Carter&Baptiste’s Outdoor Wedding

Here’s to adaptability! Although it’s been a quiet season for weddings overall, I’m so glad that I connected with Carter and Baptiste! They found my work through the Mutual Aid Medford and Somerville group, which is a great resource for folks struggling because of Covid. It’s been wonderful connecting with other caring folks in the community, especially since it’s so easy to get isolated.

Before weddings, I usually like to meet up with clients. It gives me a chance to make sure they feel comfortable with me and to chat logistics. I had my first picnic meeting with them, which turned out to be a lot of fun, and I might just have picnics with all my clients from here on out!

Carter and Baptiste are both lovely people with great senses of humor. Baptiste is gregarious, stylish, and kind. Carter is sweet and thoughtful, and is currently working on her degree at the Harvard Divinity School for a Master’s program. She’s going to be a Unitarian Universalist minister, and knowing a lot of UU ministers myself, I wasn’t surprised! UU ministry draws a lot of kind, conscientious people.

Safety is very these days important, so sadly I wasn’t able to photograph the ceremony, which was held at the stunning First Parish UU Church in Harvard Square. Fortunately, Carter and Baptiste live with their good friends, so they were all able to be in the wedding party. Their friend Juliet stepped up as photo assistant and bubble blower extraordinaire. She was always there to hand masks back to the couple! Their friends Anna and her husband brought their five year old, Leif (pronounced “Life”), and he was the designated ring bearer and bubble catcher. He’s been really into Lord of the Rings, so he decided to be the “Lord of the Ring Bearer”, which I find utterly charming.

After we finished taking photos of the wedding party on the steps of the church, we went across the street to get photos with the statue of Charles Sumner. He was a UU minister in the late 1800’s, and was an avid advocate for the immediate abolition of slavery. His statue is right across the street from the beautiful wrought iron gates of Harvard yard, as well as in the grandiose yard itself. We stopped to take some classic shots by the gate, before moving on to the yard, where someone had drawn a chalk heart balloon on the sidewalk! It was the perfect kind of spontaneous photo I love to take, and Juliet added even more color with the bubble wand.

Harvard yard is a good place for grand photos, and we went to the stone steps of the Widener Library. I feel like it gives the photos a sense of timelessness. I love places that have a history of learning! We walked through the yard to the Cambridge Common, and many people congratulated the wedding party on the way. We found some lovely spots in the shade, and took some relaxed couples shots. They both had fun ideas, and we worked together to get a bunch of fun photos! We ended the day with some photos in front of the incredible Sanders Theater. Just as we were thinking it was time to wrap up, a huge storm front came in, including thunder and some crazy rain! I’m grateful I got to be their photographer, and the whole day was a great reminder of why I love what I do. I wish them a wonderful future together!