Every once and a while I get couples who are complete strangers, but by the end of a wedding night we’re friends for life. Enter Jake and Andrea! You probably remember this ultra stylish couple from their summer engagement shoot at Rollins College. This time, Jake wasn’t super sick and we weren’t praying the rain away! I packed up my car December 8, 2018 and trekked down to Plantation, FL (don’t know where that is? Its basically a little section of Ft. Lauderdale!) for Andrea and Jake’s intimate backyard wedding. This type of wedding was a first for me and I LOVED IT. It could be because Andrea’s family’s backyard is total #housegoals but also I loved how personal it was to the both of them. So much time during their relationship has been spent hanging out with Andrea’s family poolside so it being the place where they say “I do,” just made sense! Sidenote: if you’re planning on having backyard wedding and you need a photographer I am here.for.it.

Okay so back to this special day! It’s probably the most laid-back wedding I got to shoot this year, we ate freaking paella (the best way I can describe it is there’s similar components as there is in gumbo but it’s BETTER), almost every song the DJ dropped I couldn’t understand and I was digging every second of it. Something that I’ve noticed about Jake and Andrea since meeting them is that they love their people and they want to make sure the ones they love are comfortable and having a great time. I believe that mission was definitely accomplished on their wedding day!

To me my favorite weddings are the ones where I’m actually sad to say goodbye to the couple at the end of the night. When I was saying goodbye to these two we were even exchanging “I love you guys” to one another… that’s when you know the job is more than just a “job.” Being a wedding photographer allows me the opportunity to get to know people on a different level. There’s something about photographing their happiness on the best day of their lives that lends to being able to form an AWESOME bond. Enough sap from me… here is the Shrivoria wedding (that’s Victoria and Shriver pushed together, they wear the name well haha).