I recently posted some of my favorite photos from Bunmi + Livaughn’s Washington, D.C. wedding at the Colonnade in Washington, D.C., and wanted to also share their video slideshow from the wedding. Here I get to share some more fantastic images, as well as put them to the incredible music from Ólafur Arnalds. If you’re not familiar with his music he makes fantastic moody songs and is definitely someone to check out!
Sometimes destination weddings for me are not destinations for my couples. Such is the case for Bunmi and Livaughn, who live outside of Washington, DC and chose to hold their wedding at the beautiful Colonnade within the Fairmont Hotel. It wasn’t just a destination for me, but for many of their friends and family as well who came from all over the US and as far away as Africa to attend this amazing wedding.
I had the honor of photographing Bunmi’s sister’s wedding as one of my first weddings over six years ago and was so thrilled when Bunmi contacted me after Livaughn proposed. We spoke over the phone and were able to meet once before their wedding to go over details and their timeline. They chose not to see each other before the ceremony, but the timeline allowed for us to photograph both the girls and guys around the Colonnade prior to the ceremony. The grounds at the Fairmont Hotel are beautiful, and although there wasn’t a lot of Washington, DC architecture, there were some beautiful spots within walking distance from the hotel, and we managed to take advantage of those both before and after the ceremony. Their cocktail hour was held in the courtyard outside of the Colonnade where the ceremony was held as well as the reception and as the sun went down we managed to get a few beautiful twilight photos before they danced the night away.
Bunmi and Livaughn, thank you so much for inviting me out to celebrate, and document your wedding with you. It was a truly beautiful and elegant affair!
To see a few of my favorite images from their wedding, click on the large image above, or any of the thumbnails below.
October 28, 2011 - 10:51 amBetsy McCue - Lovely, Evan!! Gorgeous images and she is stunning! The sepia closeup bridal portrait is so timeless and perfect. I also really love the big first dance image. It's great!
October 27, 2011 - 8:15 amKristy - What a beautiful wedding! And fantastic job on the photos! You really ARE fantastic!
If you didn’t see Part I of Elise and Dave’s wedding hop back there now to check out the getting ready and ceremony photos as well as the details of their day. After the ceremony, Elise and Dave and family gathered around the fountain while guests headed to the Yacht Club at Herrington Harborfor cocktails hour. Elise was super thrilled about portraits with Dave, and as we finished up family and then bridal party photos, and they returned to the cocktail hour, Elise and Dave stayed behind, on the docks, on the beach, throughout the hotel grounds and working our way back to the Yacht Club.
After arriving to the Yacht Club Elise and Dave and their bridal party were announced upstairs to dinner followed by toasts and a welcome from Elise’s father. Their first dance was held downstairs while guests looked on and after that the dance floor was rocking all night long until the very end, when under increasing clouds, and dense humidity as Hurricane Irene approached Elise and Dave were sent with to a sparkler exit.
Elise and Dave are rockstars! Seriously! And I don’t mean, they were rockstars posing it up in front of the camera. I mean, Elise and David met when David was auditioning for the band that Elise sings in. Like “ROCK AND ROLL!!!!!!” (I”m doing my best Rob Halford here) So it should be no surprise that music would play a huge part in their wedding day, from the names of their tables, the decorations around the reception, the string quartet that played prior to the ceremony to the musical interlude generously provided by the ice cream truck traveling through Herrington Harbor Marina in the middle of their ceremony their day was filled with music from beginning to end.
When Elise and Dave planned their wedding for a Friday afternoon, they had no idea how fortuitous their decision would be. By Saturday afternoon most weddings up and down the Atlantic coast had been cancelled, as hurricane Irene made landfall, and traveled up the Chesapeake Bay area. I was on one of the last flights out of BWI on my way back to San Diego, passing through the clouds that preceded the coming storm. But on Friday, the weather was perfect and Elise and Dave celebrated with friends and family under light clouds that barely hinted at the coming storm. [continued below]
Elise and her girls got ready at the Chesapeake Beach Resort and Spa and we had time to shoot some portraits there out at the docks before heading to the ceremony site at Herrington Harbor. They held their ceremony on the bridal lawn overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, with high white puffy clouds and cerulean skies. Elise’s father walked her down the aisle as Dave and his groomsmen waited. The ceremony was fantastic with readings by friends, and of course the music of the ice cream truck. After the vows, the ring exchange and the kiss, Elise and Dave recessed down the aisle past their guests, and as they reached the end of the aisle Dave let out a huge breath that it seems he must have been holding for the entire ceremony.
Click on the large image or any of the thumbnails above to see a few of the images from the first half of Elise and Dave’s wedding. Stay tuned! More images from the second half of Elise and Dave’s fantastic day coming tomorrow!
September 24, 2011 - 2:18 amWedding in Manuel Antonio - What a location choosed for marriage? I like this location. Both of you are looking so beautiful..
On my last trip back East, I met up with Betsy and John at Betsy’s parent’s home in Maryland for their engagement photos. Betsy and John are planning their wedding in June of next year, and I’m so excited to be included in their wedding plans. Like most of my couples I could tell they were a bit nervous at first when we got started, but unlike some couples, they immediately relaxed and seemed to really enjoy being with each other, and didn’t seem to care that I was pointing a camera at them.
We had a great time wandering around the small town of Eldersburg near her parents home to start, taking advantage of the old split rail fences, the stone buildings of old town Eldersburg as well as the trains and even, maybe breaking into a restaurant that wasn’t yet opened!
After wandering around Eldersburg, we went back to Betsy’s parent’s beautiful home and large yard to continue their engagement photos. The lush grass, big old trees are something I definitely miss when photographing around most of San Diego. Even though it was the middle of the day, the light dappling though the heavy canopy of old trees around Betsy’s parent’s home was simply beautiful. Also … it was close to 100 degrees, but I don’t think you can tell at all from the photos.
Betsy and John were really a fun and beautiful couple to photograph. I can’t wait for their wedding day next June and look forward to hearing more about their plans, although it sounds like most everything is already wrapped up … they have the winter to relax and wait for the big day!
by Evan Bishop
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