Weddings

La Massaria at Bella Vista Wedding | Gina & Jeff

On what was the most perfect fall day, Gina & Jeff tied the knot at La Massaria in Gilbertsville, PA, surrounded by all their favorite people. But let me back up…

Gina & Jeff were one of the first couples to hire me for their wedding day way back in 2020. They trusted me to capture the most important day of their life, when my business was still in its beginning stages and I was going through some tough stuff in my personal life. Perhaps the best part about them hiring me was when they asked, ‘We want our wedding to be a huge party – you in?” Ummm… 1000%.

For those of you who don’t know, I love receptions. I love the joy, the drinks, and the dance moves (good and bad). I’ve been known to bust a move (or two, or twelve) on the dancefloor myself while photographing. Say what you will, but it allows me to get some amazing photos of the party! Gina & Jeff were hyping their party up well before the wedding day, so it had a lot to live up to. Spoiler alert: it did! Their dance floor was packed from the beginning to the end, courtesy of Craig from Soundfactor Entertainment. I love when everyone is dancing, from young kids to the grandparents.

The Beginning

I promise that the reception wasn’t the thing that happened on this wedding day; let’s talk about the beginning of the day! From the second I walked into the bridal suite, I knew this would be an amazing day. “But how could you know that, Meghan?” Boy, am I glad you asked.

Hair and makeup was ahead of schedule! That has happened maybe 3 times in my career. I always tell my couples to take whatever amount of time they are told to allot for hair and makeup, and then add at least an hour. In this case, we planned for the worst, and ended up being way ahead of schedule!
Gina had all of her details put together for me in a little box, so I didn’t have to go collecting them! It saved me a bunch of time.
The vibe in the bridal suite and groom’s suite were so chill. The ladies were vibing to the best playlist, and even had time for a dance party before getting dressed. The guys, beers in hand, watched the Penn State game. (They won 33-14)
Both couples and wedding party members actual ate and hydrated all morning! No one was going to pass out during the ceremony. Shoutout to Carly, Autumn, and Denise at La Massaria for keeping everyone on track!
Parents of both the bride and groom were getting ready together. You might think this is a silly little thing, but it makes the day run so much smoother. Everyone knows everyone, they’re comfortable with each other, and each is included throughout the day. (I regret not doing this on my own wedding day)

The First Look

We were so ahead of schedule, that we got to do the first look early as well. Now, these two aren’t the who are going to get all weepy at the sight of each other; these two just looked so happy when they finally saw each other. Where the teary emotions did show up was during their private vow reading – my new favorite wedding trend, by the way. It was perfectly unique to them as a couple, and I may or may not have teared up myself. After that, we took couples’ portraits, wedding party portraits, and even had time to finish all of the family formal portraits! What?! Gina & Jeff were able to enjoy their entire cocktail hour, mingle with guests, etc. because they didn’t have to take family photos. *sigh* It was so, so good.

The Ceremony

The ceremony took place on the beautiful patio of La Massaria. The officiant was a blast; you could tell he truly knew the couple. It had all the feels, with a few chuckle inducing moments, like the false start on the kiss. The officiant wanted to move out of the way before the kiss (thank you!), but Gina & Jeff were too excited to wait! We got it all straightened out, and they had the most romantic kiss. They even kissed again coming up the aisle!

All in all, this wedding was one for the books. From the amazing venue to the most genuine people to the tasty food, everything worked out magically. I can’t wait to finish their whole gallery (you’ll be able to check out their gallery in my portfolio soon), but in the meantime, enjoy this glimpse of Mr. & Mrs. Milbut’s wedding day.