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The First Wedding on Portland's Historic Peacock Lane | Oregon

Sarah & Dan

Portland's Historic Peacock Lane Has It's First Holiday Wedding

After meeting Sarah and Dan I was ecstatic to be chosen as the Portland wedding photographer for their historic Christmas wedding held on Peacock Lane in Portland, Oregon.

This was easily my most inspiring wedding of 2019.

It only took seconds after sitting down with Sarah and Dan to know I wanted to be a part of their wedding day. Dan and I bonded in our meeting right away over photography, he has some fancy cameras he enjoys and has an appreciation for photography. And I don’t know how anyone doesn’t fall for Sarah the minute they meet her.

Listening to them talk about how they met, and how their relationship changed was a beautiful thing. They giggled and exchanged glances like a set of love sick teenagers. I began to notice my cheek muscles tiring because of how much I had been smiling, but I couldn’t help it, they’re happiness was infectious. I remember thinking to myself, if ever you should doubt love in your life, just met these two and you will find new hope again.

So, you might be wondering, how these two met? A little Christmas magic maybe?

Christmas can be a hard time for Sarah. Knowing that, her friend, Cinderella, made a suggestion that she seek support in Dan. She said Dan was an amazing man, with a good Christian heart and he was someone she should really confide in. And thanks to Cinderella’s encouraging Sarah to open up, when she did, she found a friend, and little did she know a husband.

Dan suggested they do something fun and festive and invited her to go see Christmas lights. Staring with a coffee at Starbucks and then heading over to Portland’s historic Peacock Lane.

According to their website, the Peacock Lane experience has been happening since 1932. Every year each house in this charming SE Portland neighborhood decorates to celebrate Christmas and the holiday season. As a native Portlander I have been to Peacock Lane for the holidays many, many times over the years. One of my favorite long standing decorations is that of Dr. Seuss’s the Grinch, that movie has played a long-time role as part of my holiday traditions. Next would be The Nightmare Before Christmas display, that is my favorite movie.

While Dan and Sarah entered the Lane as friends they would leave feeling much more. On their walk down Peacock Lane they decide to cross the street. As they entered the street out of a natural feeling of protection, Dan held Sarah’s hand, they both felt sparks. Moments after crossing, a random person asked to take their photo, they hugged for the photo and the feelings grew.

Dan said when he looked at the photo he thought, look at those people, they are so happy. After a few more outing Dan went in for the kiss because his heart told him he should. Sarah said it was a welcomed surprise and the two have been inseparable ever since.

The more they got to know each other the more weird coincidences they shared, from a dislike of sticky hands to dove soap. They are so thankful that all of their friends were so happy and supportive of them getting together. I love how passionately they talk about work, as they both work at Zupan’s Markets together. Dan speaks so highly of what a foodie Sarah is, how she will create food and he will pick out the best produce and things to go with it. No matter how you look at their relationship, these two people are just a perfect fit.

One day, during a time Sarah was dealing with the hard parts of life, Dan came down stairs with tears in his eyes and said that he thought they should go look at wedding sets. Sarah was like, what? Dan said yes, I think we should, we really love each other and I think we should go start looking at those. They both just felt they should get married because they just loved each other so much. They just really wanted to make that commitment to each other.

When it came to planning the wedding there was no where else then Peacock Lane for them. After some work, they met with the owner of the house (thanks Barbara!) the first held hands in front of and made plans to be married there. Peacock lane traditionally has a few nights where they close the street and it just so happened that work perfectly. The two had their first date on Dec. 18th, 2018 and would be married the following year on Dec. 17th, 2019.

Dan wore an amazing shake skin suite and Sarah was dressed all in white. As the ceremony began the street stopped, everyone wanted to watch the wedding. Other homeowners on the lane came to watch as well, and told us this was the first known wedding to happen on Peacock Lane during the holiday season. What a historic event all around! After the ceremony, everyone made their way over to Union Pines for a small intimate reception. Almost like the modern wedding elopements that have been happening now.

Sarah was kind enough to take the time and leave reviews about her experience working with me. This is so great for brides, grooms and couples when they are shopping for a experienced portland wedding photographer. This is what she said:

“Cambrae is a gifted and amazing photographer! We had a Holiday wedding outside in the dark on a super busy night on Peacock Lane! She made the night perfect for us! Her images were beautiful, she was super organized and efficient. Professional from our first meeting until the very end. She is fun and very easy to work with!!! Her packages are a great value. I cannot recommend her highly enough! Thank you for making our wedding memories the best ever!!”

Of course, not long after their wedding the world changed. Coronavirus hit the scene and we found ourselves in a pandemic. After you photograph someone’s wedding it’s hard not to get attached to them and I stay in touch with many of my couples. With Sarah and Dan both working for Zupan’s Markets, where they worked when they met, I thought of them often. I reached out to Sarah and asked if she might be willing to share some of her experience. And I think now as cases are rising and we go into a holiday grocery rush, it’s a good time to be reminded of having care, concern and compassion for our essential workers.

This is what she had to say:

· What is being an essential worker like?

Scary and yet a feeling of being helpful! I grocery shop for vulnerable people who cannot shop, they do curbside pickup. They are super grateful!

· What can we do to help grocery workers?

Wear masks when shopping, come with a purpose and shop without all of your kids, just you, use sanitizer provided, governmental assistance for those who cannot work due to health issues, hazard pay please, call in orders, pizza party please!

· How has COVID-19 effected you two and your day to day life?

Scared us so much due to our age. We are at a huge risk every day! I lose it sometimes, have panic attacks, so do my co-workers, because we are scared to go to work. I talk to a counselor bi-monthly, and we have free counseling for our staff. I wish I could stay home where it is safe, but cannot afford it. We work full time, and in our off time we just rest and try to recoup our energy and prepare for our next week ahead. Thankfully other than being exhausted, we are healthy.

· Are there are charities or groups you would like to call attention to during this time?

Urban Gleaners take all of our unused food, and we support Sunshine Division.

These two just celebrated their first anniversary and I got to be there! Sarah surprised Dan by ordering for him a beautiful 16x20 print in a custom silver frame. So on the morning of their anniversary I got to deliver it to their home. And while in masks and socially distanced I got to see him open his present. Watching the these two embrace and Dan tear up over this portrait from that amazing day, was a really special moment to be there for. They continue to inspire.