Moody Romantic Fall Wedding in Downtown Portland - Sara & Ruth's Bash at The Leftbank Annex

February 13, 2025

Moody Romantic Fall Wedding in Downtown Portland - Sara & Ruth's Bash at The Leftbank Annex

gay newlyweds dance on rooftop of leftbank annex in downtown portland oregon

This first picture has nothing to do with Ruth & Sara's dance and yet...it has everything to do with it. Ruth & Sara walked into our very first practice and held nothing back. They were open to experimenting. They were ready to be authentically themselves. They wanted to have FUN. And that they did.

They chose to dance to "Female of the Species" by The Sukis. We started their dance with a very simple step touch and then as I got to know them better and as the music gained momentum we switched up the steps. Mixed in with their dips and turns I speckled in a little bachata and then, towards the end as the music screamed "cue the drama" we did some tango. Ruth was even game to whip a rose out and put it in her teeth during that moment and it is one of my favorite snapshots from 2024. Their dance was sweet. It was sexy. It was funny! It was romantic. It made you feel all the happy things you could possibly feel at once. Because Ruth & Sara were determined to have a good time they gave everybody else a great one too - and one hell of a performance.

So how can you score great pictures like these and have this much fun doing your wedding dance?

1. It all starts with a song. Choose a song that speaks to you, that you connect with through a memory or one that makes you want to move when you hear it.

2. PRACTICE! Practice, practice, practice, practice. There's a saying that goes "you should practice your first dance so many times that you hate your song by the time your wedding day comes around and then you fall in love with it all over again in that moment". I second this. You can't really let loose and enjoy your dance to the fullest if you're still trying to remember which move comes next.

3. If you care about having great dance pictures, choose a photographer who cares about that too. I've seen incredible wedding photographers take horrible dance pictures - simply because they don't capture many shots of the moment or they have a hard time getting clear action shots. Pictures of your first dance can be some of the best pictures from your entire wedding day! So if you care about quality snaps from that moment, make sure your photographer is in line with your vision too. A great portrait or artistic photographer is not always also a great action shot photographer.

I feel so grateful that Ruth & Sara asked me to be a part of this fun project and day. Please enjoy some more pics of their epic dance below.