Donya and Robert are two very kind and sweet human beings. I loved working with Donya and met Robert briefly while they were out here for their engagement session. Donya kept me challenged with all of her requests and ideas and I thoroughly enjoy working with her!

The ceremony was a “production show” and a wedding ceremony combined and timing was crucial: the ladies arrived to the ceremony site on a yacht, the bridal party had to be sent down the aisle, the ribbon dancers and band and strings and gospel choir all had to be cued at different times throughout the ceremony and from all different directions, the gondola exit following the ceremony had to arrive on time to whisk the newlyweds away for twenty minutes…and Sam Day the wedding painter and Digs Studio were there to capture all of the special moments!

The ladies arrived to the ceremony in style on the Lady of the Lake yacht.

Their theme of “In the Water, On the Land, On the Mountain, In the Sky” was carried throughout their wedding ceremony and reception.

Mountain Top Gospel Choir

Our beautiful bride Donya

Donya and Robert

Sparkler Grand Exit:

Finally, check out this lovely lovely video by Digs Studio.

Donya+Robert from Digs Studio- Jason Roberts on Vimeo.

Wedding Planner: Green Orchid Events
Venue: Reflection Bay, Lake Las Vegas
Photography/Cinematography: Digs Studio
Floral Designer: Naakiti Floral Design
Yacht: Lady of the Lake, Lake Las Vegas Marina
Gondola: Gondola Adventures
Officiant: Bride’s uncle – Jerry James
Ceremony Music: Duo Mystique, Mountain Top Choir and Band provided by Carla Marrero of Marketing Revolution
DJ: Good Vibrations DJs
Ribbon Dancers: Karin Lawson of KAML Enterprises, LLC
Wedding Painter: Sam Day
Wedding Cake: Tiers of Joy
Chocolate Fountain: Eternally Chocolate
Ice Sculpture: Ice Occasions
Makeup: Makeup in the 702
Transportation: National Transportation Service

Donya and Robert are heading out on a lovely honeymoon in August to Rio de Janeiro!

Two weeks before the wedding, the bride ask me if I knew of an artist to paint the scene of her wedding. Her inspiration: personalized M&M candies with their faces on them.  Somehow the purchase of these personalized M&M candies prompted her to think about having someone paint her wedding live.

Thank you to Andy Ebon for referring the awesomely talented Sam Day to us (via Facebook)! On a side note, please check out Andy’s post on The Art of the Virtual Referral.

Enjoy Sam’s interview:

Name: Sam Day
Location: Seattle
Company Name: The business license still says Sam Day – Illustrator
Number of Years in Business: Since ’92 as an illustrator, since ’04 as a wedding painter
Website: www.samday.com
Blog: www.samdayweddingpainter.blogspot.com

How did you get started in wedding/event painting?
A groom called me a week before his wedding, saying he had a great idea for a gift for his bride. He actually made 75 phone calls looking for someone willing to do it. A professor at the University of Washington told him he would not be able to find anyone who could paint that fast. I took that as a dare.

What did you do prior to this?
I’ve done everything from storyboards for advertising to cartoons for Readers’ Digest.

If you didn’t do wedding/event painting for a living what would you be doing instead? I’ve got some grand manner paintings in progress in the studio.

What are some of your hobbies? Open water swimming, singing tenor in the church choir, trying to teach my golden retriever to fetch under water.

What is the craziest wedding experience you’ve ever had? That would be the time the groom got into a knock down fight with his mother in law.

What is the best wedding experience you’ve ever had? My own.

What is your inspiration? Lately, the Russian painter Ilya Repin. He could paint a whole crowd in real time, and every brush stroke was perfect.

Name an exotic location you’d like to visit soon. Thailand.

Why do your clients choose you over some of your competitors? In the amount of time allotted to paint a wedding, my competitors and I all struggle to get more detail than mere stick figures. My clients often express amazement that I can produce a likeness if not of every guest, at least of the bride and groom. (I owe this to 20 years of doing caricatures in under a minute apiece.) I also keep hearing them say the result reminds them of Renoir.

What is the best piece of advice you can offer a bride and groom on their wedding day?
Accept each others’ flaws, and express gratitude and praise for each other daily.

Anything else interesting you’d like to share? I intend to get a lot better at this over time.

Donya & Robert’s wedding paintings:

Thank you to Digs Studio for capturing these beautiful images:

We were less than two weeks away from the wedding so the bride made a quick decision and decided to hire Sam Day.  I’m thrilled!  Tomorrow is the big day and I can’t for Digs Studio to capture all the lovely details so that I can share them with you all!