Molly + Nick // New Philadelphia Wedding (Part II)
Click here or scroll down for Part One. Last week Mindy brought you Part One of Molly + Nick's wedding. Now it's my turn. I wish I could've brought this to you a little sooner, but it's been insane around here lately. Prime wedding season, engagement sessions, and vacation coming up... it's been nuts. All good things, because it means we're busy, but I can say for sure that we cannot wait for our trip to the Outer Banks this coming weekend.
Where do I even start with Molly + Nick? Well, how about at the beginning... Molly heard about us from a friend of hers who had gotten married last fall. The best part is that her friend didn't even have us as her photographers. We were already booked when she asked us, so we had to refer her to some of our friends. Despite that, she sent Molly our way, and thus began the long journey of booking these guys. Let's just say that Molly is picky. Like, REALLY picky. And she asked us about anything and everything except maybe our social security numbers. Some people might think this was annoying, but it was quite the opposite. You see, I could tell Molly knew what she wanted, and that she wasn't going to settle for second best. We went back and forth, and in the end she agreed that we were the right fit for them, but I think there was still some hesitation somewhere.
And that lasted until we did their engagement session. We've talked a lot on here lately about our process. We like to meet couples up front, and we include an engagement session with every wedding. I know I've said it before, but we have a purpose behind almost everything we do, and Molly was a perfect example of the trust that we build with our couples at the engagement session. She was so thrilled with her photos, and sent me a million emails about how thankful she was and how she couldn't believe she ever had second thoughts, and how we were "the real deal."
So you can imagine, that come the wedding day, her and Nick were both so excited. They had planned this day for so long, and on top of all of the details, they had photographers they could trust and that they felt totally comfortable with. We worked very closely with Molly to develop a great schedule, which gave us plenty of time to get some really stunning photos. (Also, I can't forget to mention that Molly ended up taking my advice and had Brett and Drew from Timeless Pictures come to do their wedding video. Those guys are brilliant, and we really feed off of their energy and creativity)
Alright, on to what you've been waiting for. I'm so happy with these, but I have to admit, I think Mindy might have given me a lesson this round, her pictures are absolutely amazing. You'll probably notice pretty quickly that Mindy spends time with the ladies while they get ready, and that frees me up to go spend some time with the guys. In this case, a quick round of golf!
This could be one of my favorite frames ever. The guys were all set up in this crazy football formation, and they said, "let's pose like we're chasing Nick with the ball." We tried it, and it just looked lame. So I said, "Why do you guys go back there about 100 feet and actually chase him?" Boom.
Loving the lines on this garage door!
After the ceremony we headed over the to reception hall, which was ridiculously amazing, but we had to sneak out and grab some shots before the sun set. Mindy said it perfectly, these guys just fell into place. None of these shots were posed, what you're seeing here is real, natural love. And they have it by the truckload.
Okay, I lied. This next shot was kind of posed. Brett (one of the videographers) asked Molly to run into Nick's arms and spin around. That was all he said, and they ended up doing this. It's also my favorite frame of the day.
Yes, the groomsmen picked Molly up and were throwing her in the air. Priceless!
And finally...
Molly + Nick // New Philadelphia, Ohio // June 25, 2011
Flowers: Forget Me Knot
Dress: Dreams to Realities Bridal
Suits: Robert's Mens Shop
Cake: Litty's Cakes & Cookies (Best cake of the year so far!)
Ceremony: First Baptist Church of New Philadelphia
Reception: Kent State University Performing Arts Center
Caterer: Trax Diner
Videographers: Timeless Pictures
And I have to throw one more shout out to our friends Brett and Drew from Timeless Pictures. These guys are so awesome to work with, and their wedding films are first class all the way. Keep an eye on this post, I'll be linking their video here once they have it finished!
Molly + Nick // New Philadelphia Wedding (Part I)
I'm so excited to about the new changes to our website and to be sharing on the blog with you all! You'll be seeing a lot more of me around here. I'm also pumped to be sharing Molly + Nick's wedding with you. It turned out to be the perfect day. It's been insanely hot here in Ohio but this weekend it was perfect and rain free! We even had a chance to go out during dinner and take some beautiful sunset photos. Molly + Nick are a couple anyone could fall in love with. They are full of so much love for each other, their family and friends (which they have a ton!), and Jesus. They are the perfect example of why we love building relationships with our clients that will last past their wedding. When we truly connect with a couple it shows, they are more comfortable throughout the day, and the result is the ability to capture beautiful, natural photos. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your day, Cameron and I are excited to be calling you guys friends and neighbors!
One of my favorite parts of the day is bonding with the girls while they get all pretty. I love getting to know all the bridesmaids and learning why they are so special to the bride. Ashley is one of those college friends you have for life. Cassie is a beautiful person inside and out. Annie is a sweet childhood friend. Morgan and Ali can bust out some amazing songs spur-of-the-moment. Katie, Molly's sister and maid of honor, was referred to as Pippa all day, and she fulfilled that roll well. Calli had a cute southern accent. There was laughter and tears and more laughter all day long. These girls were such a great group of bridesmaids, and I now know why Molly calls them her closest friends.
Don't you just love couples that naturally fall into place, that don't require direction?! Talk about a couple who is perfectly comfortable with each other, even when there's a paparazzi surrounding them!
Joyce + Tom :: PART II :: St. Louis Wedding Photography
Part Two.
After the Chinese Tea Ceremony Joyce and Tom and their wedding ceremony at North County Community Church. After the ceremony we took the bridal party downtown for photos, and the light was just beautiful. We always love doing portraits just before sunset because the sunlight is soft, warm and just creamy!
The reception was at the Mandarin House, and they served a traditional 10 course Chinese meal. They had everything from deep fried shrimp to duck. Joyce changed back into her Chinese dress and they went around to each table and did a toast with all of their guests. It was really neat to hear individual guests share their love and congratulations with the couple.
Enjoy!
Seriously, how cool is this wall!?!
Brittany + Ben :: Kentucky Wedding Photography
If we had a “Wedding of the Year” award, Brittany and Ben’s beautiful Kentucky wedding would be one of the front runners, for sure. They chose to get married at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Paducah, Kentucky, despite the fact that Brittany’s dad is a pastor at a church less than 20 miles away. It’s not hard to see why! Immanuel is one of the biggest, most beautiful southern churches I’ve had the pleasure of seeing. Luckily, her dad’s church made a great reception location!
Brittany has been a friend of Mindy and myself since back when we all attended Cedarville. She’s just one of those special girls that makes friends with everyone she meets. She’s so grounded in her faith, but knows how to have a good time. She’s a woman that I really respect, and so we had some reservations about Ben. We met him at the rehearsal on Friday night, and it took about 30 seconds to dispel those feelings. His dad said (during his toast) that Ben has never met a stranger. He’s a magnetic person, and people are just drawn to him. We could tell that Brittany and Ben were perfect for each other when we realized that they each had ten (10!) bridesmaids and groomsmen, and then Ben had another four ushers.
The best part about their wedding was their focus on getting great photography. Brittany and I worked together to build a wedding day schedule that allowed for flexibility and quite simply a lot of time. Mindy and I love to work closely with our couples to create a schedule that really allows us the time to capture work that we’re proud of and that will hopefully blow you away. We started with their First Look and then quickly wrapped up formal family portraits. Then we all headed out to downtown Paducah for over 2 hours of bridal and party portraits. We honestly couldn’t have asked for anything better.
Let’s get to it. Check out that sanctuary and the huge bridal party!
Florist: Basket Case Florist
Dress: Bridal Mart
Menswear: Men’s Wearhouse
Caterer: Pam Mathis
Cake: Cakes By Design
Salon: Spalon 62
DJ: Garrett Locklear
Videographer: LifeStage Films
Speaking of videographers… I thought you’d all like to see the highlights video they put together for Brittany and Ben. LifeStage Films was wonderful to work with, and we’d highly recommend them if you’re looking for a little more than a typical wedding video. Not much I can say other than check out the work!