Why this blind bride had her guests wear blindfolds during her wedding ceremony
A bride requested her guests wear blindfolds on her wedding day for a very special reason.
Stephanie Campbell, 32, told "Good Morning America" that at the age of 19 she was diagnosed with cone-rod dystrophy, a group of related eye disorders that cause vision loss.
"By the time I was 29 I had no useful vision left," Stephanie told "GMA."
On Nov. 25, she married Robert Campbell in an outdoor ceremony in Maleny, Australia. During the couple's nuptials, Stephanie asked her friends and family to cover their eyes with blindfolds as she walked down the aisle. She wanted her loved ones to experience the moment just as she was experiencing it herself.
"It also meant that everyone was completely present," Stephanie noted.
The powerful moment was captured on video by Shaun and T.J. Tolhoek of Lemon Tree Film House, a film and photography company in Australia.
"We weren't just there to capture their wedding day -- we had to make sure that Steph, this incredible, courageous and inspiring woman, could experience the day itself and the film we create as fully as those that still have their sight," Shaun and T.J. Tolhoek told "GMA."
Lemon Tree Film House helped come up with ways to make the Campbell wedding day a "whole sensory experience" so the guests would be fully immersed in hearing Stephanie and Rob's wedding vows.
"It worked, you could have heard a pin drop as everyone was so 'present' and Steph got to know that in that moment, everyone was right by her side," Shaun and T.J. Tolhoek said.
As for when Stephanie walked down the aisle, Shaun and T.J. Tolhoek said it was unlike any other moment they've seen between a bride and groom.
"Here was Steph looking so stunning that she took Rob’s breath away and yet she couldn’t see her own beauty nor Rob’s expression of complete adoration herself," they explained. "It’s humbling. It’s powerful. It’s love."
Stephanie said she and Rob are looking forward to relocating from Melbourne to the Sunshine Coast to be closer to family, live the beach lifestyle and start a family of their own.
