It takes something most don't possess to turn a big ol' field in the middle of the country into a ridiculously beautiful wedding venue. But that's what Kate and Daniel and their families and friends did to the field of their very generous friends. Way out where no one could hear them, they tied the knot, then partied under the big stars. And the cicadas even left them alone, mostly. I'm about to make you jealous you didn't get married here:
We started the day about 40 miles north in Charlottesville.
It was both hilarious and terrifying to photograph Kate's friends putting her contacts in. Kate was, as always, an incredibly good sport about the whole thing, even as she teared up.
We made the trek, then it was time for the bride and groom to see each other.
Kate and Daniel were married on a private residence near the town of Lovingston, Virginia. Their friends graciously lent them use of the house, but everything else occurred on the expansive field in front of the property.
There was even a small lake in the background for us to use as backdrop for portraits.
Kate is one of those epically happy people - always cracking up and giggling. Makes my job easy.
Could they have picked a more beautiful setting and set-up for a wedding? Apparently this incredible wood-planks-and-doorframe ceremony entrance piece came from Craigslist! I mean, seriously, look at this.
Go time.
Kate and her dad had a long way to walk.
The Virginia countryside is a really beautiful place for a wedding.
My kind of detail shot. It was a very windy day, but it helped to cool things off.
Cicada (I think)!
I freakin' love this image - managing to sneak a bit of street into family formals. Truth is, this was probably a happy accident when I was just testing exposure.
Their friend from South Korea couldn't make it, but she sent a life-size cardboard cut-out in her place, which, obviously, is awesome.
Smoking cigars because it's the country and you can do basically anything you want.
The wind prevented my backdrop from going up, but while it was still light out, Nature provided an even better one.
It was a bit too hot to dance much at first, but luckily Kate and Daniel had the forethought to provide cornhole and bocce ball to entertain their guests.
Somebody brought moonshine to the wedding.
Congratulations guys!
Kate and Daniel's vendor team:
Getting ready venue: Sleep Inn, Charlottesville
Ceremony and reception venue: a friend's field
Flowers, decorations, ceremony setup, uncounted pretty things: Daniel's mother and grandmother
Caterer:
The Barbecue Exchange (Kate highly recommends!)
DJ:
Ran Henry
Officiant: Rev. Rachel Cornwell, Woodside United Methodist Church, Silver Spring, MD
Cake:
Chandler's Bakery
Kate's beautiful dress: Ann Taylor
Bridesmaids dresses:
eShakti (love this store - good for lots of non-wedding dresses too.)
Big thanks to Tim for coming out to help me with this wedding.
I'm such a sucker for a big Washington, DC backdrop.
The Crowne Plaza is right in the heart of Crystal City - so we were a bit short on pretty green spaces, but had plenty of rockin' urban stuff to work with. And, if you can believe it, there were actual bikers trying to use our wedding portrait bike path.
These poor people. I had already subjected them to my parking garage obsession at their courthouse wedding.
But really, who can resist a good orange stripe?
The Crowne Plaza gets to use the beautiful courtyard between office buildings for outdoor wedding ceremonies. The light bounced all over the place and reflected off the windows in the buildings opposite the sun. It was a lovely setting.
Erin's dad officiated and he did one of the best jobs of any officiant I've ever heard.
Instead of doing the candle thing or the sand thing, Erin and Patrick decided to paint together. I wonder if that canvas is dry yet.
Erin!!
Yeah he's definitely not waving to anyone in particular.
Patrick's aunt danced *all night*.
So I've eaten a lot of wedding cake. And I don't even like cake - girl just needs a few extra calories sometimes. But this was the. best. wedding. cake. ever. Seriously. Happy Tart Bakery is the freakin' bomb *and* they're a gluten-free bakery - ridiculous!
Sometimes when editing, I know what song they were dancing to at the time and it gets stuck in my head. Thanks guys, for the Time Warp. Oy.
Patrick's not a big dancer, really. Here he is literally being carried to the dance floor, from which he ran away.
But he came back later.
Congratulations, you guys!
Erin & Patrick's vendor team:
Ceremony & reception venue: Crowne Plaza Washington National Airport, Crystal City, Arlington, VA
Catering: same
Cake: Happy Tart Bakery
DJ: Jon Ryu, with MyDeeJay
Erin's dress: David's Bridal
Hair & Makeup: Amy Rojas with Stylist To Go
Heather got ready in this fantastic room with beautiful old mirrors. 
While Frantisek was in the main house.
True story, our daring, animal-loving bride survived a spider attack in this very spot. No spiders or humans were harmed in the making of these images.
Here's another true story: I saw all these kids looking adorable playing with an iPad. Then I saw an ant carrying a dead spider (more spiders!), so I attempted to pry them away from electronics. It worked! (And just in case you're wondering, H&F, yes, I included the ant-carrying-the-dead-spider in your image set.)
Go time.
Heather and Frantisek made their big we-just-got-married debut wearing Kate and William masks. Hilarious!
Receptions at Rosemont Manor take place in the Carriage House - a lovely clean space with plenty of A/C. Heather and Frantisek decorated with big white chinese lanterns, big floral centerpieces and tables with animals, not numbers.
Let me take a sec to publicly shout out to my more-or-less full-time second shooter Julia. A number of the images in this blog post are hers (including the one below) and she totally killed it at this wedding. We've been working together since early this year and I'm so glad to have her on board for many of my 2013 weddings!
Sometimes there's a good image in the room where they put your food. And while I'm doing public shout-outs, so many thanks to 
Heather's parents really cut a rug.
Congratulations guys!
Heather & Frantisek's vendor team:
Ceremony & reception venue: