It’s a beautiful summer day, a little overcast but no rain and you’re getting married. You are so excited your heart is ready to burst. I know that feeling. I felt it too when I got married over ten years ago. And one of the things I obsessed over the most was picking the right photographer for my day. I wanted her to capture the day with the same kind of emotion and joy I felt in my heart and hoped to experience for years to come when I looked at my photographs.
Christine and Stephen, who married in 2004, wanted the same thing. Christine felt a deep connection to photography and wanted photographs that celebrated her beautiful summer wedding. They were referred to a local photographer, booked him and all went according to plan until after their wedding.
I met Christine for the first time when I did her headshot in 2013 for an alumnae publication. We got to talking and she told me about her wedding. Christine didn’t receive her photographs as promised. She told me how incredibly painful it was and how hard it was for her to attend other weddings for many years after her own. It wasn’t until 2012, almost nine years after her wedding, that she actually got the digital files from her wedding. Can you imagine? And Christine and her husband weren’t the only ones who didn’t receive their wedding photographs.
About four weeks ago I got an email from Stephen, Christine’s husband, requesting my help for one of the greatest anniversary gifts; I immediately said yes. He knew Christine would love to finally have a wedding album and so we got cracking. I put together an initial design, Stephen made a few photo swaps and then off it went to Miller’s Lab for production. The final product was amazing and I’m not sure who was more excited, me or Stephen.
The night of their ten year anniversary Stephen made dinner plans at the Delaney House and I was invited. Okay, I asked to be there but I wasn’t going to stay the whole night, just for the surprise. I called a couple of friends to make the evening even more special for this lovely couple. Rebecca from the Delaney House arranged for a private room with purple linens to match their wedding day, and Rebecca from Forget me not Florist created a beautiful arrangement to complete the look. Seriously, I have the best friends.
Rebecca and I waited in the stairwell for them to arrive and then when the time was right I entered the room. Christine kept saying to Stephen, “What’s going on? I need to get my camera. Can you get my camera?” And the kids were all abuzz. When I entered the room I was pretty sure Christine recognized me but she looked so confused by why I was there. It was a pretty emotional moment.
Christine was still trying to figure out how Stephen pulled it off.
I was so thrilled to be a part of this happy ending for Christine and Stephen. I only wished I had video taped Christine’s reaction to her wedding album because it was awesome. She was so happy and so overwhelmed; greatest anniversary gift ever, right? And a big thank you to Rebecca Whiteford of the Delaney House, Rebecca Fitzgerald of Forget me not Florist, and Miller’s Lab. Please join me in wishing Christine and Stephen a happy anniversary and a lifetime of love.
xo,
Sandra
