Ceremony: Union Chapel
Reception: Blue Canoe Waterfront Grill

Danielle Wilson and Ritch Williams had traveled to Boston plenty of times (Red Sox fans!) and even south to Cape Cod, but somehow they had never made it onto the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, despite their best intentions.

So for this Wisconsin couple, having a Vineyard wedding seemed like getting two birds with one stone: to marry and honeymoon in a place they had always wanted to visit.

They planned the event themselves, using references and web reviews, hoping the Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs and the Blue Canoe Waterfront Grill in Vineyard Haven would look as nice for their ceremony and reception as they did in online pictures.    

Right after getting engaged, Danielle contacted photographers Jonny and Michelle Hoffner of Paper Antler (after first calling her parents, of course).

Danielle had seen photographs of a co-worker’s wedding and knew she wanted Paper Antler to be at hers. It turned out the Minneapolis-based photographers had launched a special project called the Fifty Nifty, in which they photographed different weddings in each of the fifty states in 2012 and donated $1,000 from each assignment to She Dances, a nonprofit organization that supports young Honduran women who have been trafficked and sexually exploited.

“We thought it was amazing and really cool that they would incorporate such a great cause into wedding photography,” says Danielle.

Paper Antler’s Jonny and Michelle enjoy wedding photography because every job means new people, new places, and new challenges. Jonny says, “You get to meet all sorts of different people and see the interesting dynamics between friends, family, and the couple.” The pair wanted to incorporate philanthropy into their work, and thus was born the Fifty Nifty. They say their weekend on Martha’s Vineyard was one of their favorites of the year (honestly).

The Vineyard delivered with beautiful May weather, and the wedding photographs prove it. In addition to taking their own tour of the Island via moped, the photographers snapped Ritch and Danielle at some Oak Bluffs hot spots, such as the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Ground and the East Chop Lighthouse. They also went to one unlikely location: Coop deVille, the group’s favorite gathering place. The couple and their guests hit up the restaurant and bar on the Oak Bluffs harbor every day of their trip, even the wedding day. They credit their loyalty mostly to manager Petey Berndt’s charm.

“It was nice to have somebody you didn’t know make you feel like you were part of the family,” says Ritch.

The couple will be coming back to the Island in May to celebrate their first anniversary, as well as an official honeymoon, which didn’t quite fit in their week-long wedding vacation. With twenty-five friends and family joining the couple last year, Ritch jokes he didn’t see Danielle until six o’clock the night after their wedding.

This time the trip will be for two. Ritch says, “We’re going to kill two birds with one stone – again.”

Details

Photographer: Paper Antler
Rehearsal Dinner: Oak Bluffs rental house
Celebrant: Reverend Judith Campbell
Cake: Cakes by Liz
Ceremony Music: Cellist Michael Tinus + Violinist Rebecca Barca-Tinus
Transportation: Bluefish Taxi