A Working DC Trip

I hadn’t been in Washington, DC in many years, close to 20 I believe. My niece lives there, she teaches at George Washington University and her new wife works at American University. I went to photograph their wedding last week, a beautiful ceremony in a park in Maryland. They’d had a special “signing” ceremony in front of the White House the evening before, and I had the opportunity to cover that as well.

I don’t really photograph many weddings these days. I only accept very small weddings, and by “small,” I mean less than 100 guests, wedding and reception in the same location, and only requiring less than four hours of coverage. This wedding fit very nicely into those parameters, and I was honored to be a part of it.

Of course, getting the opportunity to visit DC with other family members was a bonus, so many of us conspired ahead of time to arrive a few days early and do a bit of sight-seeing while we were there.

A traditional “hand-wrapping” ritual during the wedding ceremony.

Congratulations to my niece, Meghan, and her new bride, Katie!

This is but a small part of the Newsome/Schnurr/Wicker/Foster/Johnson Family, strolling from the WWII Memorial on The Mall, towards the Holocaust Museum. My iPhone tells me we put in about 15,000 steps that day.

The Washington Monument was closed, but just seeing it from the outside is still quite impressive.

The Jefferson Memorial is equally impressive, and some of his most famous writings are inscribed on the walls inside.

The Lincoln Memorial, from inside on the left, gives you a better perspective of the size of this monument. Far larger than Hollywood would have you believe!

The Vietnam Memorial Wall. When I was in the seventh grade (1968), a classmate of mine, Tommy Baptiste’s older brother, Michael B. Baptiste, gave his life in Vietnam. I remember it well, because it was during a football pep rally that the head coach made the announcement to the school, as he was introducing Tommy as part of the starting lineup. RIP, Michael, and Thank you for your sacrifice, sir.

The WWII Memorial is large and very informative, as it takes you on a chronological journey of the highlights of the war, through famous quotes of the leaders of the day.

The White House is probably one of the most photographed buildings in the world. I found myself fascinated with the activity on the roof by the Secret Service and White House guards. All you need to see is that triangle to know it’s the White House anyway, right?

Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Arlington National Cemetery.

A Michigan Honor Flight delivered these WWII and Korean War Veterans to attend a ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery.

Four of the five Newsome siblings, from left to right… Brian Newsome, Victoria Gowan, Pamela Schnurr, and myself, Kevin Newsome. Unable to attend, was my youngest brother, Alan Newsome.