We get asked this question quite often. How does a wedding photographer choose who will photograph their wedding?

Probably in my 20’s I would see Denis Reggie‘s work in bridal magazines and I remember thinking that his style was what appealed to me. I didn’t want to be posed all day, I wanted a more candid approach to wedding photos. When Keith and I decided to get married, we both knew that we wanted this more documentary style. Keith had been photographing weddings in this style for years, so it was an obvious choice!

Why not dust off these photos. Keith’s best friend and fellow wedding photographer Bob Wallace photographed our wedding. And, even 14 or so years ago these photos still hold up to today’s style. 

The main components of our wedding photos are exactly what speak to us as photographers: documentary in style, some motion and movement, candid when possible, posed when necessary and a really good retelling of what transpired over the 3+ days that friends and family were all together. 

After a big debate about having a huge wedding in New York or Boston (yes, I’m Irish Catholic with a million cousins so the guest list would have been quite extensive) Keith and I decided that a destination wedding on St John would be the perfect fit for us. 

We made a long week of it. Most of our guests did the same – and at the very least, stayed for an extended weekend. My dream was to always get married on June 6th (who knows why) but Bob had a wedding on June 7th back in NYC – so we changed the date to June 5th – which I believe was a Thursday. Needless to say, this just forced people to get to St John a day earlier, more time to drink Pain Killers, snorkel and just hang around at beach bars and the most amazing beaches in the hemisphere. Time doesn’t matter any way when you are on an island!

Our wedding day was perfect. It’s amazing when you are not stressed, things like it raining minutes before the outdoor ceremony or the DJ forgetting to show up might put a damper on the day. Not at all. The rain passed and cleared just in time. We were then rained on when we went to go take our pictures on the beach after the ceremony. A torrential downpour of water trashed my dress on the Puff Daddy outdoor taxi ride (which is the coolest island transport, wedding or not – anyone who has been to St John knows what I mean!) on our way from the beach to the reception. The steel band from our ceremony played the cocktail hour at our reception. When the DJ didn’t show, the band stayed for a bit while the very adept catering manager at The Westin called a Brazilian Duet that she knew – who dropped what they were doing and showed up to play some of the best music I’ve ever heard. The guests loved it. The reception could not have been more perfect.

We have so many beautiful photos from that week. Bob photographed our rehearsal cocktail party the night before the wedding, the wedding day and the day after, a beautiful catamaran ride for all the guests around the island. A destination wedding in every sense of the word. It was such a laid back, enjoyable time.

Lots of hangovers and lots and lots of laughs. The best week of my life. I’m ready to redo our vows next year. Any takers?