Sarah and Jordan were married at
St. Patrick's Catholic Church and held their rollicking reception at the
Josephine Butler Parks Center. Many of my clients are incredibly laid-back people, rolling with the inevitable wedding-day punches. Sarah and Jordan faced more than their share of obstacles at their wedding, but weathered all of it with an incredible calm and grace. Plus, they managed to be completely fun and cuddly for their portraits and then partied hard all night. Sarah and Jordan:
They got ready at the
Grand Hyatt downtown.
Thanks, as always, to my brilliant second Julia.
A preview of what was to come.
All of the spaces at the Grand Hyatt that were more beautiful were much more crowded and logistically, it's just easier to do it where you are, rather than try to finagle a "prettier" first look somewhere farther away. So I arranged them in front of the elevator banks.
And then we skipped on over to the church to get that knot tied.
I talked to the priest for maybe ten seconds, but he must be the coolest priest ever, because after the homily and all the things, Jordan broke a glass in the Jewish tradition. It only took two tries.
Proud mama.
DC is a wonderful place to do any kind of wedding-related thing with a street-photography-background photographer. This lady, who did not speak English, wanted to have her photo taken with the bridesmaids. She was really pushy. I think she's trying to do a selfie in this shot.
Meridian Hill Park is the obvious location for portraits when your wedding is at the Josephine Butler Parks Center. It rarely disappoints.
Here's a snippet for you in case you were feeling crafty: Sarah
made this dress.
And then we were walking to the reception when I spotted what looked - and indeed turned out to be - a giant bubble maker. He indulged us in some rainbow-y wedding portrait fun. Yay DC folks.
Behind-the-scenes action.
Julia's photo. Still love her.
Congratulations, you guys!
Sarah & Jordan's vendor team:
Ceremony venue:
St. Patrick's Catholic Church
Reception venue:
Josephine Butler Parks Center
Getting-ready venue:
Grand Hyatt
Catering:
Eat and Smile
Florist: DIY
Cake:
Buzz Bakery
DJ: Steve Hoffman with
Good Note DJs
Hair & Makeup:
Modern Bridal Studio
Sarah's dress: Hand-made!
Jordan's suit: Indochino
I met John a few years ago at a photo conference in Charlottesville, and turned out we lived just a few blocks from each other. He's since gone to live up in the Great White North. You'll note I've taken my soapbox of a website here to post embarrassing pictures of the people I knew at the wedding. Enjoy!
We started the day at Hotel Metro in downtown London with some of Melissa's closest and one canine friend.
Meanwhile, Lisa my local second (thanks Lisa!) was with the gentlemen.
We scooted over to Windermere on the Mount for the ceremony.
Special Canadian-only part: signing the registry!
Maybe because I know John and Melissa and a handful of other folks at the wedding, but there were lots of great street-style scenes to capture. I hope John will be pleased with them, as he happens to be a street photographer himself.
And look - he managed to marry a total babe.
Party time at Museum London! Unfortunately they didn't let us do anything in the galleries, but I still enjoyed the big windows and the fact that I was shooting in Canada!
More "street" action.
Dude on the right here danced with every single lady at the wedding, including me. He insisted and for probably the first time ever at a wedding (because who doesn't want to cajole the photographer into dancing?) I couldn't say no. He's a really good dancer!
I don't think I've ever seen a teenager who actually liked her parents as much as this girl likes her parents. This family was so freakin' cute.
The aforementioned photos of people I know looking goofy. Hi Katy!
So many congratulations, my friends!
Melissa and John's vendor team:
Ceremony venue: Windermere on the Mount
Reception venue: Museum London
Getting-ready venue: Hotel Metro
Catering: North Moore
Hair & Makeup: Selah Vie
We started the day at the
Big thanks to Angel for coming out to help with this wedding. I used a bunch of her images in this post. Too many. She was great.
Makeup done, dress on, we scooted to 
Loving Angel's street-scene approach.
Showtime.
I'm so glad I fought for some extra portrait time in Lafayette Park before the reception at 
And then it was time for the reception - with mariachis! Ana's family is from Mexico, so they brought a little home to their wedding with a big mariachi band, singing all the favorites (I could tell because the entire group knew all the words.)
The big horse race took place during dinner. California Chrome didn't triple crown it out, much to these horse-racing fans' disappointment.
But nevermind, there was cake!
I've become somewhat obsessed lately with the hauling-the-cake-off-the-floor shot. I don't know why. It's interesting to me.
These people were big dancers.
And then for the last dance, the room was suddenly filled with a million bright streamers sailing about. It was pretty great.
Congratulations guys!
Ana and Jon's vendor team:
Planning and coordination: Emilie from