Travis and Jay’s backyard wedding in Ferndale

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How it started…

Travis and Jay’s backyard wedding took place in Ferndale Michigan. The wedding was originally scheduled in June but Covid-19 took over and we had to start improvising. The main wedding and reception has been pushed out for about a year, but they still wanted to have a scaled down wedding ceremony on their original date. They decided to hold a small backyard wedding to exchange vows and invited some very close friends and family.

Patrick Abel wedding photograph — Patrick A. Photographer

Day of…

We met up a little bit before the service and got some fun shots of the two of them before the guests started arriving. They also brought in their beautiful dog and companion. We stayed close to the house while some close friends helped get things set up while we shot our photos. We then took a small break before the service was going to start. Guests began gathering together and everything was in place.

The Service…

Travis and Jay walked down the aisle together. Their officiant was a close friend and performed the service and vows. She had a lot of fun things to share. It was a very meaningful exchange of vows and was beautifully executed. I tried to move around and get some good angles and cover the event with a combination of close-ups and wide angle. The goal really was to capture the emotion of the event and this was a very beautiful wedding.

Cocktails and Conversation…

Jay and Travis have a little Tiki Hut and Bar in their backyard which made for a perfect spot to serve cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. People meandered around and visited with one another. Social distancing in an outdoor setting, from what we know, isn’t as critical as an indoor setting, but everyone seemed to be aware and conscientious of one another. I wandered around and offered to take some photos of friends grouped together. Most people opted to remove their masks for the shots, but not everyone. It was fun and we had a great time. One of their friends prepared a beautiful cake for the event. We went inside and it was set up on the back porch. I hung around and tried to get a few detail shots. The goal was to photograph up to lunch being served.

The Big Event…

The larger event is now on the schedule for some time out and that’s on our books so we are getting ready for that. This was a beautiful small event to cover the wedding and a little luncheon for some close friends and family. We’ll look forward to seeing them for the big party soon.

We can’t wait for our next backyard wedding!

You can check out one of our favorite weddings for Mary Ann and Tony at the Hellenic Cultural Center in Livonia MI.