Danielle & Ryan // A Marin Wedding Ft. Muir Woods & Pelican Inn
There’s a culture idea that a wedding has to be something extravagant and showy, and not necessarily a representation of who you are or what you like. It’s a toxic, money hungry game that values things over feelings, and after working in it for years I was tired and confused.
Enter Danielle and Ryan. They fell in love with California while traveling through from the East Coast and decided to get married here. We met up a few days before their wedding to take some photos and get to know each other. After wandering around Mount Tamalpais for a few hours and grubbing at Sol Food I felt like I’d known them my entire life.
Throughout their wedding they showed me the three pillars of a wedding that matter most, the things I still talk about in every chat I have regarding wedding culture:
Keep it small. You want to be surrounded by the people who matter most, not your third cousin twice removed who your mom really wants to come because she doesn’t want things to be awkward at next years family function even though you’ve only met them once (when you were two months old). This is such a special time, and you’ll want your attention on those who have helped you grow and mature as individuals and as a couple.
Go somewhere you love. I’ve been to venues where four (4!!!!!!!) weddings were happening at the same time. These places are built thinking about you as numbers, which you aren’t. As a side note, do you know how much a wedding in a state park costs? It’s much less than you think. Like much much less.
Take the time to relax. Memories are made when there is time to make memories. If you’re rushing you’re going to be thinking about the schedule and not the moment you are living in.
With those three things you are going to be setting your day up for maximum enjoyment.
I realize I haven’t really talked about the details of their actual wedding; it’s because I’m not entirely sure how to write about something this close to my heart. It feels weird to simplify a day so monumental in my mind to a few words on a screen, so I won’t. With that, enjoy this snippet from a day at Mount Tamalpais, Muir Woods, and Pelican Inn.
