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Originally, this was going to be a roof top wedding - but Mother Nature decided she was going to cry over summer ending all day so they made the last minute call to move indoors out of the rain. On my way there it was like driving through a car wash the rain was coming down so hard. Dreary weather on a wedding day doesn't mean the day is going to be dreary, though.
& it wasn't.
As far as "Plan B" locations go, the event space at Highland was honestly so cool. The barrels made for an awesome back drop, the lighting was really pretty, and the plants hanging from the ceiling were a whole vibe. I let them know ahead of time if the rain stopped - we'd rush to the roof. If it didn't? We'd make magic inside.
This space - thanks to the planner and the Brewery staff - didn't look like it was a last minute "Plan B" location - it looked like it was the plan all along. It was amazing to watch them transform the space in a short amount of time. One of my favorite details from their day were the brewery themed (beer themed? I'm not cool - I don't know the difference) tables and the specific details for each one.
The planner/coordinator was also the florist and I'm not sure how she managed to do all of that, but the florals were perfect. Almost as perfect as Stacey’s dress and how it looked on her (you'll see).
Custom converse shoes to change into after all of the "big" things? Never a bad idea because as fun as heels are they are not fun to wear all day - especially if you end up dancing.
Her dress! It was so pretty.
The florist/planner added hops to the floral arrangements and I thought that was such a fun detail. & speaking of details - please look at the lace on the back of her dress. It's my favorite part.
Stacey & Ryan opted for a first look (I ALWAYS recommend these) and she may have started to tear up before she even got close to him. Maybe. Probably. For sure.
Since it was still raining a little we did them in this little foyer / lobby area surrounded by greenery and lots of sunlight. It was a beautiful spot, period - and perfect for an intimate moment between these two.
About the moment she started to cry. It was so sweet to see how excited she was to see him and he had the same reaction everyone else did when they saw Stacey that day which was basically, "Wow!"
Does she not look just give off Tonks from the Harry Potter movies vibes with her cute spikey hair (it was like a pastel pink in some lighting).
Remember when I mentioned how pretty the flowers were? Her bouquet was such a fun fall wedding bouquet but it was also perfect for the venue.
There was a break in the rain so we rushed to the roof top (honestly - had I known there was an elevator I wouldn't have taken the stairs and I'm still made I forgot my FitBit because ... so many steps). We managed to squeeze in some great shots of them with their wedding party and with each other in a very small amount of time. The skipping shots my second got are some of my favorite from the day. Stacey was like "hold hands and skip" and THEY DID.
I mean, I did say, "Grab her tush." He understood the assignment.
Skip to my lou my darrrrrrllliiiing!
They are truly so sweet together and had me laughing a good bit of the day. Yeah - it rained. The water on the ground though? Made the painted mountain scene reflect onto the ground and made everything extra colorful which THIS photographer loved. Look closely at the next photo you'll see what I mean. Highland Brewery has an awesome roof top space.
We made it back downstairs and to the front "gate" of the brewery for this shot and maybe twenty seconds later it started to rain again so we ran back inside. The nice thing about an early event here (picture wise) is that the brewery wasn't open yet so there were no food trucks or people in front of the building and we could get shots like this without worrying about people or vehicles.
They had a really sweet ceremony (where she cried and wiped happy / emotional tears away so much eventually she tried to hide which was super cute and very unsuccessful) and exchanged custom vows before having a "beer mixing" ceremony. I've seen sand, paint, and goldfish - but this was my first beer mixing! It was really on theme and super funny when they drank that mixed beer (the whole crowd was giggling).
Just know that I'm never teasing anyone for crying at a wedding. I cry at least once at every wedding I've ever been to - and I will be a blubbering mess the day I get married and already know I'll have to budget having my MUA stay for touch ups after the ceremony before pictures. I love when people are vulnerable and emotional and happy when they get married. It's the best day to be those things.
During the wedding I had a very cute third shooter - and she was very helpful during formals.
We didn't spend a ton of time doing formals because it was a 25 person wedding and we did most things beforehand - which worked out because once the Brewery started bringing out food nobody cared about me and my camera anymore and I DO NOT blame them - it was delicious.
While everyone was getting ready for dinner the bartender gave us two full bottles of the same beers they used during the beer mixing ceremony and I got to practice my ring balancing skills. It's honestly much harder than it looks to balance three rings on two bottles on a hard table and at one point a butter knife and an extra set of hands was needed. But we got it!!
I try, really hard, to take the detail shots on something that is relevant to the wedding that day. & this wedding? This wedding had beer so....
I really can't thank the vendor team and my second enough for helping fight the weather - it was such a fun day despite the weather. & I can't thank Stacey and Ryan enough for trusting me to be there. If every October wedding was that fun and relaxed I wouldn't spend most of October inhaling coffee and stressing out about timelines and weather forecasts.
Thank you both for not only having me but for making me feel so appreciated the whole day. & for going up and down the elevator multiple times so I could execute this idea.
<3