A wedding at home.
A day made their own.
Bill and Daiva married at their private estate in Wayzata, Minnesota, on August 26, 2017. Their home and gardens became the setting for portraits, an intimate ceremony, dinner under a tent, and an evening of dancing.
There were flowers along the staircase, candles in the trees, and a swing beside the pond. Bill’s love of music gave me an idea for the rings. When the weather changed the ceremony plans, everyone gathered inside.
A wedding at home.
Bill and Daiva were married at their private estate in Wayzata, Minnesota. I began with a few photographs of the decor around their home. These flowers and chandeliers gave the garden a beautiful setting for the day.
The morning’s little details.
I photographed Daiva’s shoes before the day got going. A little detail from getting ready, with their delicate shapes and sparkle against the darker wood.
A different view of the morning.
A creative view of Daiva having her hair and makeup done. I like looking for ways to photograph the preparations that give a little sense of the room as well as the person in it.
An image worth looking for.
I always challenge myself to make an interesting ring photograph. I found a beautiful surface to work with here, and the jewelry gave me plenty to photograph. I wanted this small part of the day to have an image of its own.
Their home, ready for the wedding.
The flowers followed the banister down from upstairs. This was Bill and Daiva’s home, and I wanted photographs that remembered how it looked for their wedding, from the gardens to the staircase.
A little of his story.
Bill is a musician and works in the music business, so I wanted a ring photograph that included that part of his life. There was a bass guitar in his office. With his permission, I laid it on a table and made this image.
One more view from above.
Then I placed both rings on the bass strings and photographed them from above. A very different image from the first ring photograph, and one that connected the jewelry to something personal.
The dress in motion.
I photographed Daiva from upstairs and had her give the dress a little spin. From above, the shape of the dress and the clean wood floor make a different kind of bridal portrait.
A little above eye level.
There were lamps and candles hanging from the trees. I wanted to photograph the details at different heights, including the ones you might pass beneath on a walk through the garden.
A portrait in their garden.
A photograph of Bill and Daiva in their backyard, with the flowers and decor around them. One of the lovely things about a wedding at home is having the couple’s own surroundings become part of the portraits.
A place I wanted to use.
There was a beautiful swing beside the pond, decorated for the wedding. I wanted to make sure we used it. Daiva, the flowers, and the water gave us a portrait that could only belong to this place.
A little room for the house.
I wanted a photograph that showed the home, too. I placed Daiva in the front doorway and stepped back to include the house and fountain around her.
A quieter bridal portrait.
Inside, the window light was beautiful. I made this portrait of Daiva on the stairs, letting the light and the shape of the staircase become part of the image.
A little time in the garden.
I made another portrait on the swing as well. With the flowers and greenery around it, it was a lovely place for photographs with the people celebrating with Bill and Daiva.
Closer to the ground.
Another of the lanterns, this time on the ground with flowers above it. Small details like this helped carry the feeling of the celebration through the grounds.
Before the ceremony.
Bill waiting for Daiva to come down the stairs for their ceremony. The flowers we had photographed earlier were now part of a very different moment.
The ceremony comes indoors.
The weather did not cooperate, so the ceremony moved inside. Once Daiva came down the stairs, she and Bill walked in together, with their family and friends close by.
Everyone close at hand.
I went upstairs for another view. From above, you can see how intimate the ceremony was, with their guests gathered around them in the house.
Bill’s reaction says it all.
Then they were husband and wife. Bill was excited, and I wanted to keep that reaction in the story. Some moments say plenty without much explanation.
Back outside for dinner.
The reception was outside under a tent. I made an overall photograph before moving closer, so you could see how the flowers, chandeliers, and tables came together.
Flowers on their chairs.
A closer view of Bill and Daiva’s table, with flowers decorating the backs of their chairs. These little personal places within the larger room are worth remembering, too.
Centerpieces all the way along.
I photographed down the length of the table to show the centerpieces. The flowers had such a strong presence, and this angle lets you see them repeating through the space.
Another view of dinner.
Then a view from the side. A different angle shows the chairs and the flowers together, with the chandeliers hanging above the tables.
Something bright on the dessert table.
Everything on the dessert table looked so good and colorful. I made a close photograph of this one, with the berries and flowers piled on top.
A little sweetness in the garden.
Their wedding cake, photographed before they cut it. I wanted a little of the home and garden behind it, keeping the cake connected to the place where everyone had gathered.
Bill and Daiva, ready for a taste.
Bill and Daiva cutting the cake. After the detail photograph, I came back for the people and the moment.
The little pieces afterward.
And the little pieces of cake afterward, cut and ready for their guests. I like having a few photographs that remember the celebration as it unfolds.
One more from the dessert table.
One more photograph from the dessert table. The chocolate-covered strawberries were beautifully arranged, and they made another colorful detail from the reception.
A longer look at the setting.
I went outside for a black and white image of the reception setting. A longer exposure softened the moving water in the fountain and gave the photograph a different feeling from the closer details inside the tent.
A change of clothes, then a dance.
After dinner, they came back into the house. Daiva changed her clothes, and they made their entrance for the first dance. The evening had moved from the tent to another part of their home.
Just enjoy the moment.
They had a fun dance together. I stayed with the movement and their expressions, with everyone watching around the edges of the room.
A different perspective.
I also ran upstairs for a view from above. The clean dance floor let the two of them hold the frame, with a different perspective on the same dance.
Beautiful light, a lovely ending.
Then a perfect dip at the end, in beautiful light. I wanted to finish this little sequence with that moment—Bill and Daiva enjoying their dance together.
The evening, still going.
After that, everyone joined in. The dance floor filled with their family and friends, and the evening went on with everyone having a great time.
All at home.
The garden swing, a bass guitar in the office, the staircase, and the room where everyone danced. I like how these photographs keep the celebration connected to the couple’s own life.
A wedding day with their family and friends, in a place that was already theirs.