A Closest of Friends' Wedding - Kristin & Garrett
It’s a completely different atmosphere when I photograph a wedding for two people that I’m really close with. I know them. They know me. It puts the mystery of compatibility by the wayside and opens up a door for a completely transparent relationship when it comes to being a part of their wedding. I have to say, it was next level.
Kristin and Garrett are in my community group. We have dinners together every Sunday. We sit next to each other at church. I meet up with Garrett to go through a book of the bible or something one of us is wrestling with, and Kristin does the same with my wife, Allison. There is already a real relationship grounded before I even picked up the camera. Add a bridal party that is in the very same position and you have a wedding that is a once in a lifetime celebration with the people you do the most life with. It was intimidating and yet so rewarding to be the one to document it all.
Kristin and Garrett are the bride and groom that I have come to love. They are ones that will set up a game plan with full intentions, but call a last-minute audible to strive for what’s best. The weather that day was not one worthy of a marriage celebration. It was windy, it was cold. It was rainy. It was October in Des Moines, Iowa which means you could have anything from 70’s and sun to 7 degrees below and 5 inches of snow. We landed on a day that required hand warmers and shawls. Thankfully, the bridesmaids are superheroes and the groomsmen are chivalrous. But the bride and groom wisely made the decision to not go to our scouted spot, and make the venue work. As a result, the venue paved the way for an evergreen wonderland. The Iowa Arboretum provided everything we needed for the day. It was an outdoor paradise on a day we should've been indoors. Combine that with a couple see-through umbrellas and it’s Kristin and Garrett who I have to thank for such great imagery.
The whole wedding involved so many of my closest friends and brothers and sisters in Christ. So many hands helped make it possible and so many hands made it a wedding that I’ll hold onto for years to come.
