In Which the Marriage Equality Wedding Contest Gets Even Bigger, Better

You guys! Award winning photographer, Robin Roemer, was so excited about gaymos and lesbos being able to legally bind their finances and lives to another human as god intended that she is sponsoring a contest to give away $4,000 worth of her mad skillz – a photography package that includes wedding coverage, image editing, an online gallery and a DVD of high-resolution images, plus words about you and your beloved on Autostraddle.com.

As if that wasn’t awesome enough, word has gotten out, the lesbian phone tree has been activated, Paul Revere has ridden through the streets of Chelsea to warn the British that gays will be marrying (at least that’s what Sarah Palin told me) and other generous and beautiful business owners have volunteered their services / wares as well! Now in addition to all the great things Robin has in store the cache of goodies has grown to include:


+ A personalized wedding ceremony valued at $850-$1,000 provided by Elizabeth Phaire, Life-Cycle Celebrant & Wedding Officiant.


+ A signed copy of the book, The Green Bride Guide: How to Create an Earth-Friendly Wedding on Any Budget by Kate L. Harrison.

+ A gift certificate for a $250 shopping spree to Green Bride Guide’s Green Wedding Registry.

If you’re a wedding vendor offering services other than photography and want to participate, feel free to email Robin at Robin@autostraddle.com. We would love to include you in this giveaway!

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Bren

Bren has written 80 articles for us.

40 Comments

  1. This is so awesome! It’s like an episode of Oprah where she gives a bunch of shit away just for being there. If the next addition is Melissa Etheridge as the wedding singer I will call shenanigans.

    IF ONLY I HAD A SIGNIFICANT OTHER.

  3. What do you guys think, though, about questioning the whole wedding industrial complex here?

    • Yes, let’s question it all over the place! Ugh. I salute you for the phrase “wedding industrial complex.” It just smacks of consumerism, perhaps the worst kind.
      I mean, if some people are genuinely excited about all that stuff, go for it, I guess. But you don’t HAVE to have all that stuff to get married, celebrate your love, etc.

      • But no one said you HAVE to have anything AT ALL to get married. This is not what this is about.
        These people that work with the “wedding industrial complex” are being generous and kind enough to donate their time and resources to celebrate the fact that Marriage Equality has come to New York.
        It’s seriously good karma here.
        Thank you Robin, Elizabeth, Kate and Green Bride for such a lovely gesture and cheers to all of the couples who choose to tie the knot.

      • I’m reading this as being extremely sarcastic. It’s the only way to keep my head from exploding.

    • I really don’t think an awesome, gay-friendly photographer, an officiant, and a book about being earth-friendly should count as “wedding industrial complex.” One of those things is like the only thing that IS necessary to have a wedding, another is just so you can show your kids, and the third is a pretty cool and fairly new/alternative idea.

      • Yeah, I see what you’re saying, and I recognize there is a whole subindustry of ‘alternative’ (i.e. more eco-friendly, feminist, etc.) weddings now. But I still read the “worth $___” and can’t help but think “Well, shit. As if we spend that kind of cash on stuff like this.” People can do whatever they want with their money, of course, but, when it is on a wedding I think you can’t help but recognize its inextricable link to capitalism, patriarchy, yada yada yada, and as queer couples entering the institution maybe we can do something to subvert that.

        • Well, it’s a contest and those who choose to enter are gonna want to know the specifics of the prize as this is likely one of, if not THE, most important day of their life. So is the photo package the $100 deal your Uncle Arthur could do? Or is it a super awesome professional $4000 dealio? These are questions they’ll want to know.

          Also, I’m sure the various business owners have different levels of services…X dollars gets you this service, Y dollars gets you that service, etc. So, from a business standpoint, they need to specify what level of service that the winner could expect.

          Also, Also, all the business owners involved are women so supporting and patronizing their companies sort of severs the patriarchy link. Right?

          • it’s great to see ladies making nice things happen for other ladies who want to bond themselves in a newly accessible legal manner.

            i would like to point out, however, that the fact that these businesses are owned by women does not really mean that they are inherently subverting “the patriarchy,” which is not just a system constructed by men but also by class, race, education, etc.  for example, a “green wedding” sounds like thought-speak for the fad of consumerist environmentalism that encourages people to buy things to support the environment instead of protesting the economic systems and lack of regulations that are really creating these issues. that sounds like buying into the patriarchy to me and is maybe what some of the above posters have been trying to get at.

    • Well, here’s the rub.

      I do think marriage is buying into privilege. It would be nice to universalize access to the kinds of things like healthcare/tax/inheritance and gobs and gobs of other benefits that you only get by choosing to structure your relationship in this kind of narrow, socially sanctioned, highly capitalistic way. That would be infinitely better in my eyes.

      That said, if I have friends who want to get married, I’ll be happy for them. And if generous people want to celebrate that homos at least have the option to assimilate by giving away stuff, cool.

  5. re: “the whole wedding industrial complex” – I get it. I do. I mean, I personally don’t feel the need / desire to get married. BUT for those who want to (and want to do it in style) – there’s this option. Like someone mentioned, it’s not “forced” by any means. YOU DO YOU y’know? I definitely think it’s a decent gesture from all who are donating their time/skills to fulfill someone else’s dream wedding. #HIGHFIVE

    In other news, I really really enjoyed the Sarah Palin gaffe reference…so relevant & not overdone at all.

  6. Is there a deadline to enter the contest? I want to enter, but we don’t have a date or location or anything yet. We just know we are going to get married!

    • July 25th is the deadline. Check out Robin’s original post for details.

      A direct quote from Robin in the comments of the original post:

      “I want you guys to know… you don’t need to having a big traditional wedding. IF you plan on getting hitched at some point before the end of 2012, if you are eloping, if you are open to different dates right now, you should still enter!”

  8. As the wearer of the rainbow dress I would like to point out a few things:

    1. This contest is lovely and the prizes are generous and delightful.
    2. Robin is amazing (see her make me and the wifelet look awesome here: http://robinroemer.com/krysta-and-laura).
    3. Your wedding day is YOURS. It’s not about subverting the patriarchy unless you want it to be. We went the subverting chocolate-centered party favors by offering skittles route instead.

    • Okay, so it’s embarrassing how much I like to look at wedding photos, and I am so impressed by how cute your rainbow dress is. It’s festive but still beautiful. Your wedding looks like it was so much fun!

  9. I love weddings so much. Anyone wanna get married and enter this contest? Ok cool.

    Anyway, if you feel uncomfortable with marriage and stuff, I’m thinking award winning photographer Robin Roemer would have no problem if you and your SSP (super special person, I made that up) were going the route of commitment ceremony and not marriage license. I think there are a lot of issues with marriage as an institution, but I recognize that at this point in time marriage is what secures legal rights for couples, and that is really important. So maybe you can pick, because in the end it’s your love that you’re celebrating and not the piece of paper. Right?

    • Oh wow … I hope so! I am going to enter the contest, but we aren’t getting legally married because we live in Georgia. I guess I just assumed our “commitment ceremony” would count. We’re calling it a wedding and acting like it’s a wedding so sometimes I forget it’s not *really* a wedding in the strictest sense of the term.

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