Artifact wedding: Stephanie + Stephen

I have known my friend Stephanie for nearly 20 years. It astounds me to write that. But I did the math — and then double-checked my math — and it’s true. First, we were colleagues at The Baltimore Sun. Then, we were in a small group of women friends who got together for occasional dinners or drinks. She joined my bookclub. We bonded over some shared experiences as new mothers. And finally, we found ourselves in adjoining neighborhoods with kids at the same school. She is smart, sarcastic, funny and incredibly successful at every turn her impressive career has taken. She’s a great parent. And as an overly emotional person, I’ve always admired her no-nonsense approach to everything from office and family dramas to childcare challenges and incompetent colleagues. So I was delighted when she and Steve first contacted me about photographing their wedding. And yet, I still wasn’t prepared for how I would feel about photographing their emotional, gorgeous, teeny, tiny, surrounded-only-by-people-they-love ceremony at Artifact Coffee. I got to see my friend giddy with happiness at marrying Steve. I got to see her be sappy and emotional and teary. And oh, the way Steve looks at her. I smiled so much that my cheeks ached. Then, they ached some more as I edited their photos. I really, really love what I do for a living. I consider myself incredibly lucky that I get to capture joy and emotion and such happy moments for my clients. When I get to do that for friends, it adds an extra layer of happy to the job. Here are many of my favorites from their Artifact wedding.

The bride, looking lovely. And oh so happy!

Stephanie and Steve chose to see each other before their ceremony for photos. When I asked them a week or so before the wedding about locations for their portraits, they deferred entirely to me. Stephanie explained, “We want pretty photos. And we know you’ll give us pretty photos.” Steve added, “We are clay. Mold us.” I picked a spot with lots of green for their first look. And even with the overcast skies threatening rain, I looked for little pockets of good light to make some beautiful photographs for them. Steve had a pretty great reaction to seeing Stephanie for the first time.