courtyard wedding — Beauty & Beard PhotographyBlog

This beautiful wedding day took place at Victory North in Savannah, GA and had almost everything you can think of. Friends, family, dogs, kids, roller skating, tears, laughter, stories of a broken arm just before the wedding and a beautiful love story being celebrated through all of it.

The wedding day started with the three of us (Jordan, Morgan and Tom) showing up and looking around the venue then splitting up to cover the guys getting ready, venue space and details while the girls were finishing up bits of makeup to then cover the last touches of makeup. Once they were finished, Shayla got into her dress and we started doing the last few touches with her Mom and a few of her girls to button up the dress and put in the veil just before setting up the first touch with her and Trint. They held hands and shared some beautiful words with each other around the corner as well as a few jokes which sent us all off happily to prepare for the ceremony. It was a very hot Summer day so a lot of the guests sat under the tree shade then sat down as it started. The ceremony was full of tears of joy as they walked down the aisle even with both their son as the ring security followed by a well dressed flower guy preparing the way for the Bride. Trinity shed a few tears as he got to see the woman he will spend the rest of his life with for the first time that day. Her Uncle handed her off and then they proceeded to share vows to each other as well as Shayla to Trinity’s son which I am pretty sure made everyone cry. As they finished their vows, they sealed it with a kiss and left as husband and wife. We then transitioned into family formals, wedding party and then their couples portraits.

Now it was time for the party to start at the reception as they entered into their first dance, Uncle and Niece dance, Mother and Daughter and then Mother and Son dances which kicked off the reception. Later they also cut their beautiful cake on the stage which kicked off the night full of dancing which is where eventually the roller skates and their dog came out on the dance floor. One of the most beautiful parts was when everyone gathered in a circle near the bar for toasts and passed around the mic and it was ended by their little boy giving one of the most beautiful toasts and no one wanted to try to follow that. The night ended full of music, dancing, conversing and drinking with all of their closest friends and family which was the perfect end to a beautiful day.

Vendors List

Photography - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Venue - Victory North (Savannah)

DJ - Wade Kehoe of Bass Fusion Entertainment.

Caterer - Magnolia Bar and Grill

Cake - Rodney from Bakers Pride

Day before cruise - the Tammy Jane Ship of Vagabond Cruise

Wedding planner - Kathi Roberts of KRob Entertainment

Makeup Artist - Dawn Williams-Marshall of Beauty Marked by Dawn

Dress - Elegant Bridals

Matt and Mackenzie literally had a perfect wedding day that fit their joyful fun-loving personality and just some gorgeous details too! To start, Mackenzie loves leopard print and it shows. She had leopard print shoes and her outfit for getting ready was entirely leopard print and we wouldn’t have had it any other way! We had never gotten to photograph a wedding in Macon but are super happy that this destination wedding was our first! The couple is actually from Savannah but hopped on I-16 to head over and tie the knot! The venue is absolutely gorgeous and has just about everything you could ask for in a venue but is also in one of the most unassuming spots in downtown Macon.

Starting the wedding over in the bridal suite where all the girls were getting ready, we got to say hey and meet all of Mackenzie’s girls before starting on details which we did quickly take to the courtyard area where the ceremony would be held to be sure that we could get as much done out of sight of the groom showing up. Before too long the guys were showing up and getting ready so we brought the girls out with their mimosas before they were in their dresses completely ready and snapped a few photos. Once the guys were a little more ready, we snuck in to have Matt read a card from Mackenzie for the video and then took all of the guys outside for their photos as well. Things got goofy really quick and we discovered the groom’s favorite band is actually the Allman Brothers Band (you will see his socks had their logo and also later you will see a representative from “The Big House” which is the band’s museum that brought them some trinkets).

Later on, as the courtyard filled with their friends and family, Tee Smith started playing music on the keyboard and that would start the processional. She made her way around the courtyard fountain and he just smiled from ear to ear. They started the ceremony and everything went perfectly until they went to light the unity candle and the wind kept blowing it out but everyone had a good laugh and it eventually lit. They said their vows, tied the knot and made their way back up the aisle to the tune of “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” as performed by Tee and Tee Jr. in a very amazingly theatrical performance. We then turned into family formal mode and then bridal party. Once we finished the formals, we got to whisk them away for a bit for the romantic photos and we had a great time with them. Fast forward a little bit and we headed in with their entrance and the toasts right away. Just a little bit later they had their magical first dance and the mother son/father daughter dances before breaking into party mode (which the dj was just absolutely amazing. Everyone danced into the night (especially the father of the bride). We ended the night not with a typical exit, but just a romantic last few photos under the outdoor lights and them walking out as just the two of them and saying our goodbyes.