Andrew & Meaghan :: Wedding

I can't believe I'm saying this, but this year is going to be my 10 year high school reunion... Oh my gosh!!!

Even though I'm not going to be going to it, I'm a bit frazzled on where has the time gone? It's weird how the days seem to pass, and those days turn into years, then before you know it, it has been 10 years... and the next will be 20... oh wow, I'm going to stop right there. I'm feeling just a tad bit too old right now and there is definitely no need for that!

One thing I am grateful for is the opportunity to still visit where I used to live and sometimes relive those high school moments in my mind when I'm there. I'm sure Todd has heard stories from those high school days way too much when we are in Indiana, since we pass certain things that remind me of something or the fact that my brother-in-law is a principal at my old jr. high school and we go and visit him sometimes while we are there.

One thing that I was able to do recently was show Todd around the good old city of Indianapolis. We were contacted a while back from someone I had went to high school with and she was getting married in Indianapolis. I was so excited about this because it's always fun to make the trip down to Indiana to visit family, but to actually be able to shoot in a new environment other than Detroit is always a plus!

Andrew and Meaghan were married down in Indianapolis at Union Station, which was so nice and so beautiful! It actually brought back memories from when I was a kid, other than the fact that it did not look that way when I was young. I don't remember Union Station looking so nice or being a venue for weddings, but it was really cool to see. I thought it was just an old train station, but they totally transformed it into some place that now has some great use and is absolutely stunning.

Andrew and Meaghan opted for a first look, which gave us a lot of time to enjoy the area along with help calming down some nerves of theirs. Andrew is one of those guys who loves to make people laugh, and he did not disappoint when it came to helping to add a TON of comedy to their day. It was fun to watch them interact because Meaghan is so calm and he's so silly, but they have so much fun together, and you can tell how much they love and care for each other. He is her king and she is his queen! Love that! It was nice to see some familiar faces from high school along with my sister and niece were in attendance, that was awesome! My niece totally stole the dance floor, running around like a crazy person! What a fun night! Both Todd and I had an amazing time...

Congratulations you two... we are so happy for you and were so honored to be a part of such a beautiful day! We wish you nothing but the best!!!!

Check out some of our favorites and a slideshow with more from their day...

Wedding Planner: Circle City Planners
Venue: Crowne Plaza at Union Station
Video: IndyVisual
Cake: A Slice of Heaven Cakery

Check out these cute shoes Meaghan wore... LOVE THEM!



Her dress was absolutely gorgeous and it was fun to watch all her girls help get her ready for her to see her man...



Andrew & Meaghan opted for a first look, which was so sweet!!!



We had so much fun taking photos around Indy...



Behind them is where the Colts play... Go Colts... and Go Andrew... KISS HER!!!



LOVE it!!!



I love how sweet both of them are...



Meaghan is absolutely stunning...



Her girls were A-MAZING!



Andrew with his comedy skills...



And all of his guys were so fun, which is a given considering how Andrew is...



And they all got cool cufflinks from Andrew from a movie during the year they were born... so creative and so cool!!!



Their ceremony was so beautiful... (this room was later transformed into their reception... A-MAZING!



And the recessional... GOTTA LOVE THESE MOMENTS...



I had to post this, of course, my niece being her crazy little self... haha!



Check out their slideshow with more from their beautiful day...

** One more wedding of 2010 will be up tomorrow- sorry!***

Tony & Sandy :: Wedding

I really think that Detroit has quite a few bad reps. I agree with some of them, but some I think are just plain silly.

I have to say that I absolutely LOVE Detroit churches. They are some of the most beautiful places I have ever been to, and some are simply "one-of-a-kind" and a bit like "hidden gems", which is something us photographers die for.

I always get excited when it comes to have weddings Downtown Detroit because there are always tons of places to take photos at and since I'm an Indiana girl and I'm not super familiar with everything there is downtown, it usually is an experience for me as well. WIN-WIN!

One of those couples that decided to have their wedding downtown this past October was Tony & Sandy. Tony and Sandy were married at Old St. Mary's Church, which I have to say was the most beautiful church I have ever been to. It looked as though this place could be in the movies... seriously, just stunning!!! I was so excited to shoot their wedding, not only because it was downtown, but because both Tony and Sandy are super, super sweet people.

After their ceremony, we were able to travel around a bit on their trolley, yes a trolly, which was so cute! But we made our way from Tiger Stadium, over to Belle Isle, and then onto their reception site, Grosse Point War Memorial, which is so beautiful! I loved all the locations we stopped at, the weather was perfect, couple was perfect, bridal party was perfect... it was awesome! Sandy mentioned to me that the theme of her wedding was a Harvest Moon, and there was suppose to be a full moon out that night, but the clouds were also out and did not want to show us the moon. Boo! But everything else was great!

Todd and I had so much fun and the whole day was so great!

Congrads you guys... we wish you nothing but the best and we hope Chicago isn't too cold this time of year, but I'm sure that's not likely! ;)

Check out some of my favorites and a slideshow with more from their day...


Dress: Wedding Belles (Barrington, IL)
Flowers: Sarah Reaume (email me for contact details)
Cake: Josef's European Pastry Shop
DJ: Chester D. Brown (email for contact details)
Trolly: Trolley Limo Services
Video: Ikonic Images (HIGHLY recommend!)
Photo Booth: Freeze Frame Foto Booth

Oh wow... Sandy was breathtaking...



Her girls were so sweet and fun...



Tony was so handsome... and so calm!



Guys were awesome...



Umm... INCREDIBLE!



And of course, the recessional...



LOVE the jumping for joy...



The view was so sweet...



This is why people get married in October... the colors everywhere are so gorgeous!



Rarrr...



One of my absolute favorites from the day...




Check out their slideshow with many more of their day...

AJ & Abby :: Wedding

So October was a great month...

It was absolutely beautiful out, along with lots of beautiful weddings, along with lots of beautiful couples... I have to say that I think a lot of couples are wanting those fall months more than the summer ones because of all the gorgeousness there is that comes along with fall. I am a bit partial when it comes to fall because it is my favorite time of year! My only wish, is that it lasted a few months LONGER... who else agrees?

Well this last October, I had the opportunity to work with some amazing couples. One of those included AJ and Abby. I met Abby a few months before and we totally clicked. She and I were kind of like soul mates, or I guess you could say "Bride-Photographer-mates". Haha! We chatted so much as though we were old friends catching up. I loved it and I knew that their wedding was going to be extremely fun and they did not disappoint.

Being October, you never know what the weather is going to be like. I mean October 2009, it was so cold everyone had to wear their winter coats, but this past year it was outdoor wedding weather. I loved that AJ & Abby chose to have it outdoors, it was just gorgeous out. The wind did pick up during their ceremony, which added some comic relief when trying to light their candle, but it was great! I have to say that the buildings and grounds at Addison Oaks are one of my favorite places to shoot, it's so quaint there and it seems the sun shines perfectly with all the trees... just breath taking!

Abby is also a beautiful singer, and she uses her talents to make people happy. She surprised her new husband with a beautiful song she wrote during the reception. What a sweet wife she is!

Todd and I had so much fun and wish them both the best in life!

Congrads you two... we wish California was closer so we could hang out!


Check out some of my favorites along with a slideshow from their day...

Dress: David's Bridal
Venue: Addison Oaks
Flowers: Kroger (Floral Dept)
Cake: Cakes Our Specialty
DJ: Big Foot DJ's


Abby has this natural beauty that is just breathtaking...



LOVED all her girls... so beautiful and so sweet!



AJ was so handsome as well... and in such great spirits... I wonder why?!



LOVED all his guys... so fun!



The wind was blowing like crazy... love her vail in the wind though...



Recessionals are always my favorite...



LOVE this one...



Mmm...



Such a happy, sweet couple...



Ooo laaa laaa...



Here's their slideshow with more from their beautiful wedding...

Winter Blues, No More...

Well... these "Winter Blues" have seriously got to go! I know I'm not alone when it comes to this, especially since it seems the snow may never end. But as January is starting to roll to a close, I feel there is hope that Spring will be here before we know it, which is SOOO very exciting I can barely sit in my chair right now...

I am now thinking that these "Winter Blues" can become Pink or Yellow, those are nice colors, right? I think so. I am choosing to fight away those blues, and try and make the most of it, even if it's so cold outside I can barely think straight, or so white outside I have to squint and sometimes lose a contact, yeah that's happened, I am now going to wake up and chose to be in a better, more Pink or Yellow mood... all I want to know, is who's coming with me?

"I will!"



Haha...

Stayed tuned this week for lots of posts as we finish up our 2010 weddings and are now getting rid of these blues, which means more posts!!! Yay!!!

Happy Tuesday!

Brad & Ashley :: Engagements

Anyone else getting the Winter Blues???

Oh dear, I'm surely there... and it's BAD! All I want to do is sleep. It really needs to warm up SOON! Maybe the groundhog will give us some hope here in a few weeks. Fingers, toes, arms, legs, anything that can be crossed are crossed right now in hopes that it's a good revelation.

Anyways... Todd and I had some company in town over the weekend. My dad came up for his annual "Auto Show Trip". No offense, but I could totally do without seeing it every year! Ha! Is it just me or is it so similar every single year. It's like I can close my eyes and see exactly what each car display looks like. But oh well... it was fun to have some company to entertain or be entertained for the weekend. We definitely made our way around from going to the Auto Show, to going to see a Band Play out in Sterling Heights, to stopping by Somerset, a favorite of my dad's, and of course, hitting up good ol' Nino Salvaggio's, which us Indiana'ers love!

This is me dreaming BIG... I'm pretty sure that Rolls-Royce will only be seen in them!



But as I continue to catch up, I promise to get done with 2010 by the end of January. I'm going to have to step it up a bit, but I'll get there. I'm telling you... it's this winter that is dragging me down now. Haha!

I met up with Brad & Ashley a few months back, and what a beautiful couple they are. They were so sweet and it seems we have a few familiar faces in common, which added for some good conversations. Ashley was actually a bridesmaid from a previous wedding we had a few years back, plus she knows Todd and Brad and I had running in common so that was fun to chat about... too bad I HATE it now and dread the thought of running ever since that marathon a few years back, and it totally burnt me out. But both Brad & Ashley have so much love, beauty, good spirits, laughter, smiles, and just all around kind hearts, that I cannot WAIT for their wedding come June. Plus, it's up in Petosky, MI which is going to be even more beautiful!

Congratulations you two... we are so excited and thrilled to be a part of such a special time!

I'm not sure they can take a bad photo...



A little more serious... still nailed it!



Love all those colors...



Adorable...



Love these two...





What brave souls they are... it was a long fall down, but they were sports and I think it was worth it...



So in LOVE....

Ben & Courtney :: Wedding

Never trust spam (gross!) or better yet, never trust a scam...

I was contacted by a couple a few weeks before their wedding, they were in somewhat of a panic, being as their wedding was just in TWO short weeks. I felt terrible for them being as they were probably the sweet couple I have ever met, I know I say that often, but I truly mean it. They were both so loving, gentle, sweet, genuine, and definitely, not deserving of what happened to them whatsoever. Turns out their Wedding Photographer and DJ, which were booked together within the same company, were just fakers... they took their money and ran. I couldn't believe it when I heard it! What a load of Oscar Meyer BOLOGNA! I was a bit in shock that someone would even think about doing that... what has our world come to? I guess in a way I'm glad it happened... OK that sounds REALLY bad, but I'm so glad that their experience gave me the chance to meet them, fall in love with them, and obviously, help them out as much as I could!

Ben and Courtney were married on a beautiful fall day! They were in great spirits, full of love, full of laughter, and they even brought their dog to share in the fun moments with them. Who doesn't love a couple with a beautiful dog that they love so much they want to include them in their special day? When they mentioned that to me, I almost jumped out of my chair in excitement! I even think Maddox was jealous when we got home as I had a scent of Spaniel on my clothes... Sorry Buddy! Ha! But despite their first experience with a wedding photographer and DJ, I think their second one was much better! We had fun and laughed a lot, even though we were not there that long, but we used the time we had perfectly!

Congratutlations you guys... we LOVE you both and are so happy for you guys!

Check out a few of our favorites and a slideshow with a few more from their day...

Dress: Demetrios
Church: St. Hugo of the Hills
Reception Venue: La Sala
Flowers: Something Spectacular Custom Floral & Event Design
DJ: Matthew Ruffi

Courtney looked INCREDIBLE...



Such beautiful girls she had to support her...



Ben is such a stud with such a great spirit...



Plus his guys were so fun...



Adorable...



Look at that Pooch!!! So cute!!!



Love these two...





One of my favorites from the day... LOVE IT!



Here is a slideshow from the short time we were there...