Brianne and Murat's Wedding in the Florida Keys

Brianne and Murat are delightful and their wedding was too!  The couple met in 7th grade but truly fell in love as adults.  However, their long shared history had connected their families so beautifully and everyone was thrilled to celebrate their union.

They were married at the Coconut Palm Inn in the upper Keys.  It was a fabulous place tucked backed from the road and right on the beach.  The 70 guests were able to have the run of the place and it was wonderfully inviting.  

The ceremony and reception all took place there on the private beach.  The weather was fantastic in the 70s with a light breeze and it got cool enough at night to enjoy the bonfire and the s'mores!

I just loved being a part of this intimate, fun-filled and truly special wedding.  I look forward to making an album for Brianne and Murat because the pictures are just so fun and being back in Montana now, I'm dreaming of palm trees and white sand beaches!

Have a great time on your honeymoon in St. Lucia

Christina and Joe's Wedding in Mexico

Ahhhh.  What a wonderful celebration.  Christina and Joe got married in Sayulita, Mexico on October 28th and I am so glad I was there to capture all the fun.  Christina is one of seven children and her whole family made it down to Mexico for the celebration.  Joe is from Ireland and much of his family also made the trip to enjoy the warm (very warm!) Mexican sun.

The families rented a large complex on the beach with a pool, beach volleyball court and the beautiful Pacific right outside the door.  The had their rehearsal "fiesta" there the night before the wedding.   With a taco stand and margaritas to add to the Mexican flavor of the event.

The wedding day itself was just beautiful.  They were married at La Palapa which overlooks two beaches and miles of blue Pacific behind them.  the ceremony was so personal and touching, with both their parents and all their siblings taking part in the ceremony.   In fact, Christina oldest sister Kathy performed the ceremony.

The reception just continued the fun.  Everyone there (especially Christina!) could DANCE!  The fiesta lasted into the evening and I was sad to say good-bye, they had made us feel so welcome!

Buena suerte Christina and Joe and thanks for having us there to photograph your wedding!  Check out my website for their wedding in the featured wedding section.

Mary Ellen and Ken's Wedding

Oh wow! Mary Ellen's and Ken's wedding on the small island of Poros, Greece was just fabulous. Mary Ellen's grew up in Greece and when she and Ken got engaged she knew she wanted to go back to Greece to get married. It was such a fantstic experience to get to see and experience a real Greek wedding!

Justin and I were treated like honored guests. And even though this was the first time we had met Mary Ellen and Ken, by the end of the weekend I honestly felt like we had known them and their friends and family for a long time. We sat with Mary Ellen and Ken's best friends during the wonderful meals we had over the course of the two day celebration. And a celebration it was!

The rehearsal dinner was full of Greek dancing with professional greek dancers to teach the non-Greeks how to move and lots of clapping, napkin waving, dancing in circles. It was fantastic to watch and photograph!

We woke up (late) the morning of the wedding to a rainy day. What amazed me though was Mary Ellen's laid back attitude about the whole thing. And although it did rain, everything was just as lovely as you could imagine. And the clouds made the sunset pictures after the ceremony even more stunning.

The reception went late into the night. Ken's parents were still dancing when we turned in at 4 am. I think no one wanted the night to end. It was just so much fun!

I am looking forward to seeing Mary Ellen and Ken again in January when I visit my sister in DC. Thank so for having us there at you beautiful wedding! All the best to you both!!

Aimee and Scot's Wedding in Yellowstone

It's not often that you get to take someone's wedding pictures while Old Faithful erupts in the background.  I got to do that this past weekend at Aimee and Scot's wedding at the Old Faithful Inn- so cool!!

Aimee and Scot met while working in Old Faithful and came back to get married there.  Their connections with the managers at the inn allowed us to do some cool things.  We were able to climb up the hundreds of wooden stairs to the roof overlooking Old Faithful and the rest of Yellowstone Park.  It was an amazing view and even more incredible to think of the history of this inn, which was built over 100 years ago.

Aimee and Scot's friends and family were just great too- and we really enjoyed celebrating with this fun group!

Best of luck!

Fresh Wedding Contest- Enter Today

Planning to get married while riding camels across the Sahara or in a 1,000 year old church in Tuscany? Exchanging vows on a tropical beach barefoot?Did you meet at summer camp and fall in love while making s'mores? Did your proposal involve international travel or a barbershop quartet?
If you have a great story, a fresh and unique wedding plan or a wild wedding location. We want to hear your story!

The freshest, most unique wedding plans or wedding couple will win a complete wedding photography package. This includes everything from engagement photos to the day after wedding photos all presented in a artistically designed album and publication of your wedding in a national magazine.

How to enter: Send your story in an email to meghan@gatheringlightphoto.com. In 500 words or less tell us your wedding plans (Date, Location, Number of Guests) and what about your plans or you as a couple makes you unique and fresh. You may also send up to three attached pictures of yourselves and/ or the wedding location.

Deadline: All entries must be received by April 15, 2008. Winners and runners-up will be announced by April 20, 2008.

Prizes: One GRAND PRIZE winner will receive a complete wedding photography package including an engagement session, full wedding coverage (up to three days for destination weddings), all digital proofs of the wedding photos, DVD slideshow of wedding photos set to music, and an artistically designed album containing approximately 40 pages of wedding pictures. Your wedding will be published in a national magazine.

One RUNNER-UP will receive a complimentary engagement session and day after "Trash the Dress" photo session and two complimentary parent albums with purchase of wedding album

Contest Rules: To be eligible for the contest your wedding your wedding must take place between May 1, 2008- August 15, 2009 and will be subject to photographer availability. Entries must be received by April 15, 2008 by 11:00 pm MST. By entering the contest participants agree to having their images and wedding stories published on Gathering Light Photography's website and in a national wedding magazine, if they are the selected winner.

Wedding in Marin County, California

I was thrilled when Megan contacted me about doing her wedding in Marin County, California. This is because, as I told her, that part of California is one of my favorite places in the world. Therefore, what could be better than shooting a wedding there? I was even happier to hear that Megan had decided to contact me because she loved the work I had done on her friend Annie's wedding in May. I love referrals! So much love- this wedding was sure to be one of my favorites!

Well, Megan and Philip's wedding met all my expectations. They themselves were beautiful and their friends and family were wonderful to meet and photograph. The ceremony reflected this couple's deep faith and the reception highlighted their fun loving spirit. And the setting- just as beautiful as I remember. Can you say palm trees and sun shine in January? (Oh and it was -30 in Bozeman while it was 65 degrees in Marin!).

I was having so much fun with Megan and Philip that I even tried to get an invite along to the honeymoon in Hawaii, but, alas, that did not happen!

Hope you two had a great time and thank you for having me capture your special day.

A Wedding in Vienna, Austria

What could be more romantic than a wedding in a palace in Vienna? Perhaps if you add light snow, horse drawn carriages and one of the most romantic paintings in the world. . . then you would have Heather and Gary's fairytale wedding in at the Belvedre Palace in Vienna, Austria.

This fun loving and SUPER sweet British couple decided to have their intimate wedding in Vienna after getting engaged there the year before. When they contacted me to photograph it I was thrilled and it was all even more photogenic than I imagined (as were the beautiful bride and groom!).

In their words the whole evening was just "lovely."

Julie and Derek's Wedding

Golden Aspen trees, blue skies, BIG families and a lot of laughter- that's how I will remember Derek and Julie's beautiful mountain wedding in Vail Colorado. The bride was even more beautiful than the setting and watching the groom smile at her it was obvious he felt the same way.

Julie, the bride, is one of four girls and their father is the only son in a family of eight children, so there was a lot of gentle teasing for the father of the bride who has always been surrounded by so many wild women!

The party went well into the night and everyone was sad to see the night come to an end- so was I! Julie and Derek thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of this special event!

Rose and Jake's Wedding

Rose and Jake are old friends and so I was honored when they asked me to come back to New England to shoot their wedding. They are both such fun people; in fact, Rose might be one of the funniest people I've ever met. So I knew that their wedding would be a great time- and it truly was.

It was a beautiful August day. They got married under a chupa after signing the traditional Jewish wedding contract. Then their was dancing to the reggae band and lots of fun for everyone.

I had such a good time and I was so happy to get to see other old friends that my husband and I used to work with, that I almost forgot I was working! However, the pictures look beautiful and I think really reflect the spirit and love between this wonderful couple.

Have a great time in Belize on your honeymoon and a love and happy life together!