sarah & bryant | downtown tampa wedding photographer | first presbyterian church ceremony & sheraton riverwalk reception

…how it all came together…

…

insight from sarah:

what was your favorite moment, or favorite part, of your wedding day?
My favorite moment was looking up as I walked down the aisle and seeing my husband with tears in his eyes. It was a perfect culmination of all of the stress and hard-work when I saw the look on his face.

is there anything you wish you had done differently when planning your wedding?
The only thing that I would have done differently is realize that if one of the vendors does not really seem interested in the wedding or does not even know your name after months of planning, that they are probably not the correct person to use and they will likely not pay the attention to detail that you are expecting.

which three vendors were most important to you when planning your wedding?
#1 Photographer- this is how all of the memories will be materialized
#2 Caterer- nobody likes to eat bad food at a wedding
#3 Flowers- flowers add so much to a venue, if done correctly…(see above)

what was your biggest wedding day savings? (and was it worth it?)
Our biggest wedding day savings was probably the transportation to and from the church. We found a great deal on a limo and it was large enough to transport the wedding party and guests back and forth.

what was your biggest wedding day splurge? (and was it worth it?)
Our biggest wedding day expense out of our own pockets was the flowers. Honestly, we were very disappointed with the results. It ended up not being at all what we asked for and I think I could have saved a ton of money in this area by either hiring a family friend or even doing it myself.

what was the best advice you received when planning your wedding? (and did you listen?)
The best advice I received during the entire wedding process was to just relax and try my best to enjoy every moment. The day before the wedding my husband and I actually had our last pre-marital counseling session. At this meeting our minister sat down and shared some very good advice. She said over the past few days and even tonight and tomorrow people will keep telling you that this is going to fly by, that you won’t remember all of the small details, what the food tasted like, or who was even at the wedding. She said that this is something that many brides and grooms experience but it does not need to be how our evening goes. She told us to say a prayer and ask to just be in the moment and truly take the time to enjoy all of the hard-work that we have put in. She said that God will bring the both of us peace and allow us to have the mindset to realize that our love is what has brought all of this together and that is the most important thing. My husband and I both said a prayer separately on the morning of our wedding day and we both felt such a peace and calmness all day long. We remembered how the chicken tasted and that great aunt Sally was there and sure could cut a rug : )

was there anything encountered during wedding planning that was unexpected?
Honestly, you just don’t realize how expensive it is to have a wedding. We were shocked by the amount of money that things cost but we knew that this was a once in a lifetime wedding and we made it work.

was there a moment during your wedding day that surprised you?
The speeches at my wedding blew my mind. My dad said things that I have never heard before and brought my husband and I to tears several times. Then my maid-of-honor, who is also my sister-in-law, got up and gave yet another speech that made me laugh and then cry until my eyelash was hanging off. Then my brother-in-law got up and gave his speech. To be honest I did not expect much. He is a man of very few words and I was actually pretty nervous for him. He proceeded to get up and tell the entire ballroom how much I changed his family by making his brother happy and bringing the whole family together. He said all of these things through tears. Needless to say both of my eyelashes were gone at the end of it. It was a moment that I will never forget and made me realize once again how lucky I am to be joining this family.

when you look back on your wedding day in 50 years, what do you think you’ll remember most?
I will probably be looking back at the pictures that Marissa took which is a pretty cool thing to think about. But I will probably just remember how in love we were/are. I am so blessed to have found such an amazing man to share my life with.