I’ve known Lisa since she was a freshman in pharmacy school. She is one of those people who warms a room just by walking into it. The kind of person you find yourself happy to be around before you’ve even had a chance to figure out why. And having known her (and her infectiously positive personality) for so long, when she told me she and Gentry were getting married in Rome, a city neither of them had ever visited, I was not even a little surprised.
How a Rome wedding happened from a San Francisco living room
They started with a simple plan: a small wedding in SF, close to home, manageable. But when the logistics of getting both families together for the first time didn’t come together the way they hoped, Lisa and Gentry did something that in retrospect makes complete sense for them. They looked at each other and said, what if we just got married in Rome?
The answer was yes before the question finished landing.
They planned the entire wedding sight unseen, working with Simona Celani as their planner. No pre-trip to walk the aisle or scout the reception space. No tasting menus or in-person venue tours. Just a planner they trusted completely, a lot of faith, and a willingness to let the city show up for them in all its glory. (Rome is pretty good at that.)
And you won’t be surprised to learn that the city did not disappoint. Their wedding was at Le Jardin, a well known and stunning venue in Rome.
The ceremony
The church was the kind of space that takes a moment to absorb. A frescoed dome ceiling. A gilded altar framed by marble columns. Elaborate floral arrangements in pink, blue, and white lined both sides of the aisle, full and lush and almost garden-like in scale. Lisa walked in wearing a cathedral-length veil that looked like it was made for exactly this place and moment.
Shooting as a destination wedding photographer Italy has long been on my photography bucket list. Standing in that church, watching the light fall across those flowers and the two of them at the altar, I understood why couples keep choosing Rome for a wedding like this. The architecture does a significant amount of the work. Your job is to show up, be present, and let it hold you.
The portraits
After the ceremony we took to the streets. Lisa in a fitted lace gown with off-the-shoulder ruffle sleeves. Gentry in a navy tuxedo with a champagne buttonhole. A vintage white getaway car parked against the warm stone buildings of Rome, the Italian flag hanging just over their shoulders. Champagne glasses in hand, looking at each other the way people do when the day has exceeded every expectation they had for it.
At some point during the portraits, strangers started gathering. Romans stopping on the cobblestones to watch, to cheer, to take pictures with the couple, and to stop for a moment to appreciate love. Lisa told me afterward she found the whole thing exhilarating. I did too. There’s something about a Roman street crowd deciding your wedding deserves a standing ovation that makes you feel like you made exactly the right call.
The reception
The reception was held outdoors. A string quartet in silver gowns played in a garden surrounded by flowering greenery. Four musicians completely absorbed in the music. The kind of detail that makes a wedding feel considered rather than assembled. The bar was an Aquazzura installation: hand-painted lemon tiles on a white tile face, champagne in rows, glasses already waiting in the evening light.
This is what a well-planned intimate destination wedding looks like. A guest list kept tight on purpose. Meaningful details everywhere. And a couple who trusted their planner enough to plan an entire wedding in a foreign city without ever setting foot in it, and then showing up and letting it be exactly what it was meant to be.
What I keep coming back to
Lisa told me that Gentry proposed at home, just the two of them and their dogs. He wanted to keep it close before sharing it with family. That same instinct ran through everything about their wedding day. Keep it meaningful. Share it with the people who matter. Let the rest of the world cheer from the sidewalk.
That’s what Rome gave them.
Being their destination wedding photographer for this weekend is something I’ll carry for a long time. Lisa, I have loved watching you build this life. Here’s to you and Gentry.
If you’re planning a destination wedding and looking for a photographer who travels for it, get in touch and tell me where you’re headed.
Planner @simona_celani_wp
Translator @fed_humanistcelebrant
Photo/Video @rtfaithphotography
Content Creator @roaming.social
HMUA @lauracocobridal
Florist @petaliflowersofficial
Watercolor artist @riccardopalazzi_art
Invitation @hyegraphinvitations
Venue @lejardin_rome
Hotel @hotel_splendide_royal_roma
Musician @event_music_planner @cittadelsuono_eventi
Vintage cat @fianiautonoleggio
