Carolyn and Geoff Celebrate Their Marriage with a Zombie Jamboree at Artspace in Raleigh, October 23, 2010

I first met Carolyn and Geoff when they were the photographers for a wedding I did last year. Being an amateur photographer, I find it interesting to watch what the photographers are doing when I can and in the case of Carolyn and Geoff, they were all over the place, in the strangest of positions, going for unexpected and interesting angles for the shots. I knew without a doubt that the photos would be spectacular because of this and I was right. (Here is a link to their professional website, Carolyn Scott Photography.) So when they called me to be a part of their wedding, I knew it was going to be a fun time. I was right about that, too.

Halloween-themed weddings are always fun and Carolyn and Scott put together quite a special event. Held in Artspace in Raleigh, it was a perfect accompaniment for the unique and creative evening they had in mind. There are so many good photos to showcase their creativity so I will include a lot here and let them speak for themselves. Many of the photos are by their photographer, David E. Jackson.

Here are the cute aisle markers,

and the greeter at the guest book.

Loved this fun shot they had taken earlier in the year.

The ceremony was very touching in so many ways and Geoff brought out an even bigger smile on Carolyn’s face when he read his vows.

They decided to include an Anniversary Box ceremony. Both had written secret letters to each other to be placed into a box that would be opened on their first anniversary. Into the box would also go their favorite drink ingredients (rum and Coke) and the box would be formally sealed with their signets until their anniversary. Wouldn’t you love to be a fly on the wall when those letters are read a year from now!

After the ceremony, everyone headed upstairs for the celebration. The bar was appropriately appointed with a huge cauldron and the seating chart was titled, “Your Final Resting Place.”

A cookie table is a tradition in Pennsylvania, where Carolyn and Geoff hail from, so all kinds of Halloween cookies awaited our pleasure at that table;

and the cake, made by Geoff’s Aunt Leah, was just perfect - spiders and all.

Sprinkled throughout the tables were fun decorations. Here are just a few.

Geoff designed Carolyn’s ring and isn’t this a clever shot of their rings together.

Here they are during their first dance.

Followed later by Carolyn’s choreographed-on-the-fly dance with her dad. The song for their dance was written and recorded by her dad specifically for that moment. They wowed everyone.

And Geoff’s sweet dance with his mom touched every heart in the room.

Their exemplary DJ for the night was Stephen Scott, who was having as much fun as the rest of us.

This is a photo of their VERY tall photographer, David E. Jackson, taken after the wedding. He flew in from out of town to photograph their wedding.

As the evening progressed, the guests had a few surprises of their own for Carolyn and Geoff.

So the Zombie Wedding Jamboree was a huge hit and all the zombies partied into the wee hours of the night. Carolyn and Geoff went off into their own crypt later, and the guests retired into theirs with the sights and sounds of a good time had by all.

Carolyn and Geoff, I hope your life together is every bit as fun as your wedding!

Jamie and Richie marry with their children around them at The Cotton Room in Durham, March 20, 2010

Is this a handsome family or what?! Jamie and Richie met and fell in love. It was meant to be. They are two people who have been through a lot in their lives but have found their soulmates at last. There was so much love in the air that day and it was all I could do to keep back the tears on many moving occasions throughout the ceremony, starting with Richie’s almost sprinting up the aisle to meet Jamie and escort her the rest of the way to me.

Their handsome Bridal Party was most of their children, all dressed to the nines and glowing with happiness. I think I even saw some tears in their eyes during the ceremony. Their youngest brother, only a few months old, made his entrance in his father’s arms as we began and then he sat with his grandmother until we were finished.

The rings were carried in on buckets of moss - a unique and charming touch.

The ceremony was held in The Cotton Room at Golden Belt in Durham, and what a great location it is. For this morning wedding, light was streaming in from all sides, adding an almost ethereal touch to the great urban ambiance of the room.

Jamie and Richie are both excellent photographers and share their love of photography in their wedding photo business, Jagg Photography. You owe it to yourself to go check out their website. The photos are wonderful and the text is even more so... it’s a great mix and it shows who they really are. I love going there regularly to check out what’s new. 

Their last name begins with an S and instead of gifts from everyone (which they decided they didn’t need) they asked everyone to bring them some sort of an S to put up in their home. What a collection they must have gotten! Here is the huge S that Richie made, sitting in the front when you entered the room. It is surrounded by photos of them taken by a photographer friend in Las Vegas at a recent photographer’s convention. (Many of the photos from that session are on their website.)

And here are some other Ss set up further  down the room...

Fun items placed around the room were a photo stand to take photos of all their guests...

And some antique cameras that also doubled as props for the photos. You can see some great photos of this happy combination on their website.

Right after the ceremony, when the Bride and Groom would normally exit out the aisle, Jamie and Richie chose instead to have their first dance right then and there, followed immediately by a family dance, fully choreographed and charmingly danced by the whole clan.

Jamie and Richie, I will never forget you and your deep love for each other. And I will always have a fond place in my heart for your family dance. You are all going to have a full and happy life together, there is no doubt.

Jill and Kevin and their Bridal Party dance down the aisle

My congratulations to Jill and Kevin and their whole Bridal Party - who obviously put their hearts and minds together to create one of the most electric wedding processionals I have ever seen. Choreographed to the music of Chris Brown’s Forever, what a fun way to start a wedding and a married life!

As near as I can tell, this video was posted on YouTube around July 20, 2009 and is sure to become a huge favorite. In case you don’t catch it at first, the gentleman somersaulting through the Bridal Party is the groom!

So, just to show you that there are no restrictions when it comes to planning your wedding and making it your own, I present to you...

Jill and Kevin’s Big Day

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Corinne and Barry exchange vows at Rosehill Plantation, July 5, 2009

Corinne and Barry were determined to have their wedding outside so we waited as the rainy weather left us guessing for a while. But in the end, despite a remaining sprinkle, the chairs were wiped off and the wonderful guests braved the rain to be there for Corinne and Barry’s beautiful ceremony in the gazebo by the pond. Their determination turned out to be worth it because the misty weather added a special charm to their event. And weren’t the wedding colors beautiful in that setting!

They chose the Rosehill Conference Center as the setting for the wedding and reception and what a special location it is. Sitting in the countryside of Nashville, NC, this stately home and grounds, with its beautiful pond and gazebo, presents a lovely wedding venue that is tucked away from the world.

The reception was held in Nathan Hall and my little camera lens just wasn’t big enough to catch the full grandeur of the room.

One of the highlights of the evening was Corinne and Barry’s first dance. It started out as you would expect, with a sweet little slow dance, but before long they surprised us all with a rousing dance routine that went through all the different styles of dance. They had worked on their routine for over 3 months and their DJ, Randy Bennett, of Joe Bunn DJ Company, had helped them put together the songs to fit the different styles. It was so much fun to watch as they changed from one style of music and dance into the next and changed props as they went. The videographers, Alex Mingel and Ryan Whelan of Mirrored Memories, were on hand to catch the whole thing and as soon as they have the editing finished, I will include the video here. I can’t wait to see their dance again!

Corinne and Barry are a very special couple and it was a lot of fun to be a part of the planning of their ceremony - and to be included at their reception so I could witness that great dance. Rosehill has a lovely wishing well on the grounds and I hope they made a wish for a long and happy life together before they left.