Wedding Meets Music Festival
Nikki & Heather's Music Festival Wedding at ACE Adventure Resort
Some weddings are beautiful. Some weddings are emotional.
And then there are weddings where every fifteen minutes you stop, look around, and think...
"...Is this real? Am I actually here right now?"
That's exactly what Nikki and Heather's wedding felt like.
It all started with a message from my friend Maiya, who happened to be planning the wedding.
"Do you travel?"
Of course.
"West Virginia?"
"...Yes."
Now I'm suspicious.
(Just kidding.)
Maiya knew I was looking to photograph more LGBTQ+ weddings and thought Nikki and Heather would be a perfect fit. She wasn't wrong. I was already excited because, at the end of the day, love is love, and everyone deserves wedding photos that celebrate exactly who they are.
What I didn't expect was one of the coolest weddings I've ever photographed..
When your love story deserves a music festival
Nikki and Heather didn't just love music.
They loved the experience of it.
Music festivals.
Camping.
Finding new artists.
Watching their favorite bands with the people they love.
So instead of planning a traditional wedding, they built an entire weekend-long music festival around their marriage at ACE Adventure Resort in West Virginia.
Even better?
They hired several of their favorite musicians to perform throughout the weekend—including one of the artists they saw on their very first date.
How cool is that?
I wasn't able to stay for the entire festival, but even the time I spent there made me wish I'd packed a tent.
ACE Adventure Resort is already an incredible place. Water activities, mountain views, hiking, and then, tucked farther up the mountain, sits a stage that became the heart of the entire celebration.
It didn't feel like a venue.
It felt like home.
They Didn't Follow the Wedding Rule Book
Every detail of this wedding reflected Nikki and Heather.
Nikki hand-crafted the beautiful belt she wore, bead by bead, and even created their ceremony arch using wine bottles they had collected throughout their relationship. Nothing felt like it came from a wedding catalog. It all came from their life together.
Their favorite musician officiated the ceremony, making the moment even more personal, while an incredible drag performer helped entertain guests and brought so much joy and energy to the celebration.
Then there was the wedding party.
Instead of matching dresses.
Instead of matching suits.
Every member showed up as a different inflatable animal.
At some point I completely stopped asking, "What could possibly happen next?"
And honestly...
That's when the day became even more fun.
This wedding wasn't trying to impress anyone.
It was simply celebrating the people Nikki and Heather already were.
The Bus That Stole the Show
Every photographer has that one location they'll never forget.
Mine might be an old graffiti-covered bus sitting in the mountains of West Virginia.
Was it technically the safest place?
Let's not ask too many questions.
What I do know is that it perfectly matched the personality of the day.
Bright colors.
Creative energy.
A little chaotic.
Completely unique.
Some of my favorite portraits I've ever taken happened on and inside that bus.
Looking back at those images still makes me smile.
The Most "Them" Ending Possible
Of course Nikki and Heather weren't going to end the day with sparklers.
That would have been far too ordinary.
Instead, they danced on stage beside one of their favorite musicians before everyone gathered for a colorful powder celebration that completely transformed their white wedding outfits into works of art.
Watching clouds of color explode around them while they laughed together felt like the perfect ending to an already unforgettable day.
By the time everything settled, their clothes told the story just as much as my photographs did.
My Favorite Kind of Wedding
I photograph a lot of weddings, and every couple is different.
But every once in a while there's a wedding that reminds me what this job is really about.
It isn't about centerpieces.
It isn't about timelines.
It isn't even about traditions.
It's about creating a day that feels like you.
Nikki and Heather never asked permission to have the wedding they wanted.
They built an entire weekend around the things they loved most—music, community, laughter, color, and each other.
That's something I'll never forget.
And honestly?
I think they've set the bar pretty high for what it means to truly have a wedding your way.
Planning Your Own "Rule Breaking" Wedding?
Whether you're planning a wedding in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, or somewhere completely unexpected, I'd love to help tell your story.
If you're the kind of couple who wants your wedding to feel like you instead of what Pinterest says it should be...
I think we'll get along just fine.