Maddie and Brian’s Martha’s Vineyard wedding was in fact a spectacular weekend of events, starting Thursday and ending Sunday, and taking place in the beautiful and quintessentially New England island town of Edgartown. I’ve included a few of Brian and Maddie’s Aquinnah Beach engagement photos at the beginning of the post.

My coverage of the wedding events started Friday late morning with the bridal luncheon put on by close friends of Maddie’s family. The luncheon was held at an incredible waterside property (complete with private docks) that was such a perfect fit for the occasion. We had a gloriously warm September day, and the outdoor area featured plenty of shade to cool off from the heat of the midday sun. The cool and refreshing bubbles that flowed freely throughout also helped!

Maddie’s bridesmaids, close girlfriends, and female family members were in attendance, and I was thrilled to see and catch up with Maddie’s cousin Emilie, whose wedding I had photographed almost three years prior (she and Alexei now have a beautiful baby girl called Esme). After an hour or so of cocktails and catch-up, the ladies sat down to a splendid lunch on the deck overlooking Edgartown harbor, and I headed off to my hotel to check in.

The Daniel Fisher House in Edgartown is an amazing place for a wedding, and even more spectacular as a rehearsal dinner venue! Inside the beautiful old house, guests found their escort cards, then walked out onto the veranda to the raw bar (the oysters looked incredible). The main dinner area was cheerfully decorated with nautical nods and bright sunflowers, which worked so well as a contrast to the sophisticated muted tones of the wedding day decor.

I was joined by my good friend Verna Pitts whose photos from the wedding weekend join mine in the slideshow. We split up to capture the guests enjoying cocktail hour, and I also took a number of group photos to free up time on the wedding day itself. Once dinner started, we focused on the toasts, of which there were many (Maddie and Brian are well loved). There were some really great moments, and I love capturing guests’ reactions as much as the toast-givers themselves. Once the toasting ended we headed off for some well-earned rest before the amazing Edgartown wedding the following day – photos coming soon!