On why I co-hosted four styled shoots in 24 hours: The importance of getting creative

Ever since I watched The Grand Budapest Hotel in high school, I’ve been enamored with Wes Anderson’s works.  So much of my style is inspired by his attention to detail, bold color palettes, and eclectic design.  When I started Pair-a-docs Event Rentals, I knew that I wanted my inventory to reflect just that.  

Rewind to this January - it was cold and I was bored as heck after recovering from the ‘rona but still not feeling 100% and patiently waiting for my last semester of college to begin.  I turned on The Royal Tenenbaums and inspiration struck.  I began scouring the internet for the perfect venue to stage a Wes Anderson inspired shoot, but nothing felt quite right, so I turned to AirBnb and found a house that fit the bill.  It was filled with mid century modern furniture, a back porch with incredible natural light, and brightly colored walls.  I reached out to my photographer friend, Olivia, and asked her if she wanted to host the shoot with me - I needed someone that knew what would be best for the photographers shooting and another creative mind to bounce ideas off of.  Our one shoot quickly turned into four as we realized all of the possibilities that came with the house.

Over the last year I have been a part of many styled shoots.  I’m thankful for each of them, but I realized that almost all of them were missing a non-photographer wedding vendor’s point of view.  I knew there had to be a better way to host a shoot that allowed for every vendor to get creative, not just the photographers.  With this in mind, Olivia and I brainstormed shoots that would let our vendor’s creativity run wild.  We decided on four shoots: a beach elopement that took advantage of Lake Michigan’s natural beauty and catered to more traditional couples, a Wes Anderson inspired editorial that would show couples that they don’t have to be afraid of color for their big day, a romantic vintage wedding that would be perfect for a Sunday wedding, and an intimate botanical wedding that could happen on your own back porch.

After 10 months of planning, we’ve finally finished!  I’m over the moon excited about how each shoot turned out and can’t wait to tell you all about them!  Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing a behind the scenes look at each of the shoots as well as how couples can recreate the looks for their own weddings.  Stay tuned for next week’s post on our beach elopement!