This might be one of the first times we’re posting a vow renewal where we got to be a part of their wedding day as well and in this case, it was a gorgeous destination wedding day in Saint Simons. This beautiful vow renewal was full of sweet moments and their story of immense loss that made some of the stories of great wins and ministry even since they’ve been married made for quite a crazy emotional rollercoaster of a day that was just full of beauty. The day took place between First Presbyterian church and The Old Medical College both in Downtown Augusta, GA.

We started by meeting up with our third shooter and one of the coordinators then hopping right into details. As we finished up with details, we all split up to the opposite ends of the church where the guys and girls were to capture all of the getting ready moments and beautiful prayers that were shared at both ends. As everyone finished getting ready, we took both sides of the party outside really quick separately and then met up to set up the first look at the front of the church in the middle. We did this first look a little bit differently where Patrick opened the front doors and came out to see her and came down to his Wife in her new beautiful dress. From here we did as many of the Formals that we could before the ceremony started with the family that we had present and the Wedding Party as well. Then it was time for them to hide away for a while and prepare for the Ceremony where we were all upstairs to photograph the ceremony besides a few shots from the ground floor but, we absolutely loved seeing the congregation singing together and the vocalists and musicians were super talented and helped make the whole tone of the ceremony so beautiful. As they exchanged their renewal vows, they kissed and came back up that aisle again being able to share with so many friends and family that they weren’t able to at their original wedding day that was during earlier time where Covid restrictions were a lot higher. From here, we hopped into the family formal photos and then made our way to the reception as everyone was dismissed to prepare for their entrances for the reception at the Old Medical College.

Now that the Bride had been bustled and everyone had made their way to a seat, the DJ announced in the entire wedding party where they were met with cheers of joy. Once Patrick and Michelle came in with a huge cheering crowd, they made their way to the dance floor to share in a beautifully choreographed dance. That was then followed by a Brother and Sister dance as well as Mother/Son. After this, everyone sat down and enjoyed a delicious dinner provided by one Silver Palm Catering whom we have always loved working with. After everyone had finished their food for the most part, we took Patrick and Michelle out for some sunset photos with gorgeous light to work with before going back in for the Cake cutting and toasts. These toasts were all so heartfelt and we cannot describe how touching the stories and descriptions of their closest friends were but, there were definitely some tear filled eyes in the place. As those wrapped up, it was then time for everyone to go down stairs for the rest of the party which was kicked off with the bouquet and garter tosses then the lights went out and the music was cranked up. They hit a ton of the classics and have so much fun with new things and some of the props from the photo booth even making it to the dance floor made for some absolutely hilarious moments. Joy filled the entire room for the rest of the night and it was a ton of fun to witness. As the night was coming to an end, we went outside for their sparkler exit leading to the Cadillac that they would be picked up and taken to the last part of the party for the night where everyone would meet up with them. They walked through the sparklers surrounded by their loved ones and it honestly was a perfect way to leave the place. We’ve already loved seeing some of the growth and change in just the short amount of time they were married and know that as the years go by, this marriage will become even stronger and shine brighter to those around.

Vendors List

Photography - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Ceremony Venue - First Presbyterian Church

Reception Venue - The Old Medical College

Planner - Ahni & Co

Florist - Martina's Flowers

Dress - Sho Ane’s Bridal and Formals

Men’s Attire - Men’s Wearhouse

Hair - Andrea Morris

Make Up - Merrill Steelman

Caterer - Silver Palm Catering

DJ - Pinpoint Productions

Videographer - Clay Miller

Cake - Hey Honey Cakery

Rentals - Augusta Special Events

8-15-2020

Where do we even start with this amazing couple? They were some of the first to know about our pregnancy, they have kept us going with “The Office” memes during Covid-19, among so many other things that just put them in a spot close to our hearts. One thing that we love about what we do for a living is the fact that we are able to see people that we have come to know and love tie the knot on one of the happiest days of their lives. When we get the chance to do engagement sessions with our couples and meet beforehand, we find that we have skin in the game and are so invested and happy for them and that was definitely the situation here. Anyways, onto the wedding day story!

We were doing photo and video for this wedding and had our third shooter Tom with us to help cover everything so we met up with him and got there early to walk around the venue space a little and get familiar since we had not photographed a wedding out there yet. After that we went into the bridal suite to say hey to all of the girls and grab some details to go photograph while they were half way into makeup and everything still so we did that and eventually during the getting ready process the guys were ready so, after I filmed a little part of Sarah reading her card to Brendan, Tom and I took the guys outside and did the group photos and some individuals of Brendan as well. We then finished up with Sarah getting ready and took the girls outside and once we got back inside it was time to setup for the father daughter first look, and first touch for Brendan and Sarah where they would read their notes to each other. By that time it was getting super close to time for the ceremony so I left Morgan and Tom to do the Mother Son first look while I went and setup another camera for the ceremony video and was joined shortly by the rest of the team. Everything went perfectly and it held off raining just long enough for everyone to get under the covering and most of the ceremony to be over with. They said their I do’s and the priest was actually hilarious and made some unexpected jokes and everyone made their way back up the aisle and then it started raining again so we all hid out under a covered porch just around the corner while we waited to go back for family formal photos at the ceremony area and it didn’t take long at all. We knocked those out and then walked over to the green up on a hill for the full wedding party group photos and some couples photos. A rainbow ended up popping up in the background for a few minutes before it faded away, you can actually spot a little bit of in the first bridal party photo on the green.

Fast forward a little, the introductions and dances all take place and the couple’s first dance was beautifully choreographed to Frank Sinatra’s “Fly me to the moon”. Once they finished all of the dances and we got to the speeches, Sarah’s dad took the first speech to thank everyone and welcome them to the reception. He started by pulling out a long piece of paper from his coat pocket and stated that it was the receipt for the wedding day and you could tell no one was prepared for the joke because everyone laughed so loud and the couple looked so surprised that he broke the paper out like that. All of the other reception moments were perfect and once they got to the open dance floor, the dj threw out some hits by Smash Mouth and Sarah sang every single word while they were surrounded by friends. If that doesn’t perfectly describe how fun they are, I am not sure what does.

A little bit of time passed and it was time for the couples grand exit to their limo so, we got everyone lined up outside and started lighting the sparklers. They exited out and everyone cheered for them and they were intentional about stopping one last time before getting in the limo to look back and say bye to everyone which was just a sweet moment. They then got into the limo and had a few bags thrown into the trunk before the road off into the night to go on their honeymoon to Montego Bay! Needless to say that we are honored to call them friends and cannot wait to see what else happens in the lives of the Dufek family! #IdotoDufek