Sonny and Morgan were married on the campus of Berry College near Rome, Georgia, which happens to be one of the most beautiful college campuses I've ever seen. Their wedding ceremony took place at the college chapel and the reception was at the Ford Dining Hall. When I heard the word "dining hall" I thought it might be like UGA's dining hall (you know, slushy machines, dining hall tables, fluorescent lighting, etc). But this "dining hall" looks like one of the buildings from Harry Potter- not so much a cafeteria but a castle. It was absolutely beautiful. But what was even better was getting to photograph all the special elements of Sonny and Morgan's day. Sonny had a necklace made for Morgan as a wedding gift for her to wear with her dress, and it was the diamond from her mother's engagement ring set in a necklace. Morgan's mom died when she was 4 years old, so having this diamond around her neck on her wedding day was really special. Sonny's wedding band was the band that his grandfather wore, and his father. The ring has been passed down through the generations, and on the inside of the ring you can see the date when his parents were married. Morgan's ring was her great grandmother's engagement ring. I have a personal affinity to wearing family jewelry because my engagement ring is my mother-in-law's ring, and we hope to give it to Ethan for his future wife (if and when that happens!). I love it when jewelry has significant meaning. I also loved it when Sonny and Morgan's minister took the time in the ceremony to share words other people said about the couple. The minister even talked about how Sonny and Morgan described each other. I thought about how it gave a really good picture of the true and authentic love they have for each other, and to hear that they were dearly loved by each other and their families. The icing on the cake for this wedding was the desserts. Sonny and Morgan had different desserts picked out based on family member favorites. Each dessert had a card next to it saying things like "Grandma's favorite chocolate cake" or the best man's top choice of dessert. I think it might have been the best dessert spread I've ever seen. Thanks so much Sonny and Morgan for including me on such a big day in your lives... you guys are salt of the earth kind of people and I'm grateful I got to spend time with you!
