How To Say “I Do” Again | Haw River, NC | Jessa and Wayne

I photographed Jessa and Wayne’s wedding in 2015. It was a beautiful wedding at their home in Durham, North Carolina. I remember all sorts of perfect little personalizations they had for their wedding day such as a ring bear (yes, a ring bear, not ring bearer, but that also - it was a friend with a fake bear hat on, but it was great!) and the ring ceremony during which every one of their guests took a moment to hold the wedding rings and share something with Jessa and Wayne. I may or may not have cried, but I assure you there wasn’t a dry eye anywhere during this time. It was a beautiful evening of a wedding done the way they wanted, with who they wanted, and when they wanted.

Over the next several years, we kept in touch intermittently. A few texts here or there and through social media. They were making their home a sustainable space. Raising chickens and goats. Building out and improving parts of their home. It all seemed somewhat perfect.

But marriage is never that way. Not in my experience. Marriage is more than hard.

Jessa reached out around their five year anniversary and asked if I could photograph their vow renewal. And of course I said yes.

Like any session, wedding or otherwise, we started with some phone calls. Through that I learned that life isn’t always as perfect as we make it when watching others lives.

But through hard work, intention, and some life changes they had made it through to the other side and it only felt natural to reaffirm their vows to one another, but this time on the basis of being one with one another and their shared vision of what this relationship and partnership truly meant to each of them.

They didn’t have a spot in mind so I suggested a beautiful and often fairly private section of the Haw River. They were game and we met up.

After we hiked out beyond where a few families were swimming and relaxing we settled in. I had this vision in my head of the two of them entering the water together and then sharing their vows while in the current of the river. To say it was a thing of beauty would be an understatement. And in fashion with their first wedding to one another, they had me hold their rings and share a few words and for the first time ever I found myself on the other side of the lens, and at a loss for words.

Their vows were touching and to be invited to bumble my own way through a few wishes for them and a few thoughts of gratitude for sharing a bit of their lives with me was a true honor. And in some beautiful way I think we will always be connected through that time, but more importantly I hope they will always remain connected and in harmony as they were in that moment.