Rainy *outdoor* first look, father-son Harley Davidsons, and all the candid emotion were incredibly fun to capture as a Gettysburg wedding photographer! This epic moment from their first look actually had me jogging up Culp’s Hill!
Why Rhinehart Photography?
Tara says, “I knew going into wedding planning that photos were a top priority for me. Although the day is super special, it’s the images that live on forever. When Tom and I viewed Lisa’s website we loved how she captured the most unique yet natural-looking images. The weather ended up not being exactly what any bride or groom dreams of (rain) but I loved the fact that Lisa showed up with a game plan and alternative locations. Lisa was still game to go out on the battlefield and capture our first look in the most magical way possible.”
She continues, “I felt so comfortable posing for each image, and Lisa, our Gettysburg wedding photographer, made it super easy to have fun and go with the flow. I loved that we had two photographers on that day to capture any and all moments from any angle and since we are never going to do this again I wanted every opportunity to capture it all in a fun, unique way. I wanted our images to showcase who we are in a location that is special to us in a magical way, and from the few images I have seen so far it’s like a fairy tale come to life.”
Tom adds, “I’ve never experienced getting professional photos taken so when working with Lisa it was fun and relaxing and I felt like I could be my true authentic self. Leading up to the wedding day, the motorcycle pictures are all my dad and I could talk about and it was a great bonding experience and something I will cherish forever!”
Rainy Gettysburg Wedding Preparations
Tara says, “Leading up to the wedding day I was trying to ignore the fact that it was going to rain because that’s every bride’s worst nightmare. I did what any overly prepared person did and ordered some umbrellas because in my mind no matter what I was still going to get some pictures on the battlefield. Honestly, the umbrella is an awesome element and I almost can’t picture my photos without them. You can’t even tell it was raining.”
Here are some of Tara’s morning preparations at the Gettysburg Hotel:
Stars, Stripes & Harleys at the Gettysburg Hotel
Tom shares, “Tara kept talking about getting ready photos and for me, I never really felt drawn to something like that. When I suggested the motorcycles, Lisa was all in and I loved that! It was nice to have her to work with and to have that great bonding experience between my dad and I. Even though it was raining, I loved that Lisa was able to work with something as simple as a parking spot and or within the covered parking garage.
He adds, “When it came to the American flag details, Tara & I are very patriotic and wanted to incorporate that in a subtle way even my wedding ring has an American flag on it.”
Father-Son Harley Davidson Bond
🏍️🏍️ Tom & his dad rode their Harleys together to Tara & Tom’s wedding day. I met them in the parking garage and captured this. 🥹
Tom shares, “My dad and I always wanted to ride together. I bought my first bike & started riding just about every day. My dad & I almost never ride apart. It’s one of our favorite things to do together. We even modify our bikes together.”
His dad sent him this for Christmas, “Wherever your journey in life may take you, I pray you’ll always be safe, enjoy the ride, and never forget your way back home. I can’t promise to be here for the rest of your life, but I can promise to love you for the rest of mine.”
Rainy First Look
Tara shares, “Tom & I met online through Eharmony. As soon as we met the rest was history. I’ve always been able to be my true self around Tom. I love the fact that he supports me no matter what and calms me down at my most stressful moments.”
Tom adds, “I love that I can be myself around Tara. I love how honest and loyal she is in any and all situations. Tara & I can joke around with each other and we balance each other out. On the day of our wedding, I was excited and nervous mostly for the ceremony. Our first-look images seem to be straight out of a fairytale!”
Tara says, “Leading up to the wedding day the weather was predicted to be rain and my emotions were all over the place. Tom kept saying that there are some things that are out of our control and it will happen the way it’s supposed to. I loved hearing that because looking back on the day, yes it ended up raining, but it truly didn’t ruin the day and I almost forgot about it.”
Tom continues, “When it came to the first look photos I knew how important it was for Tara and myself to have them be on the battlefield so even though the weather was less than ideal I was game for anything and trusted that Lisa could capture the best images, rain or shine.”
Gettysburg Wedding Photographer: Culps Hill
Tara shares, “Tom proposed to me on the battlefield so it was important to me to have our first look close by to where that happened which was Culp’s Hill. Although it was raining, as soon as I saw Tom all that kind of went out the window and I felt the most at peace.”
Gettysburg Battlefield Wedding
Tara adds, “I wanted to incorporate one of the monuments and felt like since we were in Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania State Monument was the place to do it and the architecture opened the door for some amazing images.”
She continues, “My dress did get wet and after the photos my mom and sister were in the hotel room before the ceremony drying everything off with towels and a hairdryer making it all perfect and it was like it never even happened. I went in being like I am never going to wear this dress again I might as well go all in and get the images I truly want and not let a little rain get in the way and the results speak for themselves!”
Wedding MVP & Tallest Groomsmen I’ve Met!
Tara shares, “Lisa suggested going to the train station for the family portraits and I loved the fact that we were able to go to so many different locations throughout town to capture different moments throughout the day!”
She adds, “It’s not very often we get my whole family together and it was the first time in years that Tom has seen some of his family members so to be able to capture all that through images and relive that day/weekend all over again is amazing.”
Tara laughs, “Bill is very tall for sure lol. He did a lot for us on our wedding day and the joke was that he was the MVP of the wedding day! Tom & I will be forever grateful.”
Gettysburg Hotel Wedding Ceremony
Tara says, “When it came to the ceremony, I never put a huge amount of thought into it neither did Tom. My aunt was our officiant and honestly in the end I loved that we were able to share this intimate moment with her and not a vendor we hired for the day. My aunt was able to add in personal details making it unique to us and I know Tom & I will be forever grateful for that.”
Gettysburg Hotel Wedding Reception
Tara shares, “The search for the ‘perfect’ venue didn’t take us long! The Gettysburg Hotel was the first place Tom & I visited with our parents and we all instantly fell in love with the ballroom. We loved the fact that it was centrally located in the center of town so our guests could get the full Gettysburg experience. I always love when a place has a past and the fact that the hotel used to be a bank and the vault was still there and we were going to get married in front of it was exciting.”
Tom continues, “I loved the great atmosphere the hotel had to offer. The biggest thing for me was the history of it all and it was important since we were getting married in a historic town. I wanted our venue to speak to that and the Gettysburg Hotel did that for me.”
First Dance
Tara smiles, “Tom makes me smile in so many ways and the song ‘Smile’ by Uncle Kracker really speaks measure. Tom & I don’t love being the center of attention so the first dance made us nervous but honestly, once the song started playing and we were in each other’s arms singing that song to each other I totally forgot about the rest of the people in the room.”
Gettysburg Wedding Photographer: Hotel Reception
Tara and Tom are really partying out there along with their family and friends, and so many of the cutest kids!
The Party is Over Kiddos!
Tara says, “For me, having kids at our wedding was something I wanted. We have a lot of friends and family with kids and since we were asking a lot of people to travel we wanted to make it as easy as possible for them to bring their kids along and join in on the fun!”
Happily Ever After
Tara shares, “The bank vault was a huge reason we fell in love with the ballroom. I am so glad we got to not only get married in front of it but to take a few fun shots in front of it during the reception.”
The couple concludes, “We wanted to capture our day surrounded by family and friends in a historic town and feel like we accomplished that! I would say the rain was a big part of the day and surprisingly added to the magic of it all. We wanted to be able to celebrate us but at the same time have the best possible party and I think we truly achieved that.”
Vendors:
- Venue: The Gettysburg Hotel
- Hair & Makeup: Gettysburg Day Spa
- DJ: Great Scott Production
- Florals: Roses and Dreams
- Suit Rentals: Generation Tux
- Bride’s Dress: J&B Bridals and Tuxedos
- MOB Dress: David’s Bridal
- MOH Dress: Adrianna Papell
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