Annika and Sean’s Intimate Backyard Wedding

On Annika and Sean’s intimate backyard wedding.

I haven’t done one of these in a while. Used to shoot quite a few and I’ve missed it. I love how the communities around two people come together to create an intimate celebration full of stories and memories, where the focus isn’t on the things themselves, but in the meaning of those things.

How Annika grew most of the dahlias in her wedding. How her best friend CJ made the cake. How her bride’s man Owen made her a delicate shawl for her wedding that “was a real pain” lol. How her neighbors provided more florals and how one of Sean’s best friends made the bouquets. How her maid of honor’s mom was the only one who could deal with all Annika’s luxury of hair creating a crown of braids and flowers, and how Sean’s groomsmen spent weeks working on their yard preparing for the wedding.

The stories shared around dinner made of funny and poignant memories and the BEST grilled cheese sandwiches I’ve ever had, of Sean’s desire for good and Annika’s curiosity in the world, and of the house they were gifted out of someone’s love for them that they’d quickly made into a home for ducks, dogs and dahlias.

All of this to tell you how the idea for this final scene of the night came to me. By the time cake cutting and first dance came around, their backyard had gotten pretty dark, and so I asked their 30 or so guests to whip out their phones to shine a light on these two lovely people. It felt symbolic and the results were more magical than I’d imagined.

Congrats Annika and Sean, and thank you for sharing your day with Luca and I. It was such a privilege to be a part of and a memory I’ll treasure for a long time.

Here’s a few of our favorite images from Annika and Sean’s intimate backyard wedding.