Married in Pensacola, FL: Dillon and Jennifer
Backtracking to recap the weddings I covered over the summer. Read on for full recap of Dillon and Jennifer's beautiful wedding in Pensacola.
Dillon and Jennifer, wed June 6, 2015.
Dillon and Jennifer contacted me early in the year. This wedding was special in that their decision to engage me as their photographer based on the missions work in my portfolio. Jennifer has also experienced missions in India, and that shared experience turned out to be the deciding factor in their choice of photographer. Pretty cool.
With Dillon in school at West Point, the guests came from all over the map, many of them cadets in school with Dillon. I love shooting military weddings. In addition to the clean symmetry and fun traditions that dress uniforms and close brotherhoods lend to a wedding, military guys are just fun to shoot and tend to pick up on most of my Monty Python references.
That kind of closeness was also visible in Jennifer and bridesmaids. The cheers for Jennifer as she emerged from the dressing room in her dress for the first time was heartwarming. As an individual who finds it difficult to maintain consistent contact with more than two or three friends a quarter, I respect and am amazed when I see large groups of friends exhibit similar intimacy.
Dillon's father, Pastor Chris Aiken, officiated the service with the sly wit that only a father can dish out to his son. The ceremony included communion and music provided by one of Dillon's classmates on the violin. The reception convened with the requisite food and cake, plus an ice cream sundae bar.
Festivities concluded with Dillon and Jennifer exiting through a sword arch. All in all, a fantastic day.
This wedding took place at Calvary Baptist Church in Pensacola and officiated by Pastor Chris Aiken. Catering was provided by the family.
Jimmy and Arien - Pensacola Beach Wedding Photography
Much of my work every year comes from vacationers and out of town families who visit the sugar-white sands of Pensacola Beach every year. Having grown up swimming and diving around Pensacola Beach, I don't usually think of my old stomping grounds as a destination for weddings, but it is. And a beautiful one.
Jimmy and Arien found this website and contacted me to cover their intimate family wedding at a vacation home on the beach. It was a great day, with a ceremony involving both Jimmy and Arien's respective children, with a beautiful sunset to cap of the day.
Pensacola Wedding Photography - Jehan and Nancy
Ceremony: Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
Reception: Heritage Hall
Music: Sarah Mac Band
Pensacola Wedding Photography: Steven Gray Photography
Last year, when I worked for Hill-Kelly, I met Jehan Clark, the brains behind the relaunch of Pensacola's long-running summer concert series, Evenings in Old Seville Square. Hill-Kelly was (and still is) a major sponsor of the event, and I talked with Jehan quite a bit throughout the summer as I brought vehicles every week and drew raffle tickets on the stage to promote the company.
We kept in touch after my departure from Hill-Kelly and Jehan after he became engaged to the lovely Nancy, Jehan asked me to photograph his engagement photos and wedding.
The photos speak for themselves. It was a great day, with plenty of smiles, plenty of dancing and music by the superlative Sarah Mac Band.
And I think you will agree that this is the best groom's cake ever. I think I put down about a dozen of those things...
Blog Post: Brittney and Brandon - Pensacola Beach Wedding Photography
What am I thankful for this year? I am thankful for the opportunity to capture the most special days of people's lives. Today, I want to highlight Brittney and Brandon's beautiful Pensacola Beach wedding, held on the 13th of October at a beautiful house on the water.
Brittney is the daughter of my good friend, Karena. Karena has been my three-time missions companion in India and a mother figure to me since our first trip together in the winter of 2010. Her family showed up on my blog last October when I captured their family portraits. A few months later I shot Brittney and Brandon's engagement photos, and six weeks ago I continued our streak by shooting the wedding. Capturing their photos has been significant to me personally because my fiance, Annie, has become increasingly involved in helping me at every step, which has been amazing.
Apart from the couple's own personalities, which are as fun and spontaneous as they come, Brittney and Brandon's wedding was made unique by the loving relationship they share with Brandon's little girl, Kendall. The photos from both mine and Annie's cameras show a little girl completely enraptured with a real-life fairy tale that involved her as much as it did the bride and groom. To see the wedding through her eyes was a treat that continues as I look through the photos again.
The wedding itself was beautifully held at a house on the sugar-white sands of Pensacola Beach. I've said it before and I'll say it again, there's no better time to be at Pensacola Beach or to have a Pensacola Beach wedding than October. Cool weather, clear air, it's just wonderful. The decorations reflected Brittney's own good taste and creativity with crafty, homemade adornments and personal touches through the tables and place settings. Brandon even directed food prep himself by overseeing a delicious low-country boil (for the Northern uninitiated, that is an deliciously unparalleled conglomeration of boiled shrimp, corn, potatoes and sausage).
In short, the wedding was a beautiful, touching and joyful day. The happiness and love of life in both the bride and the groom overflowed to happily overtake everyone who was present for their special day. I was privileged to share the day with them, and to work with my beautiful fiance to capture it.
The Details:
Ceremony/Reception: 1304 Ariola Drive, Pensacola Beach, FL (Managed property available for nightly and weekly rental.)
Officiant: Jeff Spooneybarger, Pastor, First Baptist Church Gulf Breeze
The Pics:
