In one of my recent posts, I mentioned that we were taking photos with our wedding party during cocktail hour. Well, we did, but not before we took some formal portraits together. Nicole took a TON of photos that I absolutely love, and I can’t wait to share them with you. Of course it’s hard to edit them all down, so I’ve broken these portraits up into two categories: pictures of us together and individual “profile” shots.

First things first, I’ll present you with thirty of my favorite bride and groom pictures. Then, tomorrow, I’ll share thirty of our best profile photos. After that, we’ll move on to photos with our families and the wedding party before finally visiting the reception, cutting the cake, dancing, and detailing the little things. There’s lots more to look forward to!

Right after the ceremony, Justin and I sneaked a kiss behind the Half-Moon House (an authentic outhouse, for those just joining us). Then, after canoodling with our guests, we took off with photographer Nicole for some privacy.

Before heading off into the brush by the Polebridge creek, we took this picture next to our ceremony site. We’re in front of a second semi-permanent stage that’s used during Polebridge’s annual Aurorafest. We considered using it to have our band play directly into a large tent, but that would have meant more generators and equipment to rent, when the other stage was already fully loaded.

After escaping the crowds, we took a few pictures in Polebridge’s tiny wedding circle. It’s a beautiful place, tucked away from the town behind some trees and next to the creek. It was far too small and inaccessible for our guests, unfortunately…

I love the “antique” actions that Nicole applied to some of our photos. How fitting!

And I really enjoy Justin’s adoring expression in this picture…

We tromped through the brush to take a few more nature photos. All the while I was trying to keep my dress and veil from snagging on the bushes, and prevent myself from getting too covered in grasshoppers.

I wish we’d been able to do more with my veil, but because there were only three of us back there (and no one wanted to go fetch another person), we didn’t get a chance to pose it as if it were being blown by the wind. But it was definitely a fun accessory to have, and I have lots of great photos with it:

After finishing photos in the brush, we climbed up onto a big old log, which was quite a feat for me in my dress. Let’s just say I was extra glad to be wearing cowboy boots. These gorgeous shots are definitely some of my favorites!

This one looks like it should be in a magazine…

I actually can’t believe I managed to look that sexy while standing on a log.

Some more traditional shots… First, in color. I love that you can see the green hills fading into the distance, and the color contrast of the bouquet is striking…

And here are a couple traditional portraits in black and white:

Holding each other close…

And laughing for the joy of it…

We then walked back to the ceremony site, which had been cleared of chairs, and took these two pictures. The mountains came out to greet us!

Once we had finished taking family portraits in that same location, we walked over to the front porch of the saloon to take photos with our wedding party. Here are a few couples shots that came out of that set:

Cathy, our officiant and head wood-carver, made us this nifty sign…

Isn’t the porch gorgeous and rustic?

We decided to show off my garter, for a little Old West flair.

The sexy, sultry pose:

The “oh is my garter showing? I didn’t notice because I was adoring my new husband” pose:

Notice the accessory change? I took off my veil and added a hair flower on a barrette clip. You can’t really see it in the pictures above because I’m facing the wrong way, but it shows down below.

During dinner, it poured. And after dinner, there was a rainbow! I know, it’s somehow both cliche AND awesome.

Here we are, post cake-cutting and license-signing, admiring the weather’s turn for the better:

During dessert, we crept away to the Mercantile for some more pictures. We were joined by Sasha, the three-legged Karelian Bear Dog.

I think Justin decided to motorboat my boobies or something. Sasha was having none of it and tried to escape having to watch our nookie by begging to be let inside.

… Mr. & Mrs. Speyer, now open for business!

At this point, the wine and champagne from dinner was kicking in and we were having a hard time doing anything but laughing. But that’s ok! Laughter makes for wonderful photos, too:

Finally, we decided it was worth dragging my still-clean dress through the wet grass to get some beautiful shots in the field next to Polebridge’s one dirt road:

We knew it was almost time for our first dance, so we practiced our moves…

And shortly, we were in front of the stage dancing to Iron and Wine’s “Love and Some Verses” played by the Good Wood bluegrass band.

Many fabulous dances later, it was time to call it a night. This last portrait was captured in the grotto, before Polebridge shut down their generator and we moved into the Northern Lights Saloon for the afterparty:

I hope you enjoyed this selection of our portraits together. Stay tuned, there’s much more to come!

Up next, our formals with family…

[Credits: All images courtesy of Piknik Studios.]

Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Here Comes the Groom, Photos, Recap on February 25th, 2009