And if you are planning an elopement or small intimate wedding not local to you, you are probably needing help on which vendors to pick.  I am sure you have researched a ton and things can get a little overwhelming with all the options you have to choose from. I always tell my clients (of course, after I give them a list of vendors I recommend) to really listen to their gut. Vendors are people who love the industry and love what they do. Their passion and love will shine through in their work and most will have reviews that say just that. (although all vendors can not please everyone but that is a blog for a different day) If a vendor catches your eye.. rather it be through their website, pictures on social media, a billboard, etc, then that is usually who you need to look more into and research. I tell my clients, "try not to give yourself more than 3 options per vendor." 
It gets to be so overwhelming the more options you have. If you came across three vendors that have really captured your attention, then stop there and try to pick one from those three. 

The beauty of having a small intimate wedding or elopement is that the vendor list is extremely small, so less decisions have to be made. The dress, the caterer, the venue, etc., are all vendors you don't HAVE to use when having a small intimate wedding or elopement. We rented an AIRBNB with a  beautiful lake view and a dock and used it as our venue. We spent $300 for the location and were able to stay there the whole weekend. My husband already had a suit that fit the occasion and worked really well with our colors and I bought my beautiful dress online at a boutique. It was gorgeous and I got so many compliments on it! I spent $60.00 ... yes you read that correctly! 

In my experience as a wedding photographer and from having my own small intimate wedding, the vendors that are a must have for a small wedding are the photographer, the florist, minister (depending on location), and a baker. I used a local baker who makes amazing beautiful cakes. She didn't specialize in wedding cakes but when I asked her to bake me a simple wedding cake, she delivered whole heartedly and it was absolutely delicious! I just bought the topper to go on it to make the final touches. Of course having a cake is optional for you (especially if you are having an adventure elopement and don't think you need a cake at all) I just liked the thought of having something traditional to have to celebrate. 

The other good news about having a small intimate wedding or elopement is that, when you book me, you have the option of letting me help you with your vendors. I have access to everything you need and have a list of vendors that I use regularly and have relationships with. So if planning a small intimate wedding or elopement gets to be to much, you can just hand over the reigns and allow me to take it on (with your approval of course). We just sit down or talk on the phone and go over all the details you are looking for and then I become your planner, friend, and photographer. 

Listen to your gut as your heart knows who it wants to work with. I have booked clients just because of the name of my business. It attracted them, and once they started communicating with me and found out why I named it that, they fell in love even more and booked me. I turned out to be the perfect fit for them all because I caught their attention and their instincts really wanted to reach out. So listen to yourself when it comes to picking vendors. Your gut usually doesn't lie. ​​

PHOTOGRAPHER: MARILYN RAY PHOTOGRAPHY
FLORIST: DENHAMS FLORIST
BAKER: HOMIES BAKERY
VENUE: OLD TOWN CHAPEL, SEVERAL AIRBNBS, CALLAWAY GARDENS, GAZEBOS, OVERLOOKS, WATERFALLS, ETC.
D.J.: DAN BLANKOWSKI

I had a small intimate wedding .... 3 times! oops. ..
Ok let me explain. .
I married my first husband super young in Gatlinburg Tennessee!  We grabbed our immediate family, rented a cabin, and had a beautiful small chapel wedding. Afterwards we tooled around Gatlinburg taking in all the beautiful sights with our family. It was perfect. ... the experience and the day that is. The marriage, not so much.
​Which brings me to small wedding #2.
Fast Forward 7 years and I find myself planning wedding number 2 with the man of my dreams. It was a rushed wedding because he is military and was about to deploy to Afghanistan. We had been dating for 2 years, engaged for 6 months, and BAM. .. down come the orders to ship off. Goes to show you, the military doesn't care about your plans. So, we invited our families and close friends (total of about 25 people) and got married under this gazebo in downtown right at dusk. It wasn't the wedding we wanted, but hey... we were married and all was right in the world. Originally we were thinking we wanted a huge wedding. The kind I never had before. The big venue, the big dresses, the flowers, the dance floor, the music, the food... all of it. When we realized we couldn't have that right away, I settled for the smaller version and made the best of it. Looking back on that, I think our wedding was perfect for us. Our best friends were there, we had family members there that are no longer with us, and we celebrated our love for each other 2 weeks before he left for Afghanistan. We shared a very special time in our lives with the people who meant the most to us. The celebration was intimate as we were able to talk and spend time with everyone. There were lots of tears, hugs, and laughter shared throughout the room that night. 
I am sure you are wondering "then where does wedding #3 come to play within all of this?" 
Well. . we wanted to renew our vows on our 10 year wedding anniversary and have that big "wedding of our dreams".
 Now this wedding... was AH-MAZ-ING and I will tell you why. 
When I started planning this "dream wedding", I quickly understood that our personalities didn't fit the hustle and bustle of a big wedding. Little did I know... I never wanted that. I just wanted the special moment between myself and my husband to be witnessed by people who truly loved and cared about us. I wish I had understood that during our first wedding. I would have done some things differently.
The big secret to how amazing our vow renewal felt wasn't because of who was there, (even though we are very lucky people to have some of the most amazing family and supporters in our lives) or the amount of food we had (even though we had food for DAAYYSS).
The reason why this wedding was so perfect in every way was simply the fact that we were true to ourselves and our personalities and what we really truly wanted! 
THAT IS THE BIG SECRET!
We didn't consider anyone else in this vow renewal but ourselves. We didn't check to see if the date worked for people. We didn't ask if the drive would be to much. We didn't try to please everyone. The only two people that mattered were us and we did everything exactly the way we wanted. 
Our ceremony was on a dock overlooking a gorgeous lake that my husband and myself found ourselves kayaking quite a few times throughout our 13 years together. We popped champagne, we had the decor that fit our marriage perfectly, we involved our children, we had our immediate family and close friends (15 people total), we ate cake and good food, had the best conversations, and made memories that will forever sit in our hearts. We had zero drama or stress and of course, we got those beautiful pictures to hang on our walls. 

So if you are struggling with trying to decide on a big wedding or small, think of me and this story. Think of the "big secret" as it will always call you home! Just be true to yourself and what you truly want. Everything and Everyone else can come second to this day. After all, it is the most important day of your lives. You owe it to each other to start your marriage peacefully, happily, and stress free. If that means that you need to be selfish for a minute and have a small intimate ceremony, then don't hesitate to do what is best for you. 

If you have seen our pop ups on the site then you know we are moving locations. There are good and bad emotions that comes with that.
The good is, I am growing and moving towards bigger things.
The bad is, I am not sure where (which city) my new location will be just yet.

​My lease came up and I decided it was better for me to not renew it because of the changes taking place. I haven't been spending a ton of time in it lately because I have been focusing more  on adventure elopements in other states. It doesn't make sense for me to have a home base at this exact moment as I try to figure out our next move (literally). I am looking forward to exploring all my options but for now I am going to be in a small office right in our home. That doesn't sound very exciting to me but I have to remind myself it is only temporary. On the flip side of that, I am super proud of myself! I have had to make some hard decisions and I have had to stay focused on where my path is leading me. It has not been easy. I have had a hard time making these choices as I love all my clients so very much and I am truly grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me thus far. I just feel like my desires within this business is leaning in a different way. I am so passionate about the adventure weddings and small intimate weddings. I feel like that is my calling. I was born to do those type of weddings. They make me truly happy and I need to focus solely on that for now.  

 Since I have decided to focus solely on my passion, I have decided to not take any more hourly sessions after January 1st 2022.
Now with that being said, I have some pretty loyal clients that have been with me since day 1 and those clients I will continue to see when they need me but I won't be advertising and offering any sessions outside of those clients. Again, this has been a very hard decision for me to make. I have met some amazing people and am very grateful I had that opportunity. There will be sessions happening the rest of 2021 including Christmas themed and of course our fall themed sessions. So if you are needing pictures, lets get you on our books! 

Ok, so this one may be the biggest one. I have decided that I will no longer offer large venue wedding photography. 
My passion is with the smaller elopements and small intimate weddings and I am only going to be booking those from now on. I have truly enjoyed watching my beautiful brides meet the man of their dreams at the end of that isle. I have cried, I have laughed and I have bonded with all of my brides, grooms, wedding parties, and parents. I will always be thankful for the ones who chose me to be your photographer for the day!
If you have a large venue wedding booked for next year.. DON'T WORRY! We will fulfill all the weddings we already have booked, we just don't plan on booking any more large venue weddings in 2022!  
This one has probably been the hardest decision for me to make. I have gone back and forth on this for quite sometime. I love photographing venue weddings and will miss doing them very much! 

I am sure every single one of you have had to make hard decisions before and you understand just how hard that can be. I struggled with feeling like I was thriving and all of a sudden I am  failing. Sometimes growth feels like your failing and I have to remind myself that walking away from the things that made me feel successful is growth not failure. I love my studio.. it makes me feel so joyful every time I unlock that door and walk inside. I absolutely hate giving that up but I know I will find another studio down the road and be just as happy. The same comes with letting go of my clients. I have been so booked lately and to see my calendar go empty, makes me feel like I failed. I have to remind myself that this is a choice I made. I have to be ok with these decisions. I am certain that it will take time for me to feel ok about all of this but I do know these choices are what is best for me. I just want all of you to know how much I appreciate each of you and how thankful I am that you have and will support me through this journey and the next phase of Marilyn Ray! 
​WISH US LUCK!!