Inspiration for your road to the altar

It’s no secret that I am a fan of dogs participating in wedding festivities, so its no surprise that I am in love with these images from Anna Kuperberg. This furry member of Denise and Andrew’s wedding party is their chocolate lab, Lucy. I think she should get some serious credit for balancing those rings on her nose…

Deciding whether or not to see each other before the ceremony is a very personal decision. I can definitely see both sides of the coin, but for our own reasons we decided to spend some time together before saying “I do.” In retrospect, these next few moments were the only time we had alone together all day and are therefore some of my favorite pictures. I love how the pier looks empty in the bottom two pictures even though it most definitely was not, which is why the picture above cracks me up.

If you look closely, poor Brad is already at the end of the pier practically baking in the sun. We wanted the picture of me walking down to meet him, so the girls went down the pier and asked people if they wouldn’t mind getting into their boats for just a few seconds, because there was a bride walking down to meet her groom. Almost everyone excitedly complied, except for that guy in the trunks there. The girls are laughing because they had already made one pass down the pier, and this guy was like “What? Why is there a bride here? I am tying up my boat!” So the picture below is taken at an angle (which I love) because I eventually just gave up and walked past the grumpy half naked boater.
Important advice for anyone else considering the “groom waiting at the end of the pier shot.” One of our lovely photographers, Lajuanna, made sure to tell Brad to keep his hands in his pockets and not hanging down at his sides or slightly in front of him. Apparently, when the groom’s back is to the camera and his arms are slightly in front, it winds up looking like he is “relieving himself” off the end of the pier. Sage advice, I tell you. Anyway – after we had our moment and came back down the pier, we went to the little boathouse for some group shots.
There are a lot more than this, but I know you all want details so I am trying to be as brief as possible! After the boat house, we decided to head over to the ceremony site so we wouldn’t have to rush around. We had asked our families to meet us at the ceremony site so we could also take all the family pictures prior to the wedding and also spend a little time with everyone.
I wasn’t around for this one, so I was kind of surprised when I saw all the crazy foot work. I took ballet when I was younger, I believe what we’re witnessing here is both first and third position. Beautiful demonstration, boys.
My bouquet all wrapped up and ready to go… Last but not least, Lola came over to meet us for her big photo opp. I know I keep saying this, but this one is also one of my favorites from the day. She was so happy to see both of us! This is going to sound totally pathetic, but when she came running towards me that was the first time I cried that day. I kept bursting into tears at random moments, and that was a big one.
Again, so funny. I was walking with the photographers and we were all behind Brad when he picked Lola up to walk back up to the boat house. We all started laughing and they began snapping away…
The sweet family picture…
Followed up by a very bored and tired Lola.
Love how she looks like the only guest at the wedding here (and a disinterested one at that). But she is rocking those pearls!
Check back later today for pictures from the ceremony, and tomorrow will be the reception!

I hope you all had a great holiday season and, if you’re like me, are adjusting to getting back on a schedule and back to work. I am excited to share this perfectly charming wedding with you, from the ever lovely Tana. I’ve written about her a few times before because she photographed my very dear friend’s wedding in 2007, and I have continued to love her work ever since.
A bicycle built for two and a golden retriever…can it get any cuter than that? I also love that the dog is sporting a polka dot bandanna, he fits right in with the relaxed atmosphere. Instead of serving cake the couple opted for pies, which in my opinion is a choice which will never lead you astray.
You can check out Tana’s blog for some more pictures of Jared and Holly’s wedding. Enjoy!