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How a wedding photographer planned her unique Maine wedding on a budget

May 31, 2019
An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Planning a wedding yourself on a budget can seem restricting, but for Leah and Scott, a simple, minimal wedding just felt right. Two non-negotiables guided their entire process: 1) to stick to a $10,000 budget, and 2) to throw a really fun party for 80 guests. Instead of contradicting each other, it actually helped them plan: If it didn’t directly contribute to more fun for guests, like a laidback venue and good music or a vintage VW van named after her dad—just wait), it wasn’t included.

See what made their wedding at O’Maine Studios in Maine so special as you scroll through Emily Delamater‘s images…

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget minimal wedding decor and candles

As a wedding photographer, Leah loves photographing beautiful details, but they weren’t a priority for her own wedding. It was actually their floral designer, Yellow Twist Floral Design, who surprised them by adding the secondhand candles to those minimal wedding tables!

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Hear more about their intimate venue, O’Maine Studios, and why they chose it below…

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Leah says, We had our wedding on a Thursday night because a lot of our friends are photographers, self-employed or work in the music industry. Having it during the week made it easiest to get our friends there. I’m a photographer and Scott is a booking agent for bands. We didn’t have colors or a theme, just a party. We did have a lot of music. One of Scott’s friends played the cello during the ceremony, another one of his friends sang at the end. During the reception Scott played a few songs with his friends. They played Tom Petty’s “You Wreck Me” because we went to see him soon after we met. After that, we had The Mallett Brothers play. Scott had worked with them for years. 

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Leah loves vintage rugs, so they brought in a few for the ceremony, band, and van.

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Scott’s favorite memory… Neither one of us like being the center of attention so we passed on doing the traditional walk down the aisle. So, the first time I saw Leah in her dress was as I was casually walking around the corner with a backpack carrying a couple bags of ice. She looked so beautiful I nearly dropped it all. Beyond that I will always remember watching Dom sing the song “Strangers” by The Kinks the moment after the ceremony.

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Leah got her gown from Reformation, which was under $400. All of their minimal wedding dresses are so gorg and rarely cost much more than that!

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

O’Maine Studios is an event space, but primarily it’s a commercial photography studio. Since we met because of photography we liked that aspect. The owner was also totally cool with us bringing my Volkswagen Vanagon into the space. That was special because I named the van Bob after my father who passed. 

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Who needs decor when you have summery blooms?!

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget

Plus, the venue was already equipped with all the furniture they needed, so they didn’t even have to splurge on rentals!

Bride and groom portraits in Maine Bride and groom portraits in Portland, Maine Golden hour couples portraits Stone Fox Creamery ice cream cart

Rather than having an entire dessert spread, these two brought in the Stone Fox Creamery ice cream truck for the evening.

An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget An intimate, authentic wedding in Portland, Maine with a $10,000 budget Bubbles and ice cream at venue Couples portraits in front of vintage VW bus

See the rest of this Maine wedding in our gallery below:

Congratulations, Leah and Scott!

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Photography: Emily Delamater / Venue: O’Maine Studios in Portland, Maine / Coordination: Bride & Groom / Florist: Yellow Twist Floral Design / Makeup:  Adore Rouge / Invitations: Squarespace / Ice Cream Truck: Stone Fox Creamery / Catering: Pizza by Fire / Band: The Mallett Brothers / DJ & Ceremony Music: Dominic Lavoie / Ceremony Music: Kevin Oates / Officiant: Former Client of Leah’s, Forrest Butler / Wedding Dress: Reformation / Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens / Groom’s Suit: J. Crew / Shoes: Nisolo