Industry News


Couple Has a “Sad-lebration” of Postponed Wedding with Fast Food Photo Shoot

September 4, 2020

By Jacqueline Tobin

As COVID-19 continues to decimate the wedding industry with endless wedding postponements, cancellations and much smaller weddings (with much smaller budgets), photographers and wedding couples alike are trying to adapt. After having to move their August 29, 2020 wedding to 2021, Temple, Texas, couple Alexz Siprian and Danny Martinez embraced their sorrows during a “sad-lebration” fast food photo shoot at their local Whataburger—photographed by Mary Carmichael, owner of South Oak Photography.

Couple mourns postponed wedding
All Photos © South Oak Photography

The couple wore black (to signify being in mourning), were given Whataburger face masks by the restaurant, and fed each other French fries and snuggled up together in a booth. They also posed for images outside the restaurant, which happens to be a sentimental spot for them, one where they first shared a meal.

As for Mary Carmichael, she was mourning the date postponement as well, since she was scheduled to photograph their wedding on its original date of 8/29/2020. “I will still shoot their wedding—now moved to May 2021— but this shoot was a way to help the couple do something fun on their should- have-been wedding day,” she explains. “Instead of having just a sad memory of the day, now they have this fun gallery of photos to celebrate their love. And for me it was a way to have a creative moment and make some art while processing my sadness. It has been a real struggle this year business-wise. Plus, I love my couples and hurt with them in this time.”

Carmichael had already photographed the couple’s engagement photos in March, right when talk of the stay-at-home order for their smaller county was circulating. “Once the order was in place, bride Alexz and I messaged a lot over those next few months. Since they didn’t want to un-invite any of their loved ones, they decided to postpone and of course were devastated. I told her, ‘Hey if you guys want to do a screw corona shoot on that day just let me know, I don’t even care what it is, let’s just do whatever comes to mind!’ Alexz and I talked through many ideas on locations and outfits, then her and Danny talked a lot and this just kind of fell together perfectly!”

Since taking place, the Whataburger shoot has generated a ton of publicity for the couple, the photographer and the restaurant. “In the late afternoon after the shoot, I got home and got a handful of images edited for them and that evening Danny posted the, on his Facebook page first and then I posted them on my business page just after that,” says Carmichael. “By Sunday afternoon our local news station reached out and the first news clip happened Sunday on the evening news! Monday morning we had a San Antonio newspaper reach out, which shared the story with an affiliate in Laredo.” By Tuesday morning Fox News reached out which is when, Carmichael says, they realized the shoot had “really gained some traction.”

It was a welcome respite for all involved, says Carmichael, especially since the pandemic has really taken a toll on her business this year. “January seemed to be off to a great start and then everything just halted,” she says. “So this was a bit of fun in these tough times, that’s for sure. Alexz and Danny are some of the best people and I’m so glad because they deserve all the love.”