We’ll admit it. We are super duper excited to watch The Hunger Games. Would March 23, 2012 get here already? I feel like we might need to take the day off of work to watch it. Any one else as obsessed as we are? If you have not read the books, hurry up! This amazing team put together an idea of what Katniss and Peeta’s wedding may be like if they were to be married.
There have to be a few die-hard fans out there that are going to enjoy a little Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration. The story behind the shoot is so sweet that you must read on. There is so much more to see in the full gallery. All beautifully captured by Vancouver Island, Bristish Columbia wedding photographer Courtney Clarke Photography.
From Courtney Clarke Photography:
Last summer I had the honor of photographing Lindsay Archdekin (she did the makeup in this shoot) wedding in Victoria, BC. Lindsay is an amazing woman and happens to also be an incredibly talented make up artist!
During the months leading up to her wedding, I learned that she and her fiancé had read the Hunger Games series together (out loud! So cute!) and when they reached the third book, he had glued the pages together, cut out a secret compartment for an engagement ring, and proposed! So, I decided to start reading the series before their wedding and am I ever glad I did! I fell in love with the stories and at our next coffee date, Lindsay and I decided we MUST plan a styled shoot inspired by the books!
Erica Smolders of Rook & Rose Floral Design BoutiqueBoutique was the next talented professional to come on board and started reading the books right away to get a sense of the story. Not only did Erica create the loveliest of floral designs for the shoot, but she took on the huge task of designing our entire table – complete with food! This woman is so knowledgeable in her craft and her vision for the table, food, and floral design completely wowed me! We couldn’t have asked for a better fit for this aspect of the shoot!
Once Lindsay and Erica had agreed to be a part of the project, I created an inspiration board and suddenly the number of amazing women contributing to the shoot quickly started adding up: Jill McQuary modelling as Katniss, Rachel Broughton assisting with photography, Danielle Bennett styling the hair, Joann Lee designing the custom stationery, Emily of Blush Bridal Boutique providing bridal gowns, Leanne McKeachie Design sourcing furniture for us, Khloe Campbell styling the models with Whitney Buczkowski assisting, and Grace modelling as Prim. Thank you to each professional who put their time and heart into this shoot – the group was amazing and with everyone’s talents combined we were able to create something even more incredible than what I could have dreamed on my own! Additional thanks must be given to my husband and my Dad for helping cart all the furniture and props out to a beautiful field to set everything up for us and to my Mom, who kept everyone well-fed during the day of the shoot!
With so many talented professionals involved, we created a private Facebook group to keep everything coordinated and over the span of a month, we were ready for the shoot, which thankfully for our brave models, took place on a somewhat mild day in Victoria, British Columbia. By the time the shoot arrived almost every person on our large team had either started reading or had completely finished reading the Hunger Games series. We’re all looking forward to the movie’s release and are especially excited to see the release of these images with The Wedding Chicks so we don’t have to keep this project a secret anymore! Thank you for featuring our shoot! Umm… No Thank you for your beautiful work and inspiring us with a little Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration.
The food at this shoot was amazing and really reflects that first meal on the train. To Start: A Fruit & Nut Platter and a Garden Salad. Entree: Spinach pasta noodle, savory red curry, curried lamb, and rosemary roasted duck breast. Sides: an assortment of fresh artisan breads and rolls, steamed jasmine and wild rice and creamy butter and chive potato mash. Desserts: White chocolate and orange wedding cake, and cinnamon bread pudding. Now that is a Hunger Games feast. Prepared and styled by Erica Smolders & Ellie Chapple of Rook & Rose Floral Design Boutique.
Photographer: Courtney Clarke Photography
Makeup: Lindsay Archdekin
Hair: Danielle Bennett
Cake: Ooh La La Cupcakes
Dress Designer: Pronovias
Flowers: Erica Smolders of Rook & Rose Floral Design Boutique
Stationery: Joann Lee of TingTing Paperie
Photographer Assistant: Rachel Broughton
Furniture Sourcing: Leanne McKeachie Design
Model (Katniss): Jill McQuary
Model (Prim): Grace with Coultish Management
Table & Food Styling: Erica Smolders & Ellie Chapple of Rook & Rose Floral Design Boutique
Bridal gowns provided by Blush Bridal Boutique
Stylist: Khloe Campbell
Stylist Assistant: Whitney Buczkowski
Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration: We’ll admit it. We are super duper excited to watch The Hunger Games. Would Ma… http://t.co/nHrcg1Qb
Be still MY HEART! @this_courtney
@rookandrose @JillMcQuary @OohLaLaCupcakes @blushvictoria @joannlee_ @NOWboutique http://t.co/knNlmWUp
Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration http://t.co/BByQv6Yy
a hunger games themed wedding http://t.co/ELkhlsdt @shrinkinggretch I thought you would want to see this!!
Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration: We’ll admit it. We are super duper excited to watch The Hunger Games…. http://t.co/KwG4nXEG #wedding
I knew this was bound to happen. And I like it. RT @weddingchicks: Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration http://t.co/5iSETbxi
As HUGE fans of the book series ‘The Hunger Games’ .. we are a bit obsessed with this > http://t.co/YthI5r3S via @WeddingChicks #wedding
OBSESSED!!!!! Such a great book series to use as inspiration … we can’t wait for the movies!!
XO
Style Unveiled | Heather & Kimberly
@arinnoble i just found your (future) wedding inspiration http://t.co/3FR51XA7
A #HungerGames inspired wedding shoot? YES PLEASE. http://t.co/pHx275V6
so proud of my friend @this_courtney – girl you rocked this shoot! “@weddingchicks: Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration http://t.co/tS2lp6ft“
Check this lovely shoot a group of local talented women made happen Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration http://t.co/Qz4ftzjc via @WeddingChicks
My gf @jillmcquary got featured! whoop whoop. Hunger Games Wedding Inspiration http://t.co/O3DlCVT5 via @WeddingChicks
This is absolutely gorgeous. Haven’t seen this theme yet, and I love it! The bow and arrow is such a beautiful touch.
Oh my god, this is the most amazing thing EVER!! It’s just so beautiful and so fitting. I love it! Well done to everyone involved.
Absolutely love this shoot! So creative and so amazing! And that cake is out of this world!
unbelievable Courtney (and company!!) fantastic job, that dinner table is perfect!!
Love the rich colours against the amber autumnal backdrop.
So beautiful and creative. I love this whole shoot.
I absolutely LOVE this. a lot!! great work!
Thank you Wedding Chicks for featuring our Hunger Games wedding shoot! We could not have had a better team (or blog to feature these images with!).
So exciting to see this! Can’t wait to see the movie. Honored to have been asked to help out with this project and with all these amazing professionals… and congrats Courtney… Wowza!
Stunning!!! The entire concept to images are perfect. Gorgeous job ladies!!
Courtney. It turned out Fabulous. I love it. I haven’t read the books, as I’m waiting for the movie…does this mean she doesn’t kill him…No don’t tell me.
The pictures are beautiful. The food all looks so yummy. I love that the trees are bare of their leaves. It’s a great setting.
This must have taken a ton of work and preparation. Congrats!
Oh wow! Not only is the Hunger Games book series my favourite, but then my favourite photography Courtney Clarke shoots these amazing Hunger Games inspired images! What could be better! Great job Courtney (and team), these pictures are stunning!
Over the top fantastic! I love all the little details. “Katniss” and that braid…stunning!
Very well done.
So, obviously I’m in the minority, but what about children killing children equals wedding inspiration?
And where’s the groom??
Absolutely stunning photography and such a fun idea!!! Thanks for sharing!
so fun, they totally created the “bountiful feast” i was picturing in my head as i read the book!
Perfect down to every last detail!
Congrats Courtney! So proud of you girl! Looks amazing!! xo
Fabulous styling!!
Incredible! The details are so true to the book!
I loved the books too but if it was a Hunger Games wedding it would be in a bland dress… Unless this is the staged event, then this is understated… That being said, it’s very pretty.
Well done every one involved! So happy to see so many women’s work I love, come together so well!
I am so thankful to have been part of such an amazing group of women who put together this shoot! What an honour to have a feature on the Wedding Chicks blog. Thank you to my husband who gave us the inspiration in the first place!
I love how everything turned out and am so grateful to have been a part of this amazing project with so many talented women and featured on an amazing blog. Woohoo (happy dance)
Love Archery. This feels so British during the times of Robin-Hood like :)
absolutely beautiful!! I love the photos and the brides hair is amazing!!!! so ethereal!
What a fabulous marriage of industry professionals! Blush was thrilled to be a part of this project, and it was truly a pleasure to work with Courtney…
Her enthusiasm and fresh ideas show!
This is so sweet! I love everything about this shoot and their engagement story is darling!
This is so lovely!
GORGEOUS!!!
Fantastic photo shoot! I’m currently enjoying the Hunger Games -so much that I rushed out to buy the 2nd and 3rd books before I’ve even finished the first!
I think you totally missed the point the author was making in these books.
This is gorgeous!! It definitely brings to mind the shoot in Catching Fire.
I would like to modestly point out several things wrong with this photo shoot.
1. When Katniss formally married Peeta, Prim was deceased. She could not have been at the wedding.
2. The dates on the invitations are not in key with the date settings of the books. Although an exact date is not given, it is noted at one point that a character has built a music chip the size of a gold glitter piece, so we do know this much about the setting. At the rate of our growing technology, combined with the 75 years that the capitol has been performing the Hunger Games, and modestly adding some time onto that with the notation that one character notes in the last book that they have been taught about a form of ruling called a “Democracy” which the country in the great, distant past had used (This being the ruins of a former North America), we can assume that the books are at least two hundred years old.
3. Even for Katniss, who is a Victor, the amount of food and the selections on the menu are very lavish, and do not match Katniss and her personality from growing up in near starvation all of her life. In the epilogue of the book, it clearly denotes that even twenty years after the games Katniss still acts and feels like she did when the Hunger Games were still around, which implies that she is not lavish in any way and does not waste. The cake is acceptable, but the number of dishes does not fit logic.
4. Although I agree wholly of the invitation design fitting the setting and that feeling alright, everything else has a more vintage and unrealistic view, considering how far into the future the books are written from. I don’t believe they are still using oil for lights that far into the future.
I do love the photos though, out of context from the connection of the full details of the book and just as a Hunger Games inspiration, they are wonderful and absolutely delightful.
Wow “jenna” spoiler alert much!!! I’m glad after your super-fan rant you finally realized this styled shoot was only “inspired” by the books. Personally I don’t see anything wrong with this lovely and idealistic interpretation.
I only wanted to read the comments because I was excited for the movie – now I’ve just had the last 2 books ruined for me. Thanks a lot Jenna.
@Britney
I didn’t say anything negative about the aspects of the photos, the technical and aesthetic points of them. I was only pointing out that if they were to be considered direct relations to the books, there were key features that were wrong to them. I did notate that aside from those points being wrong, they are delightful and wonderful photos. As being said, I am very geeky and am very on key about fandom things.
@Michelle I hate to break it to you but my spoiler was a grand .01 percent of the last two books. There is a lot more to them than that. And I would think it silly to read Hunger Games comments and not expect someone to give out a spoiler or two (I saw a couple of other spoilers in the comments). But I give you props. You are at least reading the books – I saw several Harry Potter “fans” who were made about people giving away “spoilers” to the movies that hadn’t come out… From books that had been published for several years. Lots of people don’t even bother to read the books. And I’m not being sarcastic… I really did give away a grand .01 percent of the books. There is so much more to them that makes them worth reading and re-reading.
This shoot makes me want to read the books!!
@Jenna
This is not a fan site where people expect any spoilers regarding the books, the respectful thing to do at the very least is begin your post with SPOILER ALERT! There are people like me who have become a huge fan of the first book and may not be finished with the remainder of the story. Even if you think it is .01% of the story it is enough to ruin the UNKNOWN for readers who have not finished the books. Put yourself in our place, would you have wanted to know that detail before you got to that point in the story.
Love the photo shoot that was inspired by The Hunger Games. I love that braid!
Love love love!!! Love the details! Thanks for posting! – Jessica
This one’s a beautiful bride! :) I love her eyes and hair style :D And yes, those cupcakes look adorable and exciting to eat! :D
Simply amazing! Love each and every detail and the colors are so rich and lovely!
please, PLEASE warn your readers that this shoot contains a MAJOR spoiler for people who have not yet finished the books! I know so many friends who would be devastated if they saw those images before finishing the third book. The shoot is simply gorgeous! But please, for the love of Hunger Games, warn us about the spoiler!
I can’t believe there are women who want to base their wedding on a children’s book. This is just as ridiculous as the Twilight idiots out there.
beautiful ;)
absolutely beautiful!!!
I urge the wedding chicks to put a spoiler alert in the header. I am only on chapter 9 of book 1 so I didn’t really put everything together….then several comments spoil the plot. It doesn’t bother me but I know it would (and has) upset some others who enjoy the element of surprise.
Perhaps the wedding chicks can post a warning above the comment section so they don’t ruin their page header?
Regardless, the photos are gorgeous and that CAKE!! oh mah’ word!
Geez guys, post a spoiler alert up front for the folks who haven’t finished the third book!!!!!
Out of all the styled shoots that has been done for this movie “The Hunger Games” this one represents the movie by far the best way. Love it :) Photos are amazing, Details are wonderful.. congratulations to a successful shoot.
@jenna The post never actually said that it was meant to reflect the events of the third book. It only says that it is an idea of what Katniss and Peeta’s wedding would be like if they were to marry. This shoot is obviously based solely on the first book.
Please don’t go around spoiling the books for others.
OMG! I’m totally inspired to base my wedding on “Angela’s Ashes” or “1984″ now!!!
OMG…not a follower of this movie or book but would mind seeing the movie. I absolutely love how you brought the illustration of a book to life. Love this photo shoot. Thanks, pinning to create a Hunger Wedding catergory.
I hate how the Wedding industry – online magazines and such – are trying to capitalize on the Hunger Games franchise. It’s a series about starvation and slaughter, not exactly the most auspicious of themes you’d want to base your wedding on.
And is actually kind of insulting to it and the very core of it’s message, if you wanna think deep about it. Katniss showed us how stupid and vapid she felt the Capitol’s spoilt lavishness was, and then people go ahead and create a wedding theme that would, in practise, cost some money, all because we as a society have the luxury to do so.
Beautiful photos, but so jarring next to the source. Especially with the little girl.
For all those complaining about spoilers. You are all stupid. Get a life and stop cheapening the shoot itself. If you dint read it, why are you here. Seriously…
Lovely photos, i love the brides hair in that gorgeous plait so pretty!
Definitely a nice theme, however, I’m not sure if someone would pull this off on their own wedding, if ever.
Beautiful photos, but so jarring next to the source. Especially with the little girl.
PS : I love the cake.
Such a great idea ! The shoot looks gorgeous. Pretty much how I would have imagined it ! (:
Incredible shoot by Courtney Clarke….
I love the hunger games wedding cake, It’s sooooo funny