Please cheer with me for this accomplishment. Checking of this item on my bucket list – creating our wedding photo album – was ten years in the making. It truly deserves its own blogpost.
When the husband and I got married’s we agreed on two main things where we would spend money without looking at the budget too much. Rings – you wear them every day for the rest of your life. Photos – they capture the moment and document your day, catching things you might miss because your are so overwhelmed. Other people spend thousands on the dress or on food and wine. Those were not our main focuses.
Finding our wedding photographer– the wonderful Anja Schneemann – was really meant to be. We were planning a winter wedding in the snow calling it “Schneehochzeit” (translates to “snow wedding”) and Anja’s last name being Schneemann (snow man) was literally the cherry on the top. Anja had just started her own business and we were one of the first clients I believe.
Anyway, one thing we saved up on was the offered photo album as we figured it is something we could do ourselves . I had years of photo journals in my shelves so something I was not unfamiliar with. Well, I did. Only took me ten years. Ha.
My first attempt in making it was during covid and part of my 100 day project in 2020. I was overwhelmed and slowly lost my mojo. Then when our 10th wedding anniversary came up I knew its time. If not now when. “Luckily” I caught Covid in January so I managed to pull this off. It was a close call y’all.
I wrapped it up and gave it to the husband after breakfast on our anniversary. It was really fun going down memory lane and re-living some of the moments. And we finally have an artsy coffee table book now.
Here are some pages of our wedding photo album I want to share.
Exchanging the rings – trickier than you would think.
We are officially married. Look how happy we are. And how young we look.
Lots of black and white images as there was no snow on our wedding day and it was a bit grayish. Or very spring greenish. It didn’t fit the aesthetic.
We got married at the Kaiserpfalz Goslar – UNESCO World heritage site – and wanted to have that in our images.
My favorite wedding photo on the right. We trudged through the mountains in search of some snow.
This was a snap shot when we hiked back to the car.
My family set up an exhibition about our life so far from childhood to the nine years as a couple showing our path to becoming a family. For that they collected old photos – not easy as parts were in the Dominican Republic – and arranging them in different stations. Accompanying was a guest book everyone could write in with a box of more photos that you could pick and write a story about. A cherished gift from all guests.
Some of the foods served for dinner. I was so sick with the flue that I hardly ate anything. Some appetizer was all.
I documented all our wedding gifts as photos and included them in the wedding photo album. On the upper left you see one of my most precious weddings gifts – white glass Christmas baubles. The printed tree a gift from my sister with finger prints as leaves from all guests. And the living tree from my other sister – unfortunately I killed it rather quickly.
I recently found a budget list of my parent’s wedding in one of my grandmas old cookbooks. I loved it and is I included our wedding budget still sitting on my laptop. We came in under our estimated budget. Whoopoop.
I told the husband he could use that in his next sales pitch when someone complains it is all so expensive.
Our wedding stationary. Created by the husband. Texted by the husband. We had some fun facts about the bride and groom on the back of the menu and drink cards to make dinner conversation fun.
I am very happy how the whole wedding album turned out. It was much more expensive than anticipated when I started that project but the books has 144 pages. And I could have made it ten years ago when prices were much cheaper.
(Almost) all photos shown in the book shot by Anja Schneemann. Photos of the book made by me.
Maybe for our 15th anniversary we do a shooting with Anja again. That would be so fun.
Do you have a wedding photo album? Did you have a photographer who captured your day beautifully? What were the areas you spend money on without much restriction? Do you have a favorite photo of your wedding day?
16 comments
Beautiful photos and what wonderful memories to celebrate the start of your lives together.
Thank you Tina. It was really fun going through those photos again.
Oh Tobia, your album is simply stunning. I think your priorities were right!
I wish we had spent money on a photographer. My friend’s stepdad was an amateur photographer, and gifted us his services, which was a deal we could not pass up. (Free) However, those were the days of film (we celebrated our 30th anniversary last year), and he just had them developed and gave them to us, so we have no album. I meant to put one together, but then my husband said we had to do things like cropping and so on, and it got to be just too big of a project for someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. So we have a plastic bag of wedding photos. After 30 years, it kind of feels like it would be bad luck to do anything else with them, which is ridiculous. I wish we had paid someone to put together an album for us back then, though. Or even for our 10 year anniversary. At this point our film isn’t any good, so it would be scanning photos I think.
We do, however, enjoy going through our bag of photos from time to time, and we have some in a cheap little album somewhere. So that’s something.
Well, that little plastic bag of photos is a tale in itself. I mean, as long as you like the photos and were happy when you received them.
And you always have to consider your resources at the time.
But yes, putting them in an album or in frames is always time well spend. Unfortunately it is one of those projects that does get postponed. Always. Everywhere.
I was asked by my sister to take her wedding photos and I really really didn’t want to do it (it was 11 years ago).I was not the photographer I am today and I was very intimidated because I knew they will look at them. I had no idea about editing back than. I was an amateur photographer at the time. I was proud what I did that day but looking at it now… So many things could have been improved.
Cheering for you. What gorgeous pictures of clearly a wonderful, love-filled day <3
Thank you for the applause. It was a lovely day and I was so happy.
My mom made us a wedding album. Outside of that, we just have physical prints of all our photos. We have wedding photos up in our house and in each of our work offices, too, so we are certainly grateful for having those photos to remind of us of how wonderful our wedding day was.
But enough about us, what a GORGEOUS bride you were. The dress! The hair! The giant smile! So pretty!
Ahhhh thank you. The hair wasn’t how I wanted it bit I really didn’t care in the end. I was just so happy. And I am not particularly vain. I didn’t even had a hair test run. The dress I more or less designed together with a designer and seamstress.
I do not have any wedding photo up in our house. That might be the next step. I think I will include a phot in my planned picture wall.
How nice of your mom to make you an album. Extra special.
Oh my goodness, congrats on completing this project! The result is stunning!
Thank you Suzanne. I am happy I finally crossed this of my list and I am happy with the result. So much so that I figured we should own more such photo books.
Your wedding book is so gorgeous, Tobia! I am definitely cheering for you in celebration of finishing the album! Congratulations!
Thank you Michelle. I am happy how it turned out.
I love this! You were a stunning bride!
Oh thank you so much.
Oh, you were such a stunning couple and the photos are wonderful. I am so glad you decided to still make the album, even if it’s 10 years late! It’s fantastic to have a “photo book on the shelf” that you can pull out whenever you want :)
I totally agree. Photo books have some special magic. I glad I finally took the time to make it.
And thank you.