Stefanie and Mark.

Wakefield, RI


I have been a bad blogger. And for this I apologize. September could not have been a more busy, dizzying month. So many things to write about, all of which are stacked atop each other, haphazardly in the "writing/blogging" corner of my mind. The ideas started to collect dust, which only made them weigh heavier and therefore diagnose my problem as a combination of procrastination and too much to do with too little time. I was given a slight push in my writing when a friend returned from one of her many world travels and asked where on earth was the next entry?! She had just traveled to the other side of the world, with what I would consider far more interesting experiences than I, and here she was, looking for MY next blog. I figured it was time to write.


Stefanie and Mark: September 5th 2010.
Charleston, SC
St. Luke's Chapel.

On the heels of summer came the wedding. There was just enough breeze to make the outdoors bearable, yet we were all thankful the church was air conditioned. I had been looking forward to this wedding for months. I sincerely enjoy photographing my friends' weddings. There is an extra sense of excitement that subconsciously radiates through my lens. And it was no different for Stefanie and Mark.

I am a hopeless romantic. Lets just call it what it is. I love, love. I try, with little success, to conceal my deep sighs and swooning for all things that all are lovable. But I usually succumb to the happy sting of tears, the steady progression of goosebumps from the excitement, and I can't stop smiling. All I wanted to do for this wedding was to capture the intense sense of love, which is the main goal for all the weddings I shoot, but all weddings are different, a mixture of specificity and the carefully though out details.


Tissue please...
It was a palpable love, a sweet and tender love. Movie-worthy love. There was not a dry eye in the church. I think we all wanted to feel what they were feeling. They both have the best smiles, and they were grinning from ear to ear all day long. It's tough planning a wedding. There are meticulous and tedious tasks that have to be done, things forgotten about, and someone always asks at least 10 times, "do we have the rings?!". But, the day pushes on, and the moments keep coming, at a rapid pace, especially if you are the bride and groom. The endearing and wonderful thing about Stef and Mark was that, even if there was a sliver of stress, I never saw it. So rare among weddings these days, we seem to base upcoming nuptials on the latest episode of "Bridezilla". This was far, far from that. They waltzed through their wedding day, smiling and laughing and being IN every single moment with an intense gratitude for everyone there.

The entire day was indicative of their goodhearted and genuine personalities. I want THAT kind of love, everybody does. They represent the silly happy kind of love that we read about, and critics think is unattainable and exists outside our realities (I won't lie, even as a wedding photographer, sometimes I have trouble believing it exists). But in THIS reality, we all saw it, we wanted a piece of it, and we want nothing but the best for them.

Highlight of the Day: I had the privilege of having an hour of their time to photograph the two of them around Charleston in the old Black Cabs, and hear their story of how they met, right up until the wedding day. Complete with Skype dates, as Mark is from England. I thought it fitting that we were riding around Charleston in an old London cab in the south. A sign no less, that things are going pretty well for Mark and Stef.


Congratulations Stefanie and Mark Keegan!! Many many years of happiness.