I had been looking forward to this wedding at the Boston Public Library all year – and it did not disappoint! Ethan and Ben are two of the sweetest grooms you’ll ever meet, and the love and support from their families and friends was palpable. It was also one of only a handful of times I’ve become choked up during a ceremony, and in the first few moments, too!

I started my day with the grooms in their suite at the Fairmont Copley Plaza. I absolutely loved the fact that they got ready together – I so wish more of my couples would do this. I think it can really help with wedding day nerves, and most importantly you get to spend more of the quieter moments of the day with your best friend. A final bonus is that it eradicates any potentially cheesy set up first look moments. It’s really hard to capture a completely casual first look, so they are typically at least somewhat orchestrated.

The grooms had some really thoughtful details; Ethan had tiny hedgehog cufflinks in honor of the grooms’ two pet hedgehogs, and Ben had mother of pearl penguin cufflinks (the penguin connection was mentioned in his dad’s wonderful toast). Both sets were adorable! They had coordinating but not quite matching rich forest green bow ties, and matching Louboutins (yes, I got a photo of the soles in a portrait, but I actually really love the photo of them cleaning the soles right before we took the portrait!)

Once the grooms were dressed, we headed over to Old South Church to start their family photos. Their wonderful minister David Story is a member of the clergy at Old South Church, and it seemed like the perfect spot to (mostly) escape the heavy winds.

At five thirty, we headed over to Boston Public Library and continued our portraits there. I had chatted with the grooms about their favorite spots, and we agreed to take advantage of as many of our shared favorites as possible! Aside from the classic grand staircase shots, we took photos in the Abbey Room, on the Juliet balcony, in the John Singer Sargent gallery, and finished of course in the courtyard.

The ceremony was SO beautiful. The grooms and their parties entered the courtyard from opposite sides (I love the drama of this even if it’s a little more challenging to photograph!) Then, minister David Story had us all in tears with the most beautiful introduction to a ceremony I’ve ever heard. He talked about marching for gay rights in his youth, before gay marriage was legal, and how special and important such unions are today. The grooms continued to make us all cry with their thoughtful, sentimental and laugh-out-loud funny vows.

After the ceremony, we took some larger group photos on the stairs, then I covered a little of cocktail hour before heading up to Bates to photograph all the gorgeous details. Ethan and Ben opted for a dramatic entrance into Bates with a fantastic dip, later repeated in their first dance.

The toasts were absolutely wonderful; I especially loved both dads’ toasts, and they gave me ample time for reaction shots, one of my favorite ways to document family and guests.

After dinner, we headed into the Abbey Room where the grooms had their short but VERY professional first dance – I’m not sure what the move is called but there was a “lean” as part of it which was so impressive, and I love that photo. The grooms then each danced with both moms, which was another beautiful demonstration of the love and support each family has for this couple. Then, party time!

Huge thanks to Ben’s mom Sarah for all her help leading up to the wedding, and to my favorites at the Catered Affair, Maddy & Amanda (dream team!) And to SociaLight Boston, florist Bittersweet Gardens, and I Dream of Jeanne Cakes for making it all look spectacular. And finally to District 21 for the amazing music and keeping up the energy on the dance floor.