Rebbecca and Adam chose unconventional venues for their wedding, being married outside at Schiller Park and having their reception in the banquet room at Schmidt's in historic German Village. But first, I started with Rebbecca at her and Adam's apartment. Before getting into her dress, though, Rebbecca had to finish weaving the hand tie that would be used to bind her and Adam's hands together during their ceremony. She did this on the floor in the living room, with the tie stretched out in front of her, on top of a book titled, appropriately, "How to Make Whips". Which, actually, had nothing to do with the hand tie but belonged to Adam, who liked to make whips in his spare time, along with brewing his own mead. I have some very creative and talented clients.
Before we left the apartment for Schiller Park, we had to make a picture with Rebbecca's pet bunny, Velvet, so named not only because is he soft and furry, but because he was initially thought to be a girl (um, nope). I love being able to include a beloved pet into wedding pictures, and especially if we can be at your home. Photographing this important part of your wedding day in your own home is always meaningful.
Schiller Park was lovely, lush and green after it had rained earlier in the day. We were afraid it would continue into the wedding, but we ended up having beautiful clear September skies with big puffy clouds instead. The ceremony was touching and heartfelt and very simple, with only Rebbecca and Adam and their officiant on the stage of the park's amphitheater, and the hand tie Rebbecca finished just an hour before was a touching part of their vows.
After the ceremony, Rebbecca and Adam greeted guests in a receiving line, which, while it takes a little time, does make for some great pictures of everyone interacting.
Then, it was time to do family pictures and bride/groom pictures, which we did right on the stage of the amphitheater before taking Rebbecca and Adam around the park for their separate portraits. The perimeter of the amphitheater is lovely, with a trellised walkway covered with wisteria – very romantic. And there are lots of open spaces for "big" photos with lots of sky, lots of really large, old trees, and, of course, the well-tended flower gardens.
After pictures at Schiller Park, we walked from there to the reception where we stopped for pictures in expected and some unexpected places, including some random person's front porch and a lovely shrub of flowery goodness. German Village is a great place for wandering around to take pictures, whether for a wedding or an engagement session. So many interesting places to duck into, even the alleyways are cute and manicured.
Schmidt's is a rustic Columbus landmark in German Village and I have to admit that I wasn't sure what to expect when having a wedding reception there. I'd never been to the banquet room, but it was lovely. What made it so was the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, draped in gauzy sheers that filtered the late evening September light so beautifully that the whole place glowed. It was simply stunning. And Rebbecca's idea of having individual cakes on everyone's tables made for lots of fun among the guests, something I would highly recommend. And the mead. I would highly recommend that as well. Adam broke out a couple bottles at the reception for everyone to taste, including me, and it was more delicious than I could've imagined. I'd never had mead before and this was made from honey so it was delectably sweet.