I’m excited to be back to posting after a several day hiatus and to start things of with Chris + Beth’s Michigan wedding. Thanks for being patient! This wedding is extra special because I’ve known Beth (and her family) for a really long time, so I was honored to be able to document the day. I actually wasn’t the only member of my family involved, as my sister played the piano and my parents helped out with the backyard reception they hosted. From my perspective, it really was one of those weddings where people came together to not only celebrate but to do what they could to make the day happen. Chris and Beth are two people that give so much to others that their wedding was a chance for people to give back to them, and it couldn’t have been more perfect. Here is a look at the details of the day, starting with the flowers:

Beth’s gorgeous bouquet was created by her good friend and florist Rebecca, who traveled from Oklahoma City and assembled everything once she arrived in Detroit! I don’t really know my flowers but I love the variety she included – there was so much texture and depth.

The most important part – the ceremony – took place with a completely full sanctuary. I’m not sure what the final numbers were but there had to be at least 300/350 people if not more. There’s something about a good ceremony. It makes everyone who attends think about their own relationships – with their husband or wife, family, friends, and of course God.

Afterwards everyone was invited to a dessert reception at the church, and as you can see the cakes were fabulous (and tasted as good as they looked). I was even more impressed with the decorations they put up, since some lights, fabric, and paper lanterns completely transformed the room into a more elegant reception space.

There were a lot of cute kids (many nieces and nephews of Chris + Beth) at the wedding, and I love the card Lily gave them above.

…and who doesn’t love cake – or talking into a fan?

After a quick birdseed send off Chris and Beth drove off for some pictures before joining the reception. The completely restored car they drove in gave us a pop of color to use in the pictures.

They are so in love! There’s nothing like photographing someone on their wedding day.

After pictures we joined the reception that took place at Beth’s parents home. It was set up for a relaxed yet elegant event with small round tables placed in the front and back yards. Dinner was catered by Just Delicious, and there were amazing hor d’oeuvres that lasted throughout the evening. Table decorations consisted of several small milk vases with low flower arrangements and old family photos placed inside glass jars.

As much as the reception was enjoyable for adults it was also made for kids. In fact, I would rate it as the best reception I’ve seen for kids. There was room to have fun and play (you can see pin the bowtie/rose on the groom/bride above) and the highlight was a pinata that was broken open at the end of the night. An ice cream cart served out your choice of flavor, and the night ended with sparklers!

It was perfect! I hope you enjoyed seeing part of their day and possibly got a little inspiration if you’re planning your own. Thanks again Chris + Beth for letting me document everything – and don’t forget to leave them a comment to help them earn an enlargement. Head over to their gallery to see the full set of images and enjoy!

As I mentioned yesterday, Heather and Jon had a great wedding. Every part of it was beautiful, fun, and totally reflected their personalities. The reception and dancing was no exception. Now, everyone loves a good dance party (except maybe my husband) and the only thing that could make a dance party better is glowsticks. Actually it was more accurately glow necklaces, braclets, and glasses! They had a big bucket of them set out, and slowly through out the evening people put on more and more.This is how things started out…

I’m not sure how much Hil checks the blog (she lives in Montana and tracks and studies wolves in Yellowstone) so she won’t mind me putting up this picture:

The reception was in a tent on a golf course, and while dancing in the tent was fun, it didn’t take long for us to figure out it would be even better to go out on the golf course where it was darker and cooler. Not only that, but the glowsticks looked awesome in the dark… and a little something like this:

I think this picture of Moe + Dustin says it all. I want to go back to that wedding – who’s with me?

Speaking of getting back from a wedding, the next day we had quite an adventure getting home – from one side of Michigan to the other. We were over in Grand Haven, and needed to get back to Grosse Pointe. Not a problem, right? Our drive over was fine, but about 5 minutes into or drive home after the picnic for Heather and Jon the next day, the brakes had completely gone in the car we were in! We stopped at a gas station and debated the waiting time of a tow truck, what we would do with the car, and how we would convince someone to drive three hours to pick us up. Thankfully, were saved by Clay and Jenny (seen in the third picture, dancing up a storm) who came back and gave all four of us a lift. They drove us the first leg to Ann Arbor, where they were meeting friends, and we were picked up for our second ride by Tereza, who had just gotten out of the Michigan/Notre Dame game. I don’t know what we would have done with out Clay, Jenny, and Tereza! After surviving the drive on chocolate – which was the wedding favor – we made it back to my house where we devoured everything my mom put in front of us. We literally ate a whole wheel of cheese – what kind was it again? It seemed like the longest day, but at least we were all able to see each other and spend time with friends! Thanks for humoring me and reading the condensed version of our adventures in wedding travel. I didn’t get a picture on my camera of us with Heather, but here are some of the good friends I was able to meet up with at the wedding:

I was a guest. I was a photographer. It actually was the best of both worlds. When Heather first called about her engagement to Jon I was so excited. It was approximately a year earlier that I was married and Heather attended my wedding without Jon  – not because we didn’t invite him, but he wasn’t quite in the picture that way. It was amazing to hear about how their relationship started and what brought them together; I couldn’t have been happier for them. You see, Heather is a good friend from high school, so when she called she wanted to not only tell me about the wedding but see if I wanted to photograph part of the day. I told her that I would love to – I mean I love to photograph weddings and even better to photograph a close friend’s – but of course it can be tricky to figure out the details of that kind of arrangement. Heather and Jon were super thoughtful and in the end I documented the ceremony and a few extras and couldn’t think of a better way to be involved in their day. I was able to not only attend and enjoy the accompanying reunion with friends, but give something back to Heather and Jon. So what did everything look like, besides fabulous? Let me start with showing you all of the orange accents and personal touches they incorporated into the day…

and now time for ceremony… it was perfect weather and a gorgeous Michigan day!

The flower girl was patient at the front but in the back kids kept busy with crafts – always a smart move!

the newlyweds! I love vibrancy and life in the picture above, but I know they will always remember the moment they shared right after the ceremony and the emotion in the photo below

Everyone was excited! The wedding colors perfectly matched the personality and vibrancy of the day and although it might be hard for some people to wear an orange dress again, I think everyone looked great.

whoa. did I mention we have some athletes on our hands?

To finish it off, a few photos of just Heather… isn’t it fun to see your friends as brides? I think she looks beautiful and wow what a wedding day! It was so fun to be a part of, and I’ll save it for a later post but this wedding had some of the best dancing. Two words: glow sticks. Congrats again to Heather and Jon and if you know them leave a comment to say hi or let me know what you think about my first guestographer experience.

This summer was full of gorgeous weddings, but Matt and Becky’s stood out. The things I remember most: all of the pops of red, the roses, the music, the dancing, and of course the love. Their quintessential wedding, in a beautiful stone church and reception at The Women’s Club of Glen Ridge, set the stage for what I’m going to call a “modern formal” wedding. Honestly, everything was perfect and I’m sure they were happy it went so smoothly, but I have a feeling they would roll with the punches no matter how things went.

We started off at the church, where the girls were getting ready…

Not sure if you should have professional makeup? I would definitely recommend it. From a bride and photographer standpoint, I am soo glad I had it done (If you need some one in Michigan then let me know because I will highly recommend someone for you!), and I think it shows in the photos I take as well – yep, go back to the top and look at Becky in the first picture. That’s not to say that you won’t look good without it, but makeup artists know how to highlight your features and I think you’ll see in these pictures Becky looks absolutely flawless!

the difficult task of putting on the dress while not disturbing hair + makeup was complimented by some funny candid ones as well…

The guys were right next door putting on their finishing touches, and yes I think we’ll have to have a contest for the caption of the photo below.

After a reveal to see each other for the first time, family pictures were shot and then Matt and Becky spent a few moments alone before heading in to the ceremony.

The church and ceremony were beautiful. Music was a special part of the whole day, and for good reason with both Matt and Becky being musicians. I should clarify… by musicians, I mean Becky is currently getting her masters in vocal performance at the San Francisco Conservatory… so if you are thinking they are both very talented, you are correct.

sealed with a kiss! After the ceremony, the rose petals kept flowing and everyone took some to toss for the newlyweds.

After their gorgeous send off, the we went to a rose garden for more photos of the couple and bridal party. How many rose gardens still exist? Not enough, I’m sure. It was the perfect location to go to, and had history with Becky since she used to go their as a child.

It was time for the reception, so we went just down the road to The Women’s Club of Glen Ridge, a beautiful and historic venue.

The highlight of the reception – okay well there were a few, but the music and the dance lesson were great! The live band played classics while the dance instructors showed everyone a few steps to follow and build off of. It couldn’t have be better and was a great way to get people on the floor and feeling comfortable. Everyone had a great time!

…and there you have it. Another successful wedding that I’m so happy I was able to be a part of. Congratulations again to Matt and Becky and I hope you, your family + friends all enjoy remembering the day through the pictures.

Each time I finish up a wedding it’s invigorating. I know everyone has been waiting anxiously to see them, and I even feel the same way once I get the chance to sit down and edit them. I get to re-live the day and I can’t wait to share it with everyone, so today you get a taste of what Kaylan and John’s wedding looked like.

First of all, I have to say it was a lot of fun – what can I say, John + Kay are fun people and didn’t blink at my crazy ideas – “take your shoes off and go stand in the water” – haha you’ll see. I also have to say – and I’m not sure how she did it – but Kaylan was the first bride I had who was seriously sick with the flu the night before… and even the day of. I think I should have her on here to share her story, because you can’t even see at all what she was feeling – she looks gorgeous in everything.

Now, without further ado I present to you John & Kaylan’s wedding.

See what I’m saying? Gorgeous! I was just lucky enough that they had a field of forget-me-nots to include in the pictures.

i love it! all the poses and expressions in this photo make it. After the pre-ceremony photo shoot it was time to head inside to get ready for the main event. When Kaylan and her dad walked down the aisle there was hardly a dry eye… this wasn’t just any day this was definitely a wedding day.

They added a few special things to the ceremony that made their day even more meaningful. It was a great way to start their lives together and become husband & wife.

The newlyweds! Now on to the celebration – but maybe it takes a few more minutes when your granddaughter gets married…

I took John + Kaylan over to a spot nearby for photos and I don’t think we could have been there at a better time. The slightly setting sun made the light dreamy and set the mood for some gorgeous portraits of just them. This is the part where I made them get their feet wet too.

… and probably one of my all time favs above. After this we met up with the wedding party and headed over to Wellsville for the reception – which was actually in the public library! You know I’m a fan of that, I had my reception in a library as well and I would highly recommend it if you can work it out with them – older libraries are best, obviously. I need to back track for a second because before heading to the reception the bridal party went to the infamous Texas Hot. I’m not sure if we were the first wedding party to come in there, but they were happy to see us and were nice enough to let us take over a little bit (if you’ve been there you know how narrow it is) to capture the charm of the place and take some pictures.

So, what is Texas Hot’s? (I always say it with an “s” but I think I’ve been saying it wrong…). It’s one of those actually retro diners that probably hasn’t changed in 50 years and servers their signature “Texas Hot” – a hot dog with special sauce… I’m not sure if I can describe it but if anyone wants to comment to help me out feel free! – along with other delicious diner favs. Lots of fun and I would recommend it. :]

After our adventure at Texas Hot the bridal party headed across the street to join the reception. The library has a nice outside patio area in front where everyone mingled and went inside for the reception. It was a great end to an exciting and very memorable day.

It was wonderful to be a part of everything and I hope these photos give you lots to look back on and remember how things started.