Wildflower on Watts Wedding in Honesdale PA | Victoria BC Wedding Travel Photographer

When a Wedding Photographer Gets Married: Gabriella & Josh’s Wildflower on Watts Wedding in Honesdale, Pennsylvania

Some weddings you anticipate excitedly for months, and they stay with you long after you’ve packed your camera away. Gabriella and Josh’s wedding at Wildflower on Watts in Honesdale, PA was one of those weddings.

Although I’m based in Victoria, BC, I’m a wedding travel photographer who has captured memorable weddings across Canada, the United States, Mexico and beyond. Many of my couples plan destination weddings because they’ve fallen in love with a place. I believe they should be just as excited about the person documenting it. Whether you’re planning a destination wedding at a luxury estate, boutique resort or private venue, I’ll happily travel to document your day, just like I did for Gabriella and Josh.

I flew from Victoria, BC all the way to the Pocono Mountains for this one. A single flight from Vancouver to Newark, then a drive through rolling Pennsylvania hills to a little town I’d never even heard of before – Honesdale, PA. When I arrived Thursday night, I just knew this weekend was going to be something special. Not because of the venue (though wow, we’ll get to that), and not because of the incredible timeline they’d planned. It was special because Gabriella is one of my closest friends. And watching a friend get married, really, truly watching it, is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever had the privilege of doing behind a lens.

One of My Closest Friends

Gabriella and I found each other through an online community for photographers. Weekly accountability calls quickly turned into genuine friendship, and after more than two years of Tuesday conversations, she became one of my closest friends. When she asked me to photograph her wedding, saying yes was never a question. I immediately booked my flight to Pennsylvania.

There’s also one more layer to this story worth mentioning: Gabriella is a wedding photographer herself. So when her wedding day arrived, I got to watch someone who truly understands this work, who has felt the weight of a first look, who knows what it means to stand at the back of a ceremony and hold space for a family’s most emotional moments, get to be fully present in her own. Watching someone who spends their career documenting other people’s weddings finally experience her own was something I’ll never forget.

The Venue: Wildflower on Watts in Honesdale, Pennsylvania

If you haven’t heard of Wildflower on Watts, let me introduce you to one of the most stunning wedding venues in the Pocono Mountains.

Situated on 17 acres just outside of historic Honesdale, PA, Wildflower on Watts is a modern white barn estate. It doesn’t feel like a typical barn wedding. It feels elevated, intentional, and genuinely beautiful from every angle. Think sweeping fields, manicured lawns, soaring ceilings with chandeliers and skylights, a spacious loft with oversized windows, and an outdoor bar area framed by the barn in the distance. It’s the kind of venue where you could shoot for two days and still find new frames.

One of my favourite images of the entire weekend came from a drone shot over the rehearsal dinner: everyone gathered around the long table in the open field, the outdoor bar glowing in the background, twinkly lights strung overhead, the barn anchoring the far edge of the frame. The whole space felt relaxed and inviting, with everyone lingering around the table long after dinner had finished.

The Rehearsal Dinner: When A Night Goes Long For All the Right Reasons

Gabriella and Josh made a thoughtful decision early on: they wanted their actual wedding day to feel light on formality. So they moved most of their speeches to the rehearsal dinner, turning what’s often a quick, functional evening into a genuine celebration in its own right.

I arrived early to help the team set up the long communal table, one of those moments that reminded me how differently this weekend was going to feel compared to a typical client relationship. After a quick rehearsal, the evening opened up into exactly what Gabriella and Josh had envisioned: steak dinner, outdoor drinks, big families from both sides filling the field with laughter.

The speeches that followed were beautiful. Gabriella’s brother, Josh’s sister, and Gabriella’s mom each took a turn, and each one had the table either crying or laughing or both at the same time. What I love most about shooting speeches is that I’m almost never photographing the speaker. I’m watching the parents. I’m watching the grandparents. I’m waiting for the moment when someone in the crowd absolutely loses it in the best possible way, and that’s the frame.

The evening was supposed to wrap up in two hours. It went three, because nobody wanted to leave.

The Wedding Morning: Letters, Yellow Couches, and a Bride Who Couldn’t Stop Smiling

Gabriella and Josh had each written the other a letter that morning, to be read before they saw each other. There are these quiet, slow, cinematic shots of Gabriella writing hers, early morning light, wedding dress hanging nearby, that are some of my favourites from the whole weekend.

I always arrive early so I have time to explore the venue, photograph the details thoughtfully, and begin the day without ever feeling rushed. I use that window to scout the space and capture the flat lays. For Gabriella’s wedding, someone had already set up the detail items on the floor. But then I saw a yellow couch nearby. Yellow is Gabriella’s colour, so of course I moved everything to the couch to make the images turn into meaningful memories. Invitations, a matchbook with her dog Lenny’s face on it, her perfume, her floral shoes, her veil. The resulting shots are so her: joyful and a little whimsical and full of personality.

The getting-ready room was the barn loft: massive windows, warm light, the girls relaxed and laughing together. When Gabriella sat down to read Josh’s letter, she cried the entire time. Her mom quietly watched from across the room while her bridesmaids exchanged knowing smiles. It was one of those moments where the emotion spread through the room without anyone saying a word. That’s three layers of emotion in a single moment, and I caught all of it by simply staying wide.

When Gabriella finally stepped into her dress and turned to face the mirror, this person who has photographed dozens of brides, who knows this industry inside and out, she saw herself as a bride for the first time. She almost cried again. And then she pumped her fist in the air and announced, to no one in particular: “I’m getting married today.”

She said it more than once. She spun her dress every chance she got. She glowed.

The First Looks (All 4 of Them!)

This wedding had multiple first looks, and every single one was worth its own reel.

Her brother was emotional and sweet, over quickly in the way that sibling moments often are.

Her dad: Gabriella warned me in advance that her dad was going to cry. What she didn’t fully convey was that he’d be so overwhelmed he couldn’t even turn around at first. When he finally did, he was already in tears. They hugged for a long time. Then Gabriella pulled out a handkerchief engraved with a phrase they say to each other, and he started crying all over again. Her mom was observing quietly from the corner, as she had been for most of the morning.

Josh’s mom was my idea, and I’d advocate for it at every wedding! Grooms’ parents often get left out of the emotional morning coverage simply because they don’t get ready alongside their son. I made a point to set up a first look between Josh and his mom. She cried immediately. His dad walked over and kissed Josh on the cheek. Simple, quiet, and one of those photos I know will matter to that family for a long time.

Josh and Gabriella: we found a private spot behind the barn, and I let Gabriella walk to him. When he turned around, the joy on his face was immediate and complete. They hugged and cried and laughed and spun each other, and then I did something I’d encourage more photographers to do. I put my camera down and let them just be.

We stayed with that moment for ten minutes. They compared outfits. They told each other about the morning. Their dog Lenny wandered over and got in on the photos. It wasn’t a rushed checkbox; it was actually the beginning of their wedding day together.

And then Gabriella gave Josh the letters.

The Letters

Long before they were anything to each other, Gabriella photographed Josh’s sister’s wedding. That’s where they met. He asked for her number at the end of the night. She said yes.

After their first date, she started writing him letters. Not because anyone told her to. Not as a planned romantic gesture. She just felt, from the beginning, that they were going to get married. So she wrote. She kept writing. For years.

On their wedding day, she gave him all of them.

I love that I’m a photographer and not an English major because it would be hard to find the right words to describe what it feels like watching someone receive years of love letters on the day they’re about to marry the woman who wrote them. Thankfully, I had my camera, and the images Gabriella and Josh received captured all the emotion of this moment and turned it into a memory they will never forget.

The Ceremony, the Dances, and a Reception That Kept Going

The ceremony at Wildflower on Watts was everything Gabriella and Josh had wanted: warm, religious, full of prayer and meaning, with readings from Josh’s dad and Gabriella’s uncle. Josh held back tears through most of it, and then at the very end, when the pastor announced them as married, they both threw their hands in the air and laughed the entire way back down the aisle. That frame says everything about who these two are.

A few reception moments I’ll carry with me for a long time:

The surprise mother-daughter dance. After the father-daughter dance, Gabriella walked over to her mom and asked her to dance. Her mom had no idea it was coming. She was completely overwhelmed. The entire room was in tears within seconds. If you’re a bride reading this and you have the kind of relationship with your mom where this would mean something, please do this. It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever photographed.

The grandparents’ cake topper. On their wedding cake, Gabriella and Josh used the same topper that Gabriella’s grandparents had used on theirs. A small photo of the original moment sat nearby. It was the kind of detail that quietly carries an entire family’s history.

The parents’ wedding songs. During the reception, two slow songs were played, one for each set of parents. Each couple got to dance to their own wedding song again, surrounded by their children and grandchildren. That was Gabriella and Josh’s gift to them.

The dance floor. It was open from 7:30 to 10:00 PM and it was never empty. Gabriella and Josh were on it for over two hours straight, and the crowd followed their lead the entire time. There was a white bridal cowboy hat being passed around, whoever wore it became the unofficial floor captain and everyone cheered them on. It was pure, chaotic, joyful fun.

The private last dance. After the shuttle picked up the last guests and the venue went quiet, Gabriella and Josh stayed behind. Just the two of them, in the space where the whole day had happened. Slow, private, completely theirs. If you don’t have a private last dance planned, add it to your timeline. You will not regret it.

What I Want You to Take From This

Gabriella and Josh planned a wedding that was completely, unmistakably them. They prioritized joy. They protected time for each other. They thought about the people they loved, their parents, their grandparents, their families, and built moments specifically to honour them. And because of all of that, what I photographed wasn’t a wedding. It was a love story that had been building for years, finally given a whole day to breathe.

Why Couples Hire Me to Travel for their Wedding

Planning a destination wedding? I’d love to learn where you’re getting married. Although I’m based in Victoria, BC, travelling to photograph weddings across Canada and North America is one of my favourite parts of what I do. If your wedding is somewhere that matters deeply to you, I’m always excited to hop on a plane and meet you there.

When couples choose a destination wedding photographer, they’re rarely choosing someone because they’re local. They’re choosing someone whose work makes them feel something. Someone they trust to notice the quiet moments, anticipate the big emotions, and tell their story in a way that still feels just as meaningful decades from now.

Travel has taught me to adapt quickly. Whether I’m photographing a wedding on Vancouver Island, at a luxury estate in the United States, or somewhere I’ve never visited before, I arrive early to learn the light, explore the venue, and discover the locations that will photograph beautifully. I guide my couples through timeline planning, create space for genuine moments to unfold, and make sure they feel relaxed enough to simply enjoy the day they’ve spent so long planning.

At the end of it all, my goal isn’t just to deliver beautiful photographs. It’s to create images that bring you right back to how your wedding day felt every time you look through your gallery.

Whether you’re planning a destination wedding across North America or celebrating closer to home on Vancouver Island, I’d be honoured to tell your story.

Frequently Asked Questions

Vendors

Venue: Wildflower on Watts (Bethany Dirlam)

Planning: We Do Events (Jilian Becker)

Floral Design: Sterling Stems (Adrienne)

Hair and Makeup: Earth Tones Artistry (Evamarie)

Ceremony and Cocktail Hour Musicians: Pat and Sean Kelly

Catering: Bar Jawn

Bakery: Pretty Tasty Cupcakes

Officiant: Pastor Wayne Rissmiller

Videography: Karmapants (Colin and Jenn)

Rentals: Chippy White Table (Julie)

Transportation: J&J Transportation

Photography: Hayley Zumkeller Photography