area join me, though I wish they did). The wedding took place on a sunny but somewhat smoky day just outside of Portland, Oregon at the Arbor School, where Jacob attended as a kid. It was such a fun place for a wedding! Add beautiful DIY dried flower and ribbon decorations all over the grounds, delicious food and two different great live bands, and it really was quite a party.
Bethanie and Daniel are an Army couple, so they planned their Cape Horn Estate wedding remotely. Bethanie also folded over one thousand origami paper cranes and strung them together on threads with beads to decorate the wedding venue, which sounds a little crazy, until you see them. Then you say, wow – that was totally worth it. In the end, they had a beautiful, intimate wedding ceremony officiated by an Army Chaplain friend, with their friends and family looking on. Such a great day! Congratulations, you two!
It was such an honor to photograph Matt and Maggie’s absolutely stunning Zenith Vineyard Wedding in Salem, Oregon. Lots of great vendors to thank for this one, among them: Willaby’s did a fantastic job with dinner and delicious creme brulee, Botanica Floral Design put together absolutely stunning floral arrangements and bouquets, and Melegari Chamber Music with the most beautiful ceremony and cocktail-hour music I’ve experienced at a wedding. Most of all, though, the bride and groom and their lovely friends and families made this a fantastic wedding to photograph. Thanks, and congratulations, you two!
