The Boston Public Library is one of my favorite places in the city for an intimate wedding, and Missy and Shuhei’s winter celebration was such a perfect example of why. They kept their ceremony incredibly small, with just 12 of their closest people joining them in the Guastavino Room before heading to Somerville later that evening for a much bigger celebration filled with pizza, bowling, and all of their favorite people.
It was intimate without feeling overly formal, elegant without being stuffy, and completely centered around spending the day with the people they love.
If you’re considering a Boston Public Library wedding or elopement of your own, their day is also a great example of just how much you can make the day your own.
Missy and Shuhei’s Intimate Winter Wedding
I was so excited when Missy’s mom first reached out to me about photographing her daughter’s wedding at the Boston Public Library.
Shortly after, I got to know Missy over the phone and hear a little more about what she and Shuhei were envisioning: something intimate and low-stress, surrounded by their closest people.
The Boston Public Library ended up being such a fitting place for it. The Guastavino Room already has so much character that you really don’t need to do much to make a ceremony there feel special. Between the huge windows, rows of books, and historic architecture, the room does most of the work for you
The Moments Before
When I arrived, Missy was tucked away with her mom and sister finishing up the last little details before the ceremony — adjusting her veil, touching up her lipstick, and getting ready for everything to begin.
These are always some of my favorite moments to photograph. There’s usually this little stretch of time where everyone knows something huge is about to happen, but for a few more minutes, it’s still just the people closest to you in a room together.
Before the ceremony, we found a quiet moment for Missy and Shuhei to see each other. You could almost physically see some of the nerves disappear once they were together.
And because they had kept the ceremony to just 12 guests, every arrival felt important. As everyone gathered before heading into the Guastavino Room, I mostly stepped back and photographed the hugs, reactions, conversations, and little moments happening naturally around them.
The Ceremony
Walking into the Guastavino Room for the first time honestly took my breath away.
Missy and Shuhei had a 2:15 p.m. ceremony in January, and the winter light pouring through the windows was incredible. If you’re worried about an indoor winter wedding in Boston feeling dark, this room was anything but.
The tall bookcases and historic architecture give the room this grand feeling, but with only their closest people gathered around them, the ceremony itself still felt incredibly personal.
They even played their ceremony music straight from their phones, which worked surprisingly well in the space! It was simple, unfussy, and completely them.
A Quiet Moment to Themselves
After the ceremony, we spent a little time letting Missy and Shuhei actually enjoy being married before heading outside for portraits.
My approach to portraits is pretty relaxed. I don’t want you spending your wedding day worrying about exactly where your hands are supposed to go or holding a pose that doesn’t feel like you. I’ll give you direction when you need it, but mostly I want to create space for you to move around, talk to each other, laugh, and settle into the fact that you just got married.
One thing that’s important to know if you’re considering a Boston Public Library wedding: photography inside the library is generally restricted to the space included with your ceremony booking. Because of that, we headed outside afterward and used the library’s exterior and the surrounding Copley Square area for their couple portraits.
It actually gave us the best of both worlds — the warmth and architecture of the Guastavino Room followed by a completely different city feel outside.
Celebration at Flatbreads
Later that evening, everyone headed to Flatbread Company in Somerville, where Missy and Shuhei opened up the celebration to a larger group of family and friends.
And I LOVED this part of their day.
After such a quiet, intimate ceremony, the evening was completely different — bowling, pizza, kids running around, people catching up, and so much laughter.
It’s also one of the reasons I loved the way they planned their wedding. They didn’t have to choose between having a tiny ceremony and celebrating with a larger group of people. They did both.
During this part of a wedding day, I’m mostly in documentary mode. Rather than constantly pulling people away from what they’re doing for photos, I’m watching for the hugs, ridiculous bowling reactions, conversations, kids being kids, and all of the little interactions you might not even notice are happening in the moment.
Those are usually the photograph
Planning an Intimate Ceremony in Boston?
If you’re planning an a ceremony in Boston, especially if you’re planning something smaller, I can’t recommend the Guastavino Room enough in the Boston Public Library. It gives you the feeling of getting married somewhere unmistakably Boston while still being intimate enough for a small group.
And your wedding doesn’t have to end when you leave the library. Missy and Shuhei’s day is such a good example of building a celebration around what you actually want — whether that means portraits around Copley Square, dinner somewhere you love, bowling with your family, or something completely different.
If you’re planning a Boston Public Library wedding or elopement and are looking for photography that feels candid, relaxed, and true to how the day actually felt, I’d love to hear what you’re planning.
