Prior to their wedding, I knew that Ali and Andrew were health and wellness coaches and that Ali teaches yoga classes. What I didn’t know was that she was going to do yoga poses on her wedding day…in her wedding dress! And difficult ones to boot! 
On the day of the wedding I was greeted at the door of their suite in the Hotel Marlowe by Ali and Andrew’s sweet dog Maddie. Maddie was rather perplexed at all the activity surrounding her mom as Anthony Joseph expertly applied her makeup to perfection. Our furry friend was also included in the ceremony. Maddie wasn’t the only member of the bridal party under 5 feet tall. Andrew’s nephew, Riley, was the ring bearer as well as Maddie’s leash holder. For the first time in my career the ring bearer was actually going to bear the REAL RINGS! So when it came time to shooting the rings on the satin pillow, I tied them on as tightly as I could so that there’d be no chance that Riley could lose them … as long as he didn’t lose the pillow. Needless to say I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief when those rings made their way down the aisle, under the chuppah, and safely into the hands of Andrew’s best man.
Ali and Andrew opted to have one of their friends marry them so there was a great deal of humor injected into the ceremony. The two could have been mistaken for lighthouses, their smiles were beaming so much. Ali’s tears of joy reminded us why all brides should have a little handkerchief amongst their something borrowed or something blue. Then in what seemed like a mere blink of an eye, the two were finally married. Now they weren’t just business partners, they were partners for life, as man and wife.
About the time the ceremony finished up, Boston and Cambridge were under a tornado warning, so the planned shots on the banks of the Charles went by the wayside. Ali and Andrew were flexible, so even though they had their hearts set on shots under the weeping willows, they were willing to do the formal bridal party and bridal portrait sessions with the Hotel Marlowe’s velvet infused backdrops instead. Andrew and Ali took it in stride and really made good use of the props made available to us.
Upon entering the reception, Ali and Andrew did their first dance to Etta James’ “At Last.” But they really brought the house down later when they performed a fully choreographed routine to Grease’s “You’re the One that I Want!”. Andrew even perfectly executed a tricky lift! After that iJam! got everyone on the dance floor with a rousing rendition of “Shout!” Ali then got up on stage and joined the band and surprised Andrew, serenading him to the tune of “I love you, I do” that made me quite sure that she should be crowned the next American Idol winner. The grand finale included Ali and some of her fellow yogis doing crow pose, a yoga arm balance stand, and she invited me to participate. At the end of the night as the guests left, the clouds parted and allowed my second shooter, Shawn Black, and I to cap off the night outside with the happy couple. With the magic of flash photography, we were able to capture a few dramatic shots, even when cloaked in the dark of night, under their favorite weeping willow trees. For these romantic shots, Ali and Andrew stuck to more traditional western poses. In the end it was a very enlightening experience. Namaste Ali and Andrew!
Notes: Ali normally doesn’t wear makeup so she wanted a very natural look. Anthony did a great job of keeping her looking totally fresh faced. The one suggestion I made to her, and make to all brides, is that they choose a lipstick color that is darker than their natural lip color. Having a well defined lip and eyes for photos makes a huge difference in how you will look in your images. So remember girls, any time you are having your photo taken, a good lipstick and mascara are your two best friends.