Candid Wedding Photography at Tacoma's The PressRoom

I had been looking forward to Blake and Cecily's wedding ever since we did a gorgeous Seward Park engagement shoot as part of their full-day wedding package. We had such a good time during the engagement session that I knew the wedding would be a fun one. What I didn't know was how the stunning venue – Tacoma's The Press Room – would make this day a truly special one, which I documented both with photographs and a documentary PhotoFilm,

The Press Room is located in Tacoma's Opera Alley, and used to house the printing presses of the Tacoma Daily Ledger and Tacoma News Tribune. The venue's theming is somewhere between speak easy and pre-war rustic. I arrived early, and with a full-day booking and their well-organized timeline, I was able to spend plenty of time taking detail shots and exploring the venue to document the wedding day preparation.

Once everyone was ready it was time for the first look, Blake and Cecily opted for a more formal first look session, and with beautiful spring weather we went out into Tacoma's Opera Alley with a lovely patch of yellow painted wall that formed a great background for this emotional first look. With the first look complete we did a quick portrait session, including wedding portraits at Tacoma's Spanish Steps, just a few blocks away.

After returning from the portrait session, the guests were arriving and the final details wrapped up to get the venue ready for the ceremony. One of the things I love about this venue is the dramatic, natural light that fills the ceremony space.

After the ceremony the wedding moved upstairs to the Press Room's second level for a cocktail hour while the main floor was flipped for the reception. There was a dinner, followed by all the usual events: speeches, first dances, garter/bouquet toss, and a lively dance floor. When I left, ten hours after arriving, the party was still going.