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Rebecca & Jake
A joyful, Jewish wedding

Candid Moments, Weddings

Rebecca and Jake’s wedding at Boettcher Mansion was unlike any I had ever photographed before. The day was so full of love, tradition and community– it was truly something beautiful to photograph.

The day leaned heavily on the candid side, at the request of the couple, which allowed me to observe and capture all the little nuances, tears and glances throughout their day.

It was truly an honor to photograph such a sentimental and gorgeous day.

Some highlights of the day:

All the heartfelt hugs and tears during their Kabbalat Panim, welcome hour
Jake’s incredible entrance to their first look
Every minute of the couple’s wedding ceremony
Their gorgeous Ketubah made by one of their friends
The couple dancing in the street after their couples portraits
Their friends breaking wine glasses during the Sheva Brachot

To Rebecca & Jake

Thank you both for having me be a part of your day! You both have such an inspirational love, it was such an honor to capture just a small part of it. Thank you for being so welcoming– I felt right at home. Y’all threw the party of the century, I hope you both enjoyed your day as much as I did. Wishing you so much love and happiness in your future!

-Leah

The Wedding Day

Getting Ready

Rebecca and Jake had the luckiest wedding day weather– beginning of March is relatively hit or miss, and their day was such a hit. A light dusting of snow, completely clear skies and temps in the 60s. Literally could not ask for better weather.

The couple arrived mostly ready, so getting ready consisted of some finishing touches and putting their wedding attire on. Rebecca had the coolest boots which were embroidered by her mom and Jake had a dapper custom emerald green suit and hat.

They both had their close friends and family helping them get ready– the vibe was relaxed but filled with anticipation.

Kabbalat Panim

Even though I have photographed numerous Jewish weddings, Rebecca and Jake’s wedding had so many traditions and customs that I wasn’t familiar with– it was so beautiful to learn so much from their day.

The Kabbalat Panim was like a welcome hour where their guests all came and separately greeted the couple. Rabbi Rachel Kobrin informed everyone that this was a time where the bride can give out blessings, which led to lots of emotional and heartfelt interactions between Rebecca and her guests.

Bedeken Ceremony

This was another traditional Jewish event, the veiling of the bride. I truly have never witnessed anything like it. (Getting chills just thinking about it). Jake entered the room literally hoisted in the air and accompanied by his friends and family. A friend was playing the drums, everyone was singing. It was incredible. This was the couple’s “First Look” so it was so fun seeing each other’s faces.

They then signed their gorgeous Ketubah, made by one of their friends and had a few moments of prayer and silence. Everyone was crying throughout the day, but this was an especially sentimental moment.

Ceremony

Next up was the ceremony. There were more tears, songs, tons of laughter and emotion. It was absolutely gorgeous. The couple was encircled by their entire community of friends and family which was so beautiful. You could just feel the support and love in the air.

Portrait Session

Portraits were short and sweet at the request of the couple. Not exaggerating, we were probably outside taking photos for less than 5 minutes. It was clear this couple’s priority was celebrating with their guests and enjoying their day, not vanishing for 45 minutes to take photos (which as someone who only took about 10 minutes of photos on their wedding, I support 100%).

Hora

After portraits we rushed back into the venue for the Hora!!! One of my absolute favorite parts of Jewish weddings. The look of pure fear morphed into joy is just one of my favorite things to capture. But things didn’t stop at the Hora! There was dancing, jump roping, chair stands, snowball juggling, and wigs (I got hit in the face by one lol). The energy was so high the DJ literally had to pry everyone away to go to dinner.

Sheva Brachot

After dinner, the couple had a series of toasts, the Sheva Brachot, a series of 7 blessings. Each blessing was given by different important people in their lives. Their was singing and table pounding (so intense that many a wine glass was broken or spilled). The energy was absolutely contagious.

Dancing

I was only with the couple for a short while for open dancing, but what I did see confirmed what I already knew, this was going to be a party!

This crew was so fun to photograph, their guests truly were incredible– present, emotional, supportive and then ready to hit the dance floor. It was such a joy photographing this day and all the couple’s important people.