This time I shot a wedding with Julie Cheshire of Julie Cheshire Photography Julie Cheshire Photography in Woodside, California at this great restaurant, Mountain Terrace. True to name, this place was the perfect blend of casual wedding and beautiful scenery. You’d never see it unless you were looking for it. It’s next to a little deli and across from Alice’s Restaurant along a very windy road. Once there, though, you’ll walk through the restaurant to the back and see a huge lawn lined with huge redwoods and a great view of the mountains between them.
I’ll let you in on some of the details from the day…Placecards were handmade with dried, pressed wildflowers that were totally unique for each guest. This theme carried through to the centerpieces of colorful wildflowers in mason jars and at the end chairs along the aisle. They had a ukulele player throughout the ceremony and dinner which was a very neat spin on the string group you see at most weddings. I also got to take a peek at Jessica’s vows as she practiced them before the ceremony.
Jessica’s mom helped her prepare for her big day. There might have been a few tears welling up; but they were all suppressed for the sake of the makeup. You should have seen Jessica before the ceremony. She was pretty calm and stayed in her room so that Dan wouldn’t be able to see her before she walked down the aisle. She read and reread her vows while waiting to be escorted out by her father.
The ceremony was super short but very heartfelt. Each read their own vows which was Dan’s idea, showing his inner romantic. It was presided over by Dan’s nervous brother who did very well considering it was the first time he had ever done anything like that.
Here’s a glimpse of the scenery from the yard. The colors were fantastic. As for the newlyweds, they were just giddy. A man of few words, Dan makes up for it with the way he looks at Jessica and the way she looks at him.
The toasts were great, especially the one by his brother who was able to say all the things he knew he couldn’t during the ceremony. We learned of Jessica and Dan’s past 7 years together, with their first meeting at a Starbucks while Dan was living it up hippie-style in a van. It was also important to get pictures of the “Vegas Girls”. The sextet went to Las Vegas to celebrate Jessica’s bachelorette party and four of them came back with a dragonfly tattoo!
Again, I was lucky enough to photograph a wedding where the guests were hitting the dance floor like it was their job! Jessica’s father was cutting the rug all night with his hot moves. One guests got so into his moves that he split his pants! You know it’s a good party when someone goes home needing a tailor. Also getting down was Dan’s grandmother from Canada. She was out there twirling around like everyone else. When I asked Dan how old she was, I was blown away by the fact that she’s 93! She was putting the majority of the younger folks to shame.
It was a beautiful night and I wish Jessica and Dan the best of luck far into their nineties.
Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be.
– Robert Browning
