Atlantic Resort Newport Wedding | Shauna + Colin

Tamara Merri
Jun 2
4 min read

Shauna & Colin

couple walking towards camera after first dance at wedding reception with smoke around feet on dance floor

Welcome to Shauna and Colin's love story! While they're high school sweethearts, I first met Shauna and Colin while photographing their friend's Cam and Zoe's wedding (which I still have to blog, ah!). I was so excited for them when they got engaged and then reached out to have me photograph their wedding! It's such an honor to be trusted within friend groups and so much fun to be able to see a lot of the same people I've already met before! I had the opportunity to photograph their engagement session last year to get to know them better and meet their cutie son, Mason.

Atlantic Resort Newport Wedding

Their wedding was at The Atlantic Resort which is in the Wyndham Hotel in beautiful Newport, Rhode Island. They mentioned they liked this venue because while it is in Newport and near the water, it's not at the beach. It's also super nice that everything is in one spot; lawn ceremony, tented cocktail hour on the same lawn, then ballroom reception in the hotel. Plus, it's super close to Easton's beach and the Cliff Walk for guests to enjoy during their stay.

Colin got ready in his hotel room with his son, friends, and the dads while Shauna got ready in the bridal suite. She opted to just have her maid of honor and the moms present so that she could do a grand reveal of her bridal look to her bridesmaids. Their reaction was SO sweet you can tell they all have the best friendship! Then came the father daughter first look before ultimately the couple's first look together and then momma son first look!! ALL the first looks!

All week long the forecast said rain but then on the morning of their wedding day it was a dry day, but SUPER DUPER windy. I heard it got up to over 30 mph at some point throughout the day! Because of this they ultimately decided to switch their original plan from having their ceremony on the lawn and cocktail hour in the tent to an indoor option. Luckily, there are multiple ballrooms at the Atlantic Resort so the change of plans was no issue at all!

Atlantic Pavilion Wedding Ceremony

Plan A was to get married on the beautifully manicured lawn overlooking Green End Pond. When the weather didn't cooperate we had to move indoors. There are two ballrooms; Atlantic Pavilion and Easton's Pavilion. The staff worked quickly to reset their gorgeous floral arrangements from Cherryhill Floral and change signage to notify guests of the new ceremony location. The Atlantic Pavilion is downstairs adjacent to the lobby which made it super easy for guests to become aware of the change of plans! One entire wall of the Atlantic Pavilion room is windows which were decorated with white sheer curtains. Likewise, the other side of the ballroom had white sheer curtains as well to block off the larger reception area. What resulted was a romantic and etherial space for them to say their "I do's". Colin's aunt officiated their ceremony, they shared heartfelt personal vows, and after a short and sweet ceremony they were nothing but smiles coming back down the aisle as husband and wife. Their Atlantic Resort Newport Wedding was nothing short of perfect!

Cocktail hour in the Easton Pavilion

Instead of the tent cocktail hour as planned, they utilized the entry area to the Easton Pavilion. Similarly to the Atlantic Pavilion, the ballroom was partitioned with pretty white sheer curtains so that the guests could not yet see or access their reception area. There were multiple food options for guests to graze on including a charcuterie table, oyster area, and hot food station! The bar had personalized koozies as well as a signature drink sign that featured their pup, Simon. It was the perfect spot for guests to mingle while the wedding party took some photos in the now less windy lawn outside.

Newlywed Portraits

Shortly before the ceremony a quick rainstorm passed through which left the conditions more tame than earlier in the day. This allowed us to go outside and grab some portraits with the fading light. It was nice for everyone to enjoy the day and have some more space to move around and have fun for photos! Mason was a trooper and continued to steal the show with his cuteness!

Related Blog: Glen Manor House Wedding

Atlantic Resort's Easton Pavilion Wedding Reception

Their reception was in the upstairs Easton Pavilion which features dangling starlight that creates a romantic atmosphere while also enhancing the party vibe! Tables were donned with floating candles and impressive floral displays. They had giant light up letters of "The Joyals" which made for an amazing backdrop for their first dance! After intros, dances, speeches, and the cake cutting, the dance floor opened up and never stopped!! I'm so grateful to have been welcomed into Shauna and Colin's inner circle to tell their story. Eternally grateful I get to be immersed in love stories every week and be able to recap them in this way for family and friends to enjoy.