Wedding Day – Michael and Anna

At Casini Ranch Family Campground, Duncans Mills, CA

Michael and Anna were married in a ceremony which was very much theirs, not a traditional ceremony which many have because that is the way it is suppose to be.  No, it wasn’t so nontraditional that it was from a distance…this picture above was taken by me as their photographer was taking wedding pictures before the ceremony…not after the ceremony like many do.

When Marcia and I arrived at 2:45 for the 3:30 ceremony…not knowing exactly how Marcia was going to be able to maneuver the facilities it was being held at (GoGo or walk type of issues—ended up being able to just walk, which was good), I was pleasantly surprised that Michael and Anna were down in the woods getting pictures taken…and I was able to get a few too from above without interfering with the two professional photographers they hired for their pictures.

The ceremony and reception was held at this community building which is part of Camp Meeker, which is an unincorporated community in Sonoma County located on the Bohemian Highway, population of 425 people.  Eighty chairs were set up, tables for food and beverages were set up, and everything was ready for the folks who were there to witness and celebrate this wonderful event.  With little parking, they had rented the services of a bus to bring folks to the wedding from the lodge where many were staying about 6 miles away. 

Inside the building tables were set up with no chairs…after the ceremony, people were asked to take a chair or two into the room, and it became a nice cozy area for folks to gather and eat.

Everything went off without a hitch…except for the bus being late.  Scheduled to arrive at 3:20, with a ceremony time of 3:30…the bus arrived around 3:50.  No problem, the setting and atmosphere made time pass as people visited, and the single acoustic guitar player gently strummed away adding to the atmosphere...and we took advantage of the time for some pictures.

    

 

Above pictures include brother, sister, aunts and uncles, and mother and step-father of the groom.

As we waited, why not get a few pictures of the groom, bride and the officiant.

What a lovely bouquet of that Anna held for the wedding ceremony…(the officiant held it for Marcia to get a nice picture.)

My three kids…blue seemed to be the color of the day.

Are they next???  Only time will tell…Kaelyn and Ryan make a wonderful couple…(hint hint) 

   

Finally the bus arrives, the seats will be full…the service, which lasted about 6 minutes took place.  Now I had a choice…take pictures of the ceremony, or take a video of the ceremony…I chose the latter, so that mom and dad, who just could not physically endure the trip to the wedding, could view it from the comfort of their reclining chairs. Not going to post the video, but we did get some pictures as the professionals were taking family group pictures.

 

Yes, that is about as “dressed up” as this old guy will get anymore, at least I guessed the color of the day!  Casual dress wedding means casual to me.  And I was not the only one dressed so casual…

And I love this picture because Anna shows that even casual weddings take a lot out of the bride…as she steps aside for a 5 second break so that they could get a picture of Michael and Stephanie and Ryan…

  

On the left, Michael’s mother’s side of the family…on the right, Anna’s mother’s side of the family.

Michael and Anna wrote their own vows, they were very heartfelt, humorous, and both included the following statement which is very thought provoking…

“ . . . it is a long, long time to be gone, a short time to be here, and I am so happy to be here with you . . . "