Elliston Vineyards Wedding Photography~ Jackie & Matt!

Jackie and Matt’s wedding reminded me of a wedding out of an old fairy tale book.  A beautiful bride with her handsome groom getting married on a quaint vineyard surrounded by friends, family and frolicking flower girls! It sounds kind of sickening sweet but honestly…  it was that enchanting! Later when the dance floor was going nuts it might have jumped to a modern fairy tale!

Jackie’s Allure gown was stunning and she made it even more beautiful when she put it on!Taking pictures at Elliston Vineyards inside the mansion is so much fun, it was the perfect backdrop for everything including these gorgeous florals!The ladies came dressed (besides Jackie), giving them some time for some bubbles!The guys, well they preferred some Irish whiskey!
It was time for Jackie to get dressed, we transferred to the room downstairs that was extra pretty and also had amazing light! Matt’s sister is an amazing photographer so I was lucky to have her help me find the best light!Jackie’s Mom did the honors of the zipping up Jackie. And Jackie’s sisters put on her shoes! Love it! How often can you get your sisters to put on your shoes like that?!Matt was ready and looking so dapper! So pretty!
The guys! Jackie and Matt decided not to do a first look and to see each other for the first time during the ceremony. We used the time before the ceremony to take some pictures of the wedding party and also family members. We carefully moved Jackie and Matt around so they would not see each other! The ladies! On the left are Jackie’s two sisters and on the right are Matt’s two sisters!And then the two sweetest flowers girls- Matt’s nieces. Fairy Tale quality, right?!Sunshine, music and excitement filled the air as guests arrived for the ceremony.

The flower girls may have forgotten to spread the rose petals but they did a wonderful job of melting hearts with their adorableness!Jackie and her Dad arrived at the top of the stairs and dramatically descended down the aisle to Matt. That’s one happy looking groom!

Look at that setting!!! The trees, the sunshine, the American flag proudly blowing in the breeze! So, so, so perfect!Those beginning ceremony moments  where a couple are staring at each other with such adoration- the best!
Proud Parents and Grandparents looked on. Matt recited his personalized vows to Jackie. And then she to him. Lots of teary eyes- such beautiful words spoken to each other. Jackie and Matt then exchanged rings. The officiant then asked everyone to hold hands and bow their heads in prayer. And without a second of hesitation he announced what everyone was waiting for!  “Matt, you may kiss your bride!”Married!!!!!Look at those smiles, amazing!Jackie and Matt walked off behind the house and they were then surrounded by their wedding party doing a celebratory dance!While I had the whole crew together we did some wedding party pictures and even the little ones did their part!I don’t often put family pictures up on the blog but recently I have been asked if I even do them!  YES I do them and I believe in them with all my heart.  Greg and I did not do family pictures at our wedding as we got married during the height of “wedding photojournalism”. Family pictures were often considered too set up and not given much priority.  It’s to this day one of my biggest regrets and I wish I had those pictures. So now I love producing those images for my clients. I do them fast and as fun as possible so the expressions are happy and then everyone can go off to the cocktail party!The reception at the Elliston is not in the main house but in building off to the back.  It’s so pretty with the arched windows and the light wood ceiling. Matt and his grandmother made homemade Limoncello as gifts for the guests- what a fun idea!So many beautiful details!Gotta love letting everyone know their hashtag with wine corks- brilliant!With the sun about to go over the tree line and a crew of family and friends waiting to celebrate, we did portraits quickly and with great intention.  Jackie and Matt brought their A game and Elliston grounds provided so many wonderful settings in such a small area. Jackie was such a trooper going into the tall grass with her dress on! I’m so grateful as tall golden grass with late afternoon sun on it is hard to beat!We then moved into the entry way to the main house. It perfectly showcased Jackie and Matt and really gave that incredible dress a chance to shine!Love it!  That suit, that dress! Jackie and Matt were then off to their reception!Such amazing enthusiasm! Jackie and Matt went right into a sweet first dance. First dances seem to be getting shorter and shorter with the couple inviting the guests to join them on the dance floor.  That’s nice and all but personally I love when a couple takes the whole dance for themselves! They deserve it and selfishly it gives me more time to take some pretty pictures of it!Jackie’s Dad then welcomed everyone for coming. Emotions crept into his voice and as he took a moment to collect himself Jackie gave him a squeeze. After he made everyone shed a tear he went on to make everyone laugh hysterically! Good thing everyone had a drink!Next up was Matt’s best man who shared a few stories about Matt!!Jackie was not off the hook as Jackie’s maid of honor and little sister then offered up some stories from her past! The toasts were so much fun and all done with such love for Jackie and Matt!
Jackie and her Dad then shared a dance, the song was “My Girl” and Jackie’s Dad jokingly was singing to Matt and pointing at him! Adorable!Jackie’s Mom, family friend and Grandmother watching the father /daughter dance. A big hug from Jackie’s Dad!It was now Matt’s turn to dance with his Mom with Dad watching with pride. This moment. There’s a 1,000 words and emotions in this picture. It’s moments like this that remind me of how much I love wedding photography.
Big hugs from Matt’s Mom for Matt and then Jackie too!  So now that everyone has cried a gazillion times…..…it was time to dance!!!!The dance floor was full of fun shenanigans!Including when Matt did a little dance to Right Said Fred’s one hit wonder-“I’m too sexy”!!!Awww, Matt’s Grandma admiring his new ring!Everyone watched as Jackie and Matt cut their beautiful cake!The DJ then surprised everyone with The Shoe game!  Have you heard of this?  It’s a new one for me, this didn’t happen at east coast weddings!Then it was on to the bouquet and garter toss!A few guys actually looked like they wanted to catch the garter!All sugared up it was time for the dance floor to ignite again!Jackie lead the conga line!!The last dance, it always comes so fast. Everyone was singing Journey at the top of their lungs- laughing and cheering on the newlyweds!!!
The song ended and Jackie and Matt were engulfed in a HUGE group hug!

Jackie and Matt, it was such an honor to be part of your wedding!  I enjoyed every second of it!!  Wishing you a wonderful lifetime filled with sweetness, love and of course more shenanigans!

 

So  grateful to work with an amazing team of vendors that did such a wonderful job!

Venue-Elliston Vineyards

Cake-Primrose Bakery

DJ-Denon & Doyle

Guitarist-Bruce Brill

Flowers-Sue Boyle & Tina Smith

Dress-Allure Bridals

Hair-Phoebe Gillespie

Makeup-Emily Cela