Wedding planning is always a fun challenge. When we first began planning our wedding 5 years ago, we had big plans for a local ceremony in our hometown, lots of delicious food, and all the extravagances that you would want at a wedding. Unfortunately, I lost my job due to over-staffing a few months prior to our wedding so the budget was a little tight. We moved our venue, downsized our catering order, and improvised a lot. In the end, we still hear about how beautiful and wonderful our wedding was. The level of thought and the amount of love that we poured into it shone brightly–and honestly, our venue was just as lovely if not more because of the intimacy it invoked.
This wedding is not mine but it shares aspects such as intimacy, closeness, and the beauty of it. It brought people together from thousands of miles away and combined the love of two wonderful and hard working individuals that chose to not only work one full time job, but also second part-time jobs in order to pay for it. They worked so hard that they were able to move their wedding from an intimate backyard affair to an industrial and refinished venue in the heart of Indianapolis. Regardless of where they would have been married, their marriage would still be just as strong and beautiful as it is today, just four days after they have said “I do.”
Jen and Spencer are college sweethearts. They met through friends and the rest of it is history. Their wedding, held at the historic Neidhammer venue in Indianapolis, Indiana, was a dream come true for them (and for me!) Like I said before, the original plan was to host an intimate backyard ceremony from their hometown of Logansport and to have their family, who are all excellent cooks and host a restaurant in Logansport called Dhing’s Thai Cuisine, cater it. As Spencer and Jen continued working hard towards their dream wedding, they were able to choose a dream venue and allow more of their friends and family to join them.
Since half of Jen’s family is from The Philippines, it was tricky trying to coordinate their date with travel plans but everything came together and many members of their family from out of country and across state lines flew in or drove to see their niece promise the rest of her life to the man she loves, Spencer.
To enrich their day, they chose vendors that they trusted and who absolutely delivered on every level for them. David, their DJ, is one of my favorite DJs locally, always professionally dressed, working hard to keep the dance floor filled up, and timely in his schedule with announcements. Their catering was delicious, unique (a chili bar!), and the right amount of spice and home goodness. The venue at the Neidhammer in Indianapolis is a three story inclusive venue that has a cidery and coffee shop on the first floor. The second and third floors, equipped with elevators (thank goodness!) are for the ceremony and reception–filled with soft window light that was filtered through white sheers to fill the room with a bright glow that contrasts that industrial brick chic ambiance that the venue gives off. To help them plan and coordinate their timeline and wedding day, my wife, Felicia with Emerald Lotus Events, was also contracted to help. Her timeline was spot on the entire evening and we were able to maximize their day ensuring that each and every moment was curated perfectly for them.
Jen and Spencer are personal friends and I used to work with them both at my old job that I left about two months ago. To describe these two, I’d go as far as to say ‘quirky, original, creative, sweet, and sassy.’ These descriptions are so similar to the type of people I want to work with in my company–the type of people that love my work, share it, and will cherish it forever. They’re also good friends and have even joined us the past two Christmases for our Christmas Holiday party that we host annually at my house.
Spencer and Jen, thank you so much for allowing me to capture your most perfect day. These images are just the beginning of your new adventure together. They’re just scratching the surface of the story that was begun on your wedding day. I am grateful for you both and so honored to have been there to help you make your wedding day, the best day.
Wedding Coordinator: Emerald Lotus Events / Felicia Dale
Photographer: New Adventure Productions
Dress: Christina Vail Bridal & Formal Couture
New Adventure Productions is owned by Nate Dale, a Lafayette, Indiana wedding and elopement photographer. We travel nation and worldwide to capture beautiful and intimate weddings and elopements while providing a guidance, love, help along the way.
He is married to the love of his life, Felicia with their two doggies, Pika and Princess.