Zena and Alan Get Married at the Woodmark Hotel

Another fantastic wedding that I was thrilled to be a part of.  We had about as perfect a summer day as you can get in Seattle; sunny but not hot, with temps in the upper 70s and low humidity.  The venue, the Woodmark Hotel, is located on the shore of Lake Washington with gorgeous views almost anywhere you look, and with the perfect weather we were treated to sights of boaters, waterkiers, kayakers and swimmers playing on the lake and taking advantage of the coming end to summer.

The Preparations

I met up with Zena in her room at the Woodmark, where she and her bridesmaids were busy with hair and makeup.  Groom Alan was in a room a couple of floors away, where he and his son were just starting to get dressed.  Pretty typical for a wedding; the groom and groomsmen are usually ready long before the ladies even start getting dressed.  Of course, if the men had to deal with everything the ladies have to do to get themselves ready to go, I’m sure this would be a very different story!

Once Zena was ready, we set up a “First Look” on the incredible staircase in the lobby of the hotel.  Zena, accompanied by all of her bridesmaids, made her way to where Alan was waiting on the landing with his back to her approach.  You’ll see a few photos of this below.  Zena looked amazing and Alan was clearly very excited about the upcoming weddding.

The Ceremony

Then it was on to the lawn of the hotel, which is located right along the lake shore, for some posed photos with family and wedding party.  There is also a large dock and a huge set of outdoor stairs that we made use of for photos, some of which are shown below.

The ceremony was held in a large tent, set up between the hotel and the lake, so the waters edge was only a very short distance from the ceremony.  Boaters waved and honked their horns as they passed by and saw the wedding taking place.  The ceremony was officiated by a good friend of the couple, and even though he is not a professional officiant he did an excellent job performing the ceremony.

The Reception

Shortly after the ceremony I joined the newlyweds on a small powerboat for a 30 minute tour of the area.  We cruised slowly by the area where the ceremony had taken place, and where the guests were now enjoying drinks and appetizers.  As the skipper honked the boat’s horn the crowd on the shore cheered and waved at Zena and Alan.

Once we returned to the dock and Alan and Zena rejoined the crowd the reception got underway in earnest.  Happy Hour continued for well over an hour as everyone enjoyed the gorgeous afternoon.

Next up was dinner, which was served in the same tent where earlier the wedding ceremony had taken place.  I have been the photographer at numerous weddings at the Woodmark, and the food has always been excellent.  Tonight was no exception.  One of my favorite “percs” of being a wedding photographer are the great meals that I get to eat! 🙂

By now the sun was getting quite low in the sky, and I took Zena and Alan out of the tent to take advantage of a very nice sunset for some photos.  A few samples are below.  Toasts were made and the cake was cut, and then everyone moved inside the hotel for dancing.

Dancing continued for a couple of hours until it was finaly time to wrap up the party and for everyone to go home.  All of the guests moved back out onto the lawn, where everyone was givena very special Wedding Sparkler.  Almost three feet long and as thick as your little finger, these sparklers burn for 3-4 minutes once lit.  Once we got everyone’s sparklers lit up Alan and Zena passed between lines formed by the sparkler wielding guests, and then waved good bye.

A really great wedding, one that everyone who attended will remember for years to come!