Alli + Dan | Maas Building, Philadelphia PA

When Alli and Dan reached out to me initially about wedding photography, they shared their vision for their day. I was swept up by their appreciation for vibrant colors and nontraditional ideas, but also by the story of their relationship.

The pair is originally from Philadelphia and met years ago in high school. They were both members of an informal board game club and “after months of goofy jokes and awkward flirting,” they started dating. Their relationship has grown and evolved deeply over the last ten years and now they live in Chicago.

It was important for them to not only create an event for themselves, but one that celebrates the love they have for everyone who supported them over the years. Because of this, they opted to have an “inner circle” instead of having specific gendered parties — these 12 individuals were some of the most wonderfully hilarious and sweet people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.

We started the day off at North Bowl in Northern Liberties for some bowling with friends, where the fake mustaches were in full force and the tater tots were aplenty. Afterwards, we headed to the Wyndham Hotel in Old City to get ready. Alli’s floral crown by Kate Farley Design complemented her BHLDN wedding dress beautifully.

As all of the girls started getting dressed, hues of pink, orange, gold, and blue started popping up. The mismatched, eclectic vibe was exactly what Alli and Dan explained in their introduction email. Little details with pink, turquoise, orange, and gold brought everything together throughout the day and were so much fun to photograph. Major props to Natalie Diener for helping to coordinate everything as the couple’s day-of coordinator.

After portraits at Franklin Square, we drove to their venue in North Kensington  — the Maas Building, an old trolley repair/brewery turned gallery space. In the evening, guests gathered for a self-uniting ceremony in the outdoor garden, where the sun finally started peeking out. The ceremony was interactive and fun, with the inner circle acting as the narrators. Their reception was equally as amazing, with stringed and candlelight and the best food truck pizza I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating.

I was flattered to be there to capture the special moments of Alli and Dan’s celebration candidly. A huge thank you to my husband Pete for joining me in shooting our last wedding together. Next year, he’ll be enjoying father-daughter time when I’m working on the weekends, so this was the perfect way to wrap up our season before we officially become parents.

All rambling aside, here are some of my favorite moments from the day:

pre-party: North Bowl // getting ready: Wyndham Hotel // wedding dress: BHLDN // shoes: Swedish Hasbeens // hair: BLO/OUT // venue: Maas Building // food truck: Pitruco mobile wood-fired pizza // desserts: homemade // decor: DIY // floral crown, boutonnieres, and corsages: Kate Farley Design // music: Mikey Vanilli //  wedding & event consulting: Natalie Diener