barns are awesome for weddings. so are awesome people. kelly and greg had a barn and were awesome people. it’s never too encouraging driving to an outdoor wedding with your windshield wipers on full blast. thankfully by the time i got to colchester connecticut things were all clear (and it stayed that way). i noticed pretty quick that kelly had some unique and quirky style, which was totally cool. these shoes kind of tipped me off…

we hung out at a hotel room for the getting ready time where i got to know some of the bridemaids, the mother of the bride, and the super cool grandmother of the bride. there was a little bit of a predicament (as there always is at weddings) where kelly left something at home that she needed. that caused everything to be a little late. the limo was scheduled for a 6:30 pickup at the hotel and it was strictly for the ride to the ceremony 17 minutes away. they had the limo until 7:00, which was the ceremony start time. there was a bit of drama trying to get the limo driver to stay and wait for the bridal party rather than go to his next job. the mother of the bride went down and talked to him, i gave it a try after her, and then i think eventually the hotel manager shmoozed him a little bit because when we got down to the lobby at 7:05 or so, the limo was still waiting. that was fortunate, becuase i’m not sure how many people i could fit into my corolla.

the ceremony was outdoors on private property. everyone pretty much rolled out of the limo and down the aisle. really, i think i run at weddings more than most track and field athletes. the groom and groomsmen were in all black and they had these cool shirts with a pattern on the back. they also had on some ties that were pretty neat. a live bagpiper (as opposed to the dead kind, right?) supplied the music while everyone walked down. that was a first for me to see and i liked it. those things are loud, it filled up the outside with sound like a 1000 watt speaker setup.

the ceremony didn’t end until close to 8, so i had to use some fancy flash work for the formals. it was late dusk by the time the receiving line was over and we were able to take some pictures. i threw my speedlight on the ground and fired it wirelessly to try to get some interesting light. weddings really stretch technical ability, creativity, and your ability to think/act under pressure. i was happy to find out that the bridal party and family had a good collective personality – they were a fun group and in good spirits. it was easy to see how in love kelly and greg were which really makes weddings that much better.

into the barn for the reception. this was a dessert-only reception, so the whole table was lined with various sugar based products. there were a lot of colors so it looked pretty neat. the barn was lit really well, with string lights all along the ceiling and tons of little candles lit around the whole room. the introductions were all done to music and everybody danced their way in. after that the party started and the music was going and the dessert table was open for everyone.

there was a balcony that wrapped part of the room, so i climbed up the steep ladder and went up there to take some photos from above of the dance floor. i had on a long sleeve button down shirt. being the sharp guy that i am, the shirt was tucked in. all of a sudden i felt a little tickle on my neck that i quickly went to brush off, then i felt it go down into my collar and under my shirt. i immediately realized that i had been breached by some type of insect. i climbed down the balcony, ran outside the barn and started persuading the bug down my sleeve with my other hand. when i got him close enough to the bottom, i unbuttoned the sleeve and shook it out. i never did find out what kind of bug that was (besides rude and bold). hopefully no one saw me since it probably looked like i was slacking off, dancing around outside by myself.

a great job on makeup was done by alison russel and the tunes were pumped out by daley videography & dj from brooklyn, ct. things went on until close to 12:30 at night. i didn’t end up getting into bed until 2:30 in the morning, but it’s cool. it was an awesome wedding and a lot of fun and i’m really glad greg and kelly decided to have me be a part of it. thanks guys, i hope you love your pictures!

check out the facebook album for more or go to the blueflash site under ‘clientspace’ to check out their entire album. family and friends, you guys can order prints and other photo products directly from the website. enjoy…