Katie & Kyle | Barnegat Light, Long Beach Island Wedding, New Jersey

Katie and Kyle’s Long Beach Island wedding day was an absolute dream! It was one of those perfect kind of days filled with love, laughter, tears, and pineapples. From all of the handcrafted decor to the perfect pastel sunset, this day and these two were such a joy to photograph.

Katie and Kyle met in college at a party in early 2009. When Katie met Kyle, she said,

“Maybe it was liquid courage but I proceeded to take his Phillies hat off of his head and told him it looked better on me, which he said he couldn’t argue. I told him I was a huge Phillies fan because I’m from Pennsylvania and he asked who my favorite player was. I said “all of them” and he knew I had no clue who a single person was on that team! I ended up going back the next night, hoping he would be there, which he was. By Sunday night, I was on the phone with my mom asking her what I should do because I really liked Kyle. Kyle also called his mom to ask for her advice because he really liked me, too.”

They started dating about a month later, and she said he gave her “the pitch,” which is Kyle’s way of persuading her to get on board with any business idea or idea in general that he has, on why we would be great for each other. Looks like Kyle was right!!

Kyle joined the Navy after graduation and they dated long distance for about 3 years before Katie moved to New England where he is currently stationed. They’ve been through two deployments, probably about 30 underways where he is out to sea for weeks at a time, and have experienced some of the best things in life together: buying their first home in Rhode Island and getting their German Shepherd puppy, Mako. With that happiness, they have also been dealt some sadness. Katie lost her father the night before her 21st birthday, Kyle lost his grandmother while he was on his first deployment, and Katie lost her only grandfather last year to Parkinson’s. She says, “We feel these losses on holidays, and I can imagine we will be feeling them on our wedding day as well. Through it all, we have always agreed that our days spent together will always outweigh any time or number of days we have spent apart!” These two kind-hearted souls have the sweetest love and it shows in everything they do and say.

When you find someone with a love for pineapples as strong as yours, you don’t let them go! Katie first emailed me about wedding photography, and we instantly connected over our love for pineapples! 🙂 We both love the symbolism, and it was awesome to see how she included it into her wedding day. There were pineapples on the cocktail hour tables, and their favors were little gold pineapple bottle openers. Katie and Kyle chose to tie the knot on Long Beach Island, NJ! We lucked out with the most incredible weather and gorgeous locations at the Barnegat Lighthouse ceremony and Parker’s Garage reception. The ceremony was perfectly decorated by my dear friends of Rustic Drift! We even had beach-goers looking over from the boardwalk admiring how amazing the entire ceremony looked. Parker’s Garage in Beach Haven was an open-air, unique venue right on the bay with boats and docks in the distance.

I was so excited to get to work with Darn Swell Media again; it is such a pleasure working alongside friends. Katie gave us so many details to capture, as she put so much hard work into hand-crafting her decor and gifts. The place cards were hand-picked oyster shells with calligraphy, and Katie & Kyle were so, so kind in giving us vendors our own table to eat dinner at. It was the sweetest gesture that we were all so appreciative of! I even saved put my little oyster place card and now keep it on my desk. 🙂 It was really sweet to see just how much every single one of their guests meant to Katie and Kyle and they spent so much time loving on everybody there. It is clear how much they care for their loved ones considering they had a full table of Shore Good Donuts for dessert, and THAT is how you show someone you love them. 😉 Katie and Kyle, I am SO thankful you two came into my life and that I was able to document your story on your wedding day. You two are beaming with love and light. Happy marriage, lovebirds! Enjoy every second of it.

VENDORS

Second Photographer | Tori Petrillo
Third Photographer/Assistant | Tori Kelner
Ceremony Venue | Barnegat Lighthouse
Reception Venue | Parker’s Garage & Oyster Saloon
Coordinator & Catering | Theresa Maxwell, Taste Catering
Dress Designer | Allure Bridals
Dress Boutique | Philadelphia Bridal Company
Hair Stylist | Lisa Tomburo
Makeup | Beach House Spa
Wedding Rings | James Allen, Blue Nile
Florist | Petal Pushers & Magnolia
Cake | Moesters Bakery
Decor & Rentals | Rustic Drift
Ceremony Scroll | Sandy Plum Design Co.
Videographer | Darn Swell Media
Donuts | Shore Good Donuts
DJ | Enchanted Celebrations
Groom’s Tux | Mens Wearhouse
Groomsmen Attire | Generation Tux
Bridesmaids Dresses | Adrianna Papell, Jenny Yoo
Invitations | By Invitation Only
Officiant | Steve Shields
Oyster Shells | KRorer Design