Vibrant autumn colors, a romantic love story and a celebration to last a lifetime….
Monica and David love autumn– from the vibrant foliage to the crisp air and planned a fall wedding. They wanted an outdoor wedding venue that felt romantic, natural and simple while being elegant.
Monica and David knew that Crossed Keys Estate would be the perfect wedding venue for them when walking in the honeymoon cottage. They had both spent many of their childhood summers in Europe; David in Italy and Monica in Portugal, an experience that they bonded over early in their relationship. The simple stone cottege looked, felt and even smelled like Europe to them. It totally sealed the deal. 🙂
I placed the wedding invitations on the deep stone window sills for this next photo. Monica loves the music and style of the Jazz Era and incorporated that into her invitations, jewelry and decor.
Monica shared that Dave is intelligent, handsome and kind. His relaxed, patient nature compliments her and keeps her grounded. He is also knowledgeable in many ways, yet humble.
I think this photo really captures several of those aspects of Dave. He is looking dapper in his suit and is photographed from a distance, appearing at the side of the frame. It almost gives you a feeling for his creativity, humility, patience and strength.
I like the vibrant gold to the left, it is a similar shade to Monica’s florals.
While Monica finished her wedding day preparations, I photographed her jewelry which also had a 1920’s influence. She was going for a simple, elegant look and loves crisp, clear photos.
You can see more of that romantic, old world cottage feeling here with the plaster walls, glass jar and antique table.
This is Monica’s bouquet, filled with dahlias, hydrangeas and other beauties from her autumn inspired palette.
David described Monica as upbeat with a magnetic personality (I can vouch for that being 100% true). He said that she is ambitious and independent while also being incredibly honest and loyal.
What a classic beauty– how about those blue eyes? Wow!
Monica and David chose to have a first look for several reasons, one being so that they could enjoy cocktail hour with their wedding guests.
They shared that private moment together along side of the cottege. David was beyond excited to see Monica, he was beaming. He said he was thinking of how sure he was of his decision and that he was ecstatic thinking ahead to their futures together: traveling the world, raising a family, experiencing new things, enjoying each others company and growing old together.
Monica said that David looked so handsome and that her favorite thing was to see his smile. He has different smiles, but when he saw her, that one smile was her very favorite.
David shared that he and Monica have a very firm foundation with their similar upbringings and values.
Monica said that Dave keeps her grounded, steady and in the present. Dave shared that Monica challenges him to be more open. They both love that their different personalities give them balance and their love of family and friends really united them. They also both mentioned having personalities that really balance each other out.
I like this photo of them because you can see how happy and charming they are, but also because you get that sense of support and balance that they shared above as well.
The Grotto beneath the cottege balcony was lovely and definitely shared the same old world charm. It was surrounded by a lovely terrace garden.
It is the space that they had originally planned to exchange vows when they selected Crossed Keys Estate, but with all the rain from Hurricane Joaquin, the opted to keep guests dry under a gorgeous fabric-lined tent, which I will share photos of momentarily. 😉
During their time alone, they did take plenty of time to explore the garden and grounds together. Here is one of those moments.
Monica and Dave are always smiling, laughing and in general having a great time. I love this next photo because I caught them totally cracking up.
When we talked about her ideal wedding photos Monica mentioned capturing family, friends, scenery and emotion. She shared that she is a big goofball and totally loves David’s corny jokes and hoped that I could snag a photo that showed their silly side, too.
Sometimes they laugh to the point of crying and that is part of why they work so well together. Dave has a way of calming her worry with his jokes and she loves him for it.
The photo is actually of them in a reflective pool outside of the stone cottage. It feels almost like a fairy tale to me, with all of the vibrant, green overgrowth and surreal feeling that is coming from the reflection.
I noticed this balcony door from the honeymoon cottage that overlooked the terrace garden and knew I would like to work that into their wedding photography in some way.
Here Monica is swaying from side to side actually humming or singing a bit in her own way as David watches from above. It gives you a sense of balance with the door frames yet the contrast of masculine and feminine with Monica being surrounded by flowers as David holds open the door. It was a very sweet moment.
Monica and David chose to keep their bridal party very simple. They both have a large number of friends and family that they would have loved to invite into their bridal party from high school, college, oversees and in the states– rather than having a gigantic bridal party, they opted to keep it simple with just a best man and maid of honor.
It really simplified the getting ready time in the morning that can rushed and more stressful with large bridal parties and allowed Monica to spend more time with David and her sister, which she also enjoyed.
The ceremony decor was lovely. It included huge mason jars willed with dahlias and hydrangeas on large wooden stands. You can also see strings of Edison lighting hanging from the fabric tent in the background. It was simple, romantic and just a gorgeous look…
Monica processed into the tent with her mother and father at her side. She said that both were instrumental in raising her and getting her to this point in her life and she wanted them both to walk her down the aisle.
Monica and David exchanged traditional wedding vows, “in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, etc” but also added some interesting readings that both brought in their own sentiments.
The first reading was a quote from Matthew Henry that was a reference to Genesis. It said that woman was made out of man’s rib– not his head to rule over him or his feet to be trampled upon, but his side to be his equal, under his arm to be protected and near his heart to be beloved.
The second reading was lighthearted and from the Adam Sandler movie, The Wedding Singer, and gave a more modern and pragmatic view of marriage. He sings about loving and taking care of his wife while they are growing old together and mentions doing dishes, fixing a broken furnace and sharing the remote control. 😉
I used the Dahlias to soften and frame this view of the ceremony. To me it provides a visual for the sense of intimacy and the natural feel of the ceremony.
“La Vie en Rose” was their first dance song. it was originally sane by a French Cabaret singer in the 1940’s. It is romantic, classic and a perfect dance song for these two love birds.
Beautiful antiques decorated the reception hall from a phonograph player and antique cameras, they really embraced the old world feel for their wedding.
They also incorporated their parents’ wedding photos– Monica’s have been married for 36 years and David’s for 45. Their parents marriages are inspiring to them and have taught them that no matter how difficult things get that you never give up and always keep loving each other.
As soon as Monica began dancing with her father, I realized that he must be where Monica gets her joyful spirit and contagious laugh.
Monica shared that she does have some of the same personality traits as her father. She recalled a time when her mother yelled at him and he just acted like a clown which lead Monica, her mother and her sister all to laugh. They never could stay mad for long. Monica hopes to always keep his same lighthearted sense of humor.
What a great moment!
Spending time with their guests was incredibly important to David and Monica on their wedding day. They felt so blessed to have family traveling in from all over the country– even overseas.
I am going to venture and guess that these will be some of their favorite wedding photos– seeing all of their guests letting loose, celebrating and enjoying the wedding reception!
At the end of the night, after the glow rings were passed out (haaa) everyone gathered for a large group photo. 🙂
At the end of the night, Monica and Dave met outside for a private moment alone surrounded by the beautiful colors of the fall foliage.
Monica said just to take a moment together was so nice, that it was kind of incredible to think that after all the planning, preparing, organizing etc. it was all over! She experienced the joy and relief all at once.
One thing that made me particularly joyful during Monica and Dave’s wedding day was seeing two other couples whose weddings I had photographed in previous years!
Nathalie and Michael being the first in their group of friends in 2011 and Sofia & Paulo in 2015. They are all beautiful people that I met through work, but now have the pleasure of calling friends. 🙂
Monica & David, thank you so much for inviting me to your wedding day. Here are just a few of the memories that I captured for you. I hope they allow you to relived moments from your wedding day now and for many years to come!
Also, thank you for your kind note, “Your quality of work is absolutely amazing and you have a first for taking creative shots that are unique and really capture the moment, Plus you and your husband are a pleasure to work with!”
Sofia, thank you for sharing my work with Monica– she said that your recommendation meant the world to her, especially since she known that being a photographer yourself, you have high standards for photography. 🙂 Thank you Nathalie for sharing my name with Sofia!
