Caitlin & Jeremiah
I've often said there are two couples getting married on a wedding day: The one that exists before a bride and groom say "I do" and the one that exists after. In Caitlin and Jeremiah's case, the transition occurred a little bit later than their May wedding ceremony at the Mass Arts Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts.
Call it nerves or anxiety but, for whatever reason, it wasn't until we were finished with their bride and groom formals that these two could take a deep breath and really be themselves. I don't take offense: Formal photos can be a labor of love and make you feel like you have to be "on" the entire time.
But once these newlyweds hit the dance floor? You could see any last bits of apprehension and worry fade from their faces immediately. Turns out, all you need to really enjoy your wedding day are some great songs to vibe to, awesome people to celebrate your love and the arms of the person you care about the most.
And that, my friends, is a beautiful love story no matter how formal or informal your wedding day proves to be.
My time with Caitlin and Jeremiah started with a slightly awkward game I played called “Am I in the right spot?”
Caitlin and Jeremiah said “I do” at the Mass Arts Center, a place of special significance to them and their love of community theater, but upon arrival, I wasn't sure how they planned to get married here. And then I saw the tent in the back parking lot and saw the space where Caitlin was getting ready and I immediately understood.
I love nontraditional venues and this one was super cool. What was even better, though, was how prepared Caitlin and her side of the wedding party was as they had the dress ready for me to photograph the moment I arrived and were immediately ready for their own pre-ceremony photos, too.
I've had a lot of anxious brides in my time but Caitlin was definitely one of the more introverted and shy in the lead up to her ceremony. I get it. Most of my couples don't like being the center of attention and it can be a lot to process having a camera in your face in one of the biggest moments of your life.
That's why I was so grateful Caitlin just let me do my own thing and rolled with the punches. She and her wedding party were super organized and it made those last-minute bridal prep photos a breeze.
I could feel Caitlin was looking forward to getting through the ceremony, like most brides, but I like to think those nerves went away the moment she walked down the aisle and saw Jeremiah waiting.
Caitlin and Jeremiah's wedding was about as easy and simple as you can get. While the two did share beautiful vows to each other, they didn't make their ceremony some sort of over-the-top affair. They kept it nice and simple, exchanged some words, some rings.
Me? I was just glad we were in a tent as the sun was shining bright and hot as Caitlin and Jeremiah became husband and wife.
With their ceremony in the books, Caitlin and Jeremiah took the long walk all of maybe 20 feet to a beautiful spot behind their venue with water in the back and plenty of late spring colors in the foliage.
Unfortunately for me, the formal photos for this bride and groom were among the hardest I've shot this season as the sky wouldn't make its mind up as to whether it wanted to be dark, gloomy and overcast or blindly hot and muggy.
To their credit, Caitlin and Jeremiah's family and wedding party hung tough through the heat and the photos, I thought anyway, came out great.
The constantly changing lighting conditions did make it a bit challenging for bride and groom formals (I think we were all getting a bit sweaty) and after initially starting the shots of Caitlin and Jeremiah together near their ceremony/reception tent, the heat proved a bit too challenging.
Credit to the newlyweds though. They wouldn't let the sun take their focus off of doing their best with my posing instructions.
After a few minutes of bride and groom portraits in the bright sun, I could tell we needed a change and, thankfully, Caitlin suggested we head over to a spot called "the parkway."
Now, I am always a bit skittish when a couple suggests a new location for bride/groom formals that I haven't seen but this spot tucked a short walk away from the Mass Arts Center was exceptional.
More importantly, the shade allowed the bride and groom to get comfortable and ease into much better portraits than I think we would've gotten in the sun alone.
Suffice to say, I was thrilled we made the location change.
After getting more than enough shots of Caitlin and Jeremiah in the shade, the three of us reluctantly made our way back into the sun and to their tent for the start of the reception.
This little break in the action gave me a few minutes to chug some water and make sure I captured photos of all the DIY decor Caitlin and Jeremiah put together.
I loved how simple and effective Caitlin and Jeremiah's decorations were. They matched the low key theme of the afternoon perfectly and set up a nice tone of bright colors that really popped out. That was especially true when I took care of ring shots later on as I grabbed two great shots of Caitlin and Jeremiah's wedding bands and, honestly, don't know which one I like better.
I'll be honest. Heading into Caitlin and Jeremiah's wedding reception, I had no idea what to expect in terms of what kind of party we might get. Tent weddings are notoriously difficult to predict in terms of vibes once the dance floor opens but my hope was that, whether or not the newlyweds spent all night dancing or hanging with friends at tables, that there would be plenty to photograph.
Truth is, I should have never worried because it was clear right from Caitlin and Jeremiah's first dance that this would be a special reception indeed.
The pair shared their first dance to “You” by Dan and Shay and the tent atmosphere made their dance seem casual and super intimate at the same time.
Jeremiah and Caitlin made sure to let those closest to them have their special moments during their reception as well.
First, the bride and groom took time out to share one-on-one dances with their parents. For Jeremiah that meant touching dances with his mom and stepmom. For Caitlin, it was the always beautiful and traditional father-daughter dance which was perfectly sandwiched between Jeremiah's two dances.
All three of these moments were sweet and you could see how much they meant to Caitlin and Jeremiah by just watching the smiles on their faces and the hugs exchanged.
Perhaps the biggest sign of how beloved this couple is was just how many folks in their lives felt they had to give a speech during the reception. Caitlin and Jeremiah received five toasts throughout the night and they all varied between sweet and sentimental to roast vibes. In other words, exactly what the bride and groom knew would happen … and probably hoped for.
Outside of speeches, the only other remaining formality for Caitlin and Jeremiah before the pair opened the dance floor was the cake cutting and this pair made that short and sweet too.
The moment Caitlin and Jeremiah's dance floor opened, you could almost feel the tone of the day shift.
I've said this a lot this year but, at least as far as the 2025 wedding season is concerned, older folks are carrying the dance floors this year. Caitlin and Jeremiah's reception started a little slow but the dance floor didn't stay empty for long as their older friends and family members had no issues rocking out once classic party tracks like “Uptown Funk,” “Respect” and even the new “Tipsy” came on.
It made for a really fun start to two hours of dance floor coverage I knew would have been running around like a crazy person trying to capture.
I think what I loved about Caitlin and Jeremiah's reception was how much of a good time everyone was having. The dance floor occasionally spilled out of the tent and into a nearby open field and that was perfect for one of my favorite parts of the day as Jeremiah and his sister had a special choreographed dance planned for later in the day.
Now, typically, I am not a fan of couples who plan for these big “moments” to happen but Jeremiah and his sister's dance, set to “I don't care” by Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber was such an adorable moment, I couldn't help but smile as I shot it.
Jeremiah and his sister's choreographed dance was a nice break in the action from a really fun dance floor and the moment it was over, the younger folks in attendance decided it was their turn to take over the night.
The back half of Caitlin and Jeremiah's reception was a wild time, with tons of banging rap, hip hop and pop hits turning the tempo of the night up a notch … so much so that when Caitlin called everyone off the dance floor toward the end of the reception to officially toss her bouquet, it took a while to get the crowd back outside.
But even that moment was worth it as three of Caitlin's friends made the traditional bouquet toss feel more like American Gladiators than a simple and fun event. It was awesome.
With the reception slowly coming to an end, Caitlin and Jeremiah took to the dance floor one final time for their last dance of the evening, set to “This Is It” by Scotty McCreery, one of my favorite wedding songs.
It was the perfect way to cap a beautifully down-home wedding.
Even though I was out of Caitlin and Jeremiah's wedding with the sun still up, I felt like I'd been there all night. It was that kind of party.
And I love that for them. I adore laid back, relaxed wedding days and Caitlin and Jeremiah did it perfectly: Chill vibes for the start of the day, wild crazy fun when it was time to let loose.
Suffice to say, I wasn't surprised that I somehow took more photos in this short, six hour day than I had for any other wedding so far this year and that's a compliment.
So thank you Caitlin and Jeremiah for an awesome wedding I won't soon forget and I wish you all the best on this new and exciting chapter of your lives together.
-Paul J. Spetrini
Check out more of my most recent wedding blogs:
Chris & Nicole
The Barn at Wight Farm,
Sturbridge, Massachusetts
May 3rd, 2025
The Vendor List:
Photographer: Paul J. Spetrini, Paul J. Spetrini Photography; Bride's Hair/Make-Up: Shelby White Beauty, Warwick, Rhode Island; Bride's Dress: Bridal Shoppe & Flowers, Warwick, Rhode Island; Suits: Tux Towne By Bejarano, Taunton, Massachusetts; Florist: Between The Roses Florist, Freetown, Massachusetts; Ceremony & Reception: Mass Arts Center, Mansfield, Massachusetts; Catering: Art's International Bakery, Raynham, Massachusetts; Cake: Tasty Ray's, Mansfield, Massachusetts; DJ: Carl Boren.