Catalyst Wedding Company highlights weddings by and for game-changers. We seek to amplify and empower voices and viewpoints that are usually missing from the Wedding Industrial Complex. We're a community of badass wedding professionals who love all things funky, fresh, diverse, unique, and personality-driven; we convene twice yearly for (un)convention, a collaborative workshop, styled shoot, and dinner party. We're also the publishers of Catalyst Wedding Mag, a resource for couples looking for inspiration and affirmation that doing things differently in wedding-world is not only ok, it's wonderful!
Kurt and I have known each other since we were seven years old as elementary school acquaintances. After reconnecting later in life while we both had significant others, we soon ended those relationships and began dating each other. Kurt eventually proposed on the playground of the elementary school we both went to. Pretty adorable.
Read MoreIn thinking about what we wanted out of our wedding (and over-thinking it for weeks on end) we agreed there were three things we simply couldn’t live without in this celebration: great food, a killer location, and stunning photographs. What we got out of our wedding was so much more than these three things. In thinking about what was important to us, we were able to drop what wasn’t and created a celebration that showed the 70 family and close friends in attendance exactly who we are as a couple, and how much our hearts burst with love for one another. The very friend who facilitated our meeting at a bar officiated our wedding, and told the story of our love. She incorporated tidbits that she had secretly solicited from each of us, and it was incredibly powerful to hear the things that we’d written about each other for the first time along with our friends and family. Amanda’s dad passed away about two years ago, and she was scared that it would feel like there was a hole where something huge was missing during the celebrations. Instead, the love and joy that radiated from every single person who was there filled our hearts even more. Throughout our planning, we tried to balance all of the things we wanted this wedding to be without losing each other in the process. In the end, the result was so beautifully us.
Read MoreWhile Gary and Michael felt that their wedding overall was fairly traditional, there were certainly elements that made it un-traditional. Their wedding ceremony was based off of Aristophanes's Speech in Plato's Symposium and lyrics from the song "Origin of Love" from the musical, Hedwig & the Angry Inch. In Plato's Symposium, men attending the symposium were asked to deliver a speech in examination and praise of "Love". Aristophanes's speech sets up the original myth of love and the feeling of "wholeness" when you find your love partner.
Read MoreAlex and Ben Anthony were married on September 12, 2015, the date of her parents' anniversary. The couple held a small ceremony in her parents' backyard on Lake Erie (to fit Alex's more introverted personality) and hosted a celebration in Columbus (to pay homage to their wonderful city and Ben's love of a good party).
Read MoreDonnie and Jamie's wedding took place July 27, 2014 before gay marriage had been legalized nationwide, so they decided on a destination wedding in Massachusetts, a state going on 10+ years of legalized same sex marriage. They chose a place they both loved, Provincetown, most commonly known as P-Town! If you haven't been there yet, this place is AMAZING — one of the most idiosyncratic and extraordinary towns in the United States. It is a huge summer attraction with its beautiful beaches, quirky shops, and a popular destination for same sex couples.
Read MoreSarah and Miriam’s wedding combined a number of things, which break with wedding traditions in Austria. For one, domestic partnerships have only been legal since 2010 here. As feminist wedding photographers concerned with equal rights, we were thrilled but have only seen emerging numbers of same-sex ceremonies in the past two years. Same-sex weddings are still a bit of a novelty in Austria.
Read MoreKalinda and Robbie are both Hollywood writers and producers based in LA.Their shared love for film, especially classic old Hollywood, was a huge influence in the design of their wedding. They are a producing powerhouse who weren't afraid of challenging the status quo when planning their unconventional event. The decor of their wedding was cheeky and thematic - an old typewriter as a guest book, table runners made of script pages from their favorite movies, place cards written on vintage movie film, and 1920s film clips playing on a screen overlooking the dance floor.
Read MoreThis beautiful Saturday, a chill was in the air, but even more... love was in the air! I was delighted this past spring when Brigid contacted me from Orange County to say that she and Cara (who's from the DC area) were getting married in DC next spring, and would I be their wedding photographer? Heck yes!
Read MoreYujie and Wade previously lived in China before moving to the United States. Wade is from the US and Yujie is Chinese, and while they were already engaged and planning a more traditional wedding in Tahoe, they found themselves needing to move up their official wedding date due to an expiring visa.
Read MoreLauren and I met through an online dating service ;). Lauren sent me an email to initiate communication, and I was immediately interested after reading her email and profile. Our back-and-forth emails on the first day quickly turned into back-and-forth text messages, and about an hour or so into our conversation Lauren invited me over for dinner the following night. She cooked a complete meal from scratch, including homemade buns for our veggie burgers. Dinner, a friendly board game, and instant chemistry made for the start of our love story.
Read MoreMy husband has been friends with the groom's family for well over 30 years, so I was honored when the bride came to me and asked to photograph their surprise wedding. It was very small and intimate, at a gorgeous inn. The groom knew that there was to be a wedding, but he had no idea that the bride was going to walk down the aisle in such a beautiful wedding gown; she told him she was going to wear a sundress!
Read MoreTricia and Molly met and fell in love in an unconventional and completely 21st century way: on an online dating website. They shouldn’t have met, but their combined fates could not be stopped by the 10 mile radius set by Tricia. They decided on a small wedding at the Norfolk Courthouse to keep the most important people involved in their wedding day, opting for immediate family only. Tricia recalls the day of the ceremony being stressful yet glorious. One of Molly’s favorite moments was on the way to their honeymoon in the Outer Banks, rocking out to Home by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, their unofficial wedding song. Tricia’s favorite moment was having dinner with their families, while enjoying the aura of love. Currently, Molly is an Auto Damage Adjuster and Tricia is a banquet server by day and rockstar bassist by night for the band Blue Ribbon. They live in the Ghent neighborhood in Norfolk, Virginia with their cat ShiShi.
Read MoreHannah and Benji planned a beautiful and relaxed wedding at the Rose Bank Winery in Newtown, Pennsylvania. They carefully selected their professional vendors and kept a few projects for themselves to get their DIY on. They really couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day and it was such a joy to work with them and their families.
Read MoreJoann & Dawn met in Chicago and got engaged at the very cool Ironhorse Hotel in Milwaukee, WI where we shot their engagement session. It was important to them to have an intimate, joyful destination wedding that included all of their closest fiends and family. They spent a long weekend with their guests enjoying an all-inclusive resort in Mexico, playing games and hanging out in the pool. It's nice when the guests from all over the world get to know each other before the wedding day- it makes the party even more fun! They were walked down the aisle by a best friend and brother and had male friends and family as part of their wedding party. Dawn handmade their beautiful and unique wedding bouquets, and she surprised Joann with a song during the reception. They had a non traditional guest book and a Cards Against Humanity make-your-own-card set which was I'm sure will provide many years of entertainment. But it wasn't all rainbows and butterflies: Joann had a foot injury and wore one heel and one flip flop the whole day! Still, they were super relaxed and had such a great time--they even jumped in the pool in their dresses at the end of the night!
Read MoreI loved photographing this wedding. Everything about it was tranquil and personal. Beth & Jeff hand-picked almost every detail for their big day; from the playful hand-made windmills blowing in the subtle breeze; to the handwritten tags placed at every table; to the venue surrounded by rolling fields of cows and sheep. The aesthetics flowed together seamlessly creating the beginning to their marriage. It was all about both of them; two people, in love.
Read MoreAlissa and Bethany traveled from Chicago to LA and while they were in town they wanted to do their engagement photos. They had planned out the shoot months in advance and seeing their style, Elmer knew the Los Angeles Arts District would be perfect — a real LA vibe. At the end of the shoot, they went down to the LA river where you can see all the iconic bridges in the background (if you’ve watched any car commercial it’ll look familiar). The thing that stuck out most to Elmer about Alissa and Bethany was the way they got along together: specifically, how Bethany was happy simply seeing Alissa happy. Bethany is apt to do little things to show Alissa she cared for her.
Read MoreRex's love for food and Evelyn's love for beautiful design made this wedding one of the best we've ever been to. Getting ready together, the stress free vibe, the simple and honest food — family style — and the happiness in their eyes said it all. Having no connection no Portugal whatsoever Evelyn and Rex chose a unique venue, all the way from the USA to a humble village in Portugal, before they chose anything else for their wedding. Rex's father proudly celebrated the ceremony and even we got emotional when they started pronouncing their vows, as a couple, to their families, promising them they would stick together no matter what life would throw at them. A truly heartfelt party, blessed by the rain — which they didn't care about — made with love.
Read MoreIn the late 1970s, in Santa Cruz, California, Annie and Janice met and realized that they enjoyed each other's company so much that they should give living together a chance. Thirty years later, at their home in Maryland, they celebrated their marriage with family, neighbors, and life-long friends. They believe that the strength of their relationship comes from mutual respect for each other's creativity, the ability to enjoy being alone, and of course, the joy of a profound love that comes along once in a lifetime.
Read MoreStephanie and Felipe's wedding was an extension of their relationship and their community. They opted to mix things up a bit and do the reception before the ceremony which was a first for me (and hopefully not the last). People got a chance to mingle and catch up, sharing drinks, a great meal, and a lot of laughs. The setting, Stephanie's family backyard, was absolutely perfect and just captured the intimacy, and spirit of this weekend. Stephanie wore a skirt that she loved and turned it into a dress wearing a belt she and her mother made specially for the day. Her mom even hand embroidered napkins for the guests and they were gorgeous. When the ceremony started it seemed like the most natural thing to watch and be part of this day with these two. Words of encouragement were shared by the family and Stephanie sang a song to Felipe, I don't think there was a dry eye there, I know mine were a little damp at one point during the day. The night ended with dancing and time together, no huge send off, just a, "See you tomorrow at brunch." The weekend ended with a brunch at a local vineyard and as with the theme for the weekend you knew this couple wanted this to be as much about everyone else as it was about this new part of their journey together.
Read MoreSarah-Jean and Kent have always been unconventional in their views including how they felt about big weddings. This of course translated into their own wedding where they decided to have a small, intimate ceremony at the courthouse surrounded by their family. Even though the wedding was a small affair, there was still thought behind the details such as the bride’s dress sewn by her mother, the handmade paper bouquet & cupcakes for dessert. Despite several things going absolutely wrong on the wedding day (all day rain, bride’s hair falling flat & walking around a parking garage looking for a misplaced car) everything came together and the celebration of their love was just so right.
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Catalyst Wedding Company highlights weddings by and for game-changers. We seek to amplify and empower voices and viewpoints that are usually missing from the Wedding Industrial Complex. We're a community of badass wedding professionals who love all things funky, fresh, diverse, unique, and personality-driven; we convene twice yearly for (un)convention, a collaborative workshop, styled shoot, and dinner party. We're also the publishers of Catalyst Wedding Mag, a resource for couples looking for inspiration and affirmation that doing things differently in wedding-world is not only ok, it's wonderful!
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