Megan + Paul - English Garden Wedding - Dayton Ohio
This one was special. These two are special.
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 I :: St. Louis Wedding Photography
Part One.
We always love being able to experience something different at our weddings. Change is what helps get the creative juices flowing, and always seems to make our jobs more exciting. Every wedding is unique, but Joyce and Tom’s wedding was something completely different for us.
We started the day bright and early (great time for photos by the way!) at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. You see, Joyce is Chinese. Tom is not. We had the huge honor of photographing not only their wedding ceremony, but also the traditional Chinese Tea Ceremony. Our first stop was the Chinese Garden, with beautiful morning light spilling over the trees onto an eastern landscape with Joyce and Tom in traditional Chinese attire. Joyce looked absolutely beautiful in her bright red dress!
The Chinese Tea Ceremony is a way for the family to give their blessing and show their approval of the spouse to be. Joyce and Tom presented a cup of tea to each family member, starting with Grandma and working their way through parents and then aunts and uncles. After accepting the tea from Joyce and then from Tom, the family members then gave the couple a gift. It was either jewelry or “lucky money”. Red is a symbol of luck in the Chinese culture, so the family would put money in red envelopes to wish the couple luck in their marriage. It was intimate and emotional, with only family and their closest friends surrounding the events.
We gotta admit, one of our favorite parts was the homemade Chinese food for lunch right after the ceremony… SO GOOD!
Make sure you stay tuned for part two coming soon!
Donna + Chris :: Dayton Wedding Photography
Some of you may remember Donna and Chris from back this spring when we shot their engagement photos. We got a huge compliment from Chris’s aunt who asked Donna, “Where did you find such awesome photographers? They captured your personalities perfectly!” I think it’s a testament to the fact that we work hard to build real relationships with our clients. It’s so important to us to work with people that we would otherwise call our friends. The chemistry between you and your photographer is extremely important, and even more so on your wedding day!
Now I can say with absolute certainty, I have NEVER seen what’s in these next two photos. These are from the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding.
That’s right. Belly dancers. Dayton is full of surprises, and the Oregon District is no exception. They held their rehearsal dinner at the Boulevard Haus, and outside there were some guys drumming and these ladies showed up. Obviously Chris’s brothers (a.k.a. groomsmen) had to get them in to show him a good time. Needless to say Chris was a little embarrased, but Donna was eating it up!
Their wedding was downtown at Holy Angels church. Chris’s groomsmen consisted of his brothers and Paul Rudd. No seriously, look at that guy! (Okay, the only non-brother was his cousin Joe, but he could’ve passed for Paul Rudd on the red carpet.) The reception was at the Hilton Garden Inn in Beavercreek. Make sure you check out Donna in her purple Chuck Taylors!
In between Mindy and I followed the group around as they went bar hopping through the Oregon District. We really had fun just enjoying our time with the bridal party. It was laid back, and everyone just had a great time. Every wedding has something unique, but shooting real photos of people spending time together is definitely one of our favorites so far.
Their custom tux shirts read, “If everyone liked the same thing, they’d all be after my woman.” It was a quote from their grandfather. You could tell both sides of this wedding were really tight. We’ve had the privilege of working with a lot of great families, but these families are some of the best we’ve met!
