Katie & Jacob
St John the Evangelist Church (Ceremony) & Pawtucket Country Club (Reception)
July 10th, 2026
Whenever I think back on my wedding day back in 2010, there are a couple of key moments that stand out: Seeing my wife walk down the aisle, my father sweating his butt off in the 95-degree heat and having a crazy fun party with all the people I cared about.
When I shoot weddings for other couples, my hope is they come away with a similar slate of things they'll never forget and moments that last a lifetime but, every now and again, I leave a wedding and think "Man, that bride and groom were lucky. Their whole day was exceptional."
That's how I felt getting into my car after working with Katie and Jacob because, truth be told, their day wasn't about a single moments or memory. It was a non-stop series of amazing events that just kept building and building and building.
From a crazy sweet first look between the bride and her father to my favorite church exit in years to a dance floor that literally would not stop, Katie and Jacob's wedding was the kind of day you dream of as a bride and groom ... and the kind of day you pray for as their photographer.
Yes. It was that good.
I'm a big believer that the beginning of any wedding day's coverage sets the tone for how things are going to go and, in the case of Katie, that was certainly the case.
Immediately upon arriving to Katie's bridal prep session, I could tell I would be working with a bride who was super relaxed and eager to get married. Not only was she already finished with hair and makeup when I arrived but her dress and details were all neatly arranged and ready to be photographed ... right in her childhood bedroom next to a photograph from her first communion. It was a nice touch.
More importantly, though, Katie's bridal prep was about moments, not formality. That's why what I lacked in photos of her getting her hair and makeup done were more than made up for in her interactions with her family, especially as her mom carefully tried not to miss a button on her dress and she took a second for herself in the mirror before starting the day's events.
My favorite moment of Katie's bridal prep, and maybe even the whole wedding day to be honest, was the first look she shared with her dad.
From almost the very second Katie's dad turned around to see his daughter fully dressed as a bride, you could see the tears welling up in his face ... and their little high five together to break the emotional tension was so sweet and touching I found it hard not to outwardly exclaim "Awwwwww."
Katie and Jacob chose to have a traditional religious wedding at St. John the Evangelist Church in Attleboro, Massachusetts and the moment I arrived on site, I could see why. Talk about a beautiful, historic church.
What I loved about this particular location was how it felt both grand and intimate at the same time and, I'll be honest, the moment Katie walked down the aisle really sealed for me how great this venue was because talk about a stunning backdrop.
Katie and Jacob's wedding ceremony was a simple affair but one that felt perfectly suited for this day. I loved the readings they chose and their priest's homily but really stood out to me were the way this bride and groom were fully engaged with the moment.
Whether holding hands with one another or playful reactions following their first kiss, Katie and Jacob were clearly fully present during this service and you could tell how much it meant to them as they were pronounced husband and wife.
Following their ceremony, Katie and Jacob headed outside for the grand bubble exit you see at the top of this blog. I've got to be honest. This wedding was in July but the moment I took that photo, I thought to myself "That might be my favorite photo of 2026." It remains to be seen if that will be the case at the end of this year but I adored Katie and Jacob's bubble exit and all the photos we got outside of their church before making our way to Pawtucket Country Club.
The one thing I didn't plan for on Katie and Jacob's wedding day was the one thing outside of our control: Rain.
Almost as if it was scripted, the moment I arrived to Pawtucket Country Club, the skies opened up and it started to POUR. Luckily, as we live in New England, sometimes you can wait out a storm so that's exactly what Katie, Jacob and I did during their cocktail hour.
I'm so grateful we did, too, as the rain retreated about 15 minutes after we arrived to their reception venue and we were able to finish their family formals outside. Plus, as a bonus, we were treated to a nice rainbow for our efforts.
Because of the delay with the weather, I didn't get as much time with Katie and Jacob as I would have liked before their reception began but I didn't mind as I knew we would be going back outside for sunset photos anyway.
Sometimes it's important to be flexible, as I would prove at the start of their reception as Katie and Jacob surprised me with a much shorter than expected first dance set to “Lover” by Taylor Swift.
Luckily, I love a challenge so capturing as many photos as I could in the allotted 68 seconds I had for their first dance was tough.Thankfully, these two have such a great chemistry that all I needed was 68 seconds to showcase the dance they won't forget.
With their first dance in the books, Katie and Jacob settled in to finally relax a bit as dinner was served. Before they could dig in, though, they had a blessing and three speeches to get through and each speech really highlighted how much love was in the room for them on this special day.
Following dinner, Katie, Jacob and I made our way back outside for their sunset photos. Now, truth be told, there wasn't much of a sunset at this time per se as we headed outside about 20 minutes before the sun actuall set.
But given their packed itinerary for the rest of the day, I couldn't risk losing this gap in the timeline to grab the bride and groom portraits I missed out on earlier and I'm glad we did.
I photographed an engagement session for Katie and Jacob back in 2025 and both that session, and this portrait time, were smooth and fun. Plus, I like to think the time outside gave us a nice little chance to recharge our social batteries before the party started. Because, trust me, we'd need it.
Before we could open the dance floor and get the party rocking, though, Katie and Jacob had one more speech planned, this time by the bride's uncle, as well as a cake cutting and a pair of special parent dances.
This little period of the night was like one final appetizer before the main course and I especially loved Katie's dance with her dad and Jacob's dance with his mom as both gave a nice little emotional send off to the feelings portion of the day before we closed the night out with a full scale celebration.
If it sounds like I've been gassing up Katie and Jacob's wedding reception, it's for good reason: This was one HELL of a party.
From literally the first dance song of the evening until the time I rolled out of Pawtucket Country Club, Katie and Jacob's friends and family members were tearing the dance floor up.
I had so much fun photographing these two and seeing how much they loved every moment of this party and that, coupled with the beautiful uplighting of their venue, made this one of my favorite dance floors of the year by far.
Katie and Jacob's dance floor had it all. From the bride and groom regularly being lifted in the air to a dance off and a conga line, not to mention one of the best limbos I've seen play out at a wedding, it seemed like every time I looked around, there was something new happening in this venue on this beautiful summer night.
As my time with Katie and Jacob came to an end, I was absolutely exhausted and punch drunk in the best way from the crazy high emotions of their wedding day. I take that as the highest form of praise for this couple and their special day as it takes a LOT to wear me down the way this wedding did.
When I got home, I also realized I shot more photos of this wedding than any I had in 2026 up to this point and I think that speaks volumes to how awesome a time I had documenting this day for this bride and groom.
So, thank you Katie and Jacob for a wedding I won't soon forget and I wish you nothing but the best in this new and exciting chapter of your lives together as husband and wife. :)
-Paul J. Spetrini
Check out more of my most recent wedding blogs:
The Vendor List:
Photographer: Paul J. Spetrini, Paul J. Spetrini Photography; Bride's Hair: Dawn Littig of Twisted Sisters Hair Salon; Bride's Make-up: Jessica Lourdes; Bride's Dress: Thistle Rose Bridal, Plainville, Massachusetts; Florist: Nancy Crowther of Unplugged Designs by Nancy; Ceremony: St. John the Evangelist Church, Attleboro, Massachusetts; Reception: Pawtucket Country Club, Pawtucket, Rhode Island; DJ: Jason Demers of Music Machine Entertainment; Cake: Debbie Stanton of Debbie Stanton of Salty Bakeshop.