Thursday, July 22, 2010

shelby & elizabeth: married.

**click HERE and click on Shelby & Elizabeth's last names to view and order photos from the wedding**

As I'm sitting here remembering Shelby and Elizabeth's wedding, I can't help but think about all of the emotion and the love that was flowing during this day. I've photographed so many events and weddings over the years, and so few have the waterworks that this wedding did! And I was probably right in there with a few tears here and there too! It was just that good, and I know I've said this before, but man could you really feel the love on this day and that makes for some really fun moments to photograph and be a part of!

Because there were so many fun and great moments from this wedding, I'm going to skip my usual story and tell you about best parts of the day. I'm sure this will end up in story form, but you get the idea!

So, to begin, we were blessed to be photographing two wonderful families that came with Shelby and Elizabeth! Elizabeth, your mom and your sister Molly are totally my kind of people and Molly was so cute with her reading during the ceremony and the speech at the reception. Tears. So many tears. Molly, you're SO cute and you made even me tear up with the words you spoke about your sister. And really, girls, your mom was looking good and she has the best friends too! Shelby, your mom had me at hello. She's about the epitome of a great mom. I think she had a smile on her face most of the wedding, and you could tell she was so proud of you on your day.

Another tearful moment: the special song that was sang at the reception. Elizabeth, I'm not sure who was cuter, you for squeezing the pieces out of your man while dancing, or Shelby, for not letting you go! Oh my goodness this was the best part of that reception! Truly, great meaningful song from a special person in your lives, and truly, a wonderful moment at your wedding.

Something else worth mentioning that I just loved from this day: Great dresses and a groom with fun socks! I love anyone with special attention to detail to even think of a fun pair of socks! And I think those dresses were simply adorable! They perfectly flattered the lovely bridesmaids and they could totally wear them again. The perfect little black dress!

Moving on. Reception time. I loved that these two chose to do a few large tables, with a few stand alone cocktail tables with appetizers. The little bites of food that circulated the room were a fun little surprise for a reception but they just kept coming so I'm fairly certain everyone had a full belly when they left! What made me laugh though, was the extra large wine glasses! I've never seen such large wine glasses at an event! So what do you get when you pair super duper wine glasses and fantastic wedding guests? FANTASTIC party and some crazy dancing! Those moments were classic and all thanks to those wine glasses!

People always ask me how I can do the same things and photograph the same things over and over again. My answer? The people are always different. The dress is always different. The venue and reception. Always different. The wedding guests and family: different. The bride and groom. Well. You guessed. Different. What makes a great wedding stand above the rest? ALL of the above. I know it sounds crazy, but it's a complete honor to be in the same room with some of these people and especially with Elizabeth and Shelby and their friends and family. Well, they are just awesome people to say the very least! Elizabeth is just one of the sweetest people in the world, she has the cutest smile and those blue eyes are amazing really. Shelby compliments her so well and together they just draw you in with their fun spirit. Plus he's dreamy with killer looks too! So, how do I photograph weddings over and over again. It's easy when you get a couple like these two.

Thanks to you both for letting me follow you around with my cameras for the day! It really was a great day and we had a blast as usual! I hope the honeymoon was gorgeous and you got to enjoy being together as Mr. and Mrs.! Enjoy your photos!








































Thursday, July 15, 2010

brandon & amy: married.

**click HERE and click on Brandon & Amy's last names to view and order photos from the wedding**

When I was little, purple was my favorite color, and in my family if you said you liked something more than twice, it instantly became the bulk of what you got for Christmas. So I found myself opening the most glorious deep purple corduroy pants, to go along with my numerous plum sweaters and tops. I opened soft purple bed sheets, a purple Barbie dress, and a new backpack in the same shade. And finally, I opened the most glorious, sparkly-shiny, patent leather, bright purple shoes. They had a slight heel, which I had to have at my early age of 8. If God had ever made a more perfect color, I hadn't noticed it, because I dreamt in the lovely shade of lavender! You could have dipped me in the paint and I would have gone to school with a smile on my face.

Fast forward to last year. Another of my lovely coffee dates to the Starbucks and I was sitting with Brandon and Amy who finished each others sentences, stole each others glimpses, and tripped over each others smiles. I truly feel like I meet each of my couples intentionally, and I know we'll be a perfect match when I can sense they were made for each other. Amy was subtle and radiant and we all laughed when she told me Brandon had recently had a beard that nearly touched his chest. Though I still can't imagine that one, it was a good laugh! And Brandon was diligent and thoughtful as he sat and listened to Amy spill out her plans for the wedding day. I was pleased as punch to hear the idea to see each other before the ceremony. Even more excited to hear the wedding reception was at the Fountain Square Theatre.

It wasn't until several months later that I received a wedding invitation in the mail and as I opened it, I got super excited when I saw that little beacon of color that I loved so well! I instantly think of the patent leather shoes and the intense hue! I was an art major after all, so details and colors mean the world to me! The happiness builds as I cross my fingers and hope for brightly colored purple dresses in the bridal party! You see, it seems that so many of my weddings in the past have black dresses, and while I'm a huge fan of simple elegance, there's just something to be said about a wedding with color in the details!

And so in true Amy form, she did not disappoint and I was greeted on wedding day with beauty and color in the details. Six purple-icious dresses. And six fabulous purple ties. With six lovely purple vests. Beauty and color in the details and I was thrilled to pieces!

So yes, while I just wrote a book on why I'm so enamored still with color and especially the bold purples, it just makes me that much more thankful that I get to photograph such beautiful couples that I know were meant to be. Purple is made of two colors, blue and red. Purple combines the stability of blue, and the energy of red. Not a bad combination if I do say so myself! I can't help but notice a little of that calm stability in Amy, and some of that fierce energy in Brandon. Purple is associated with wisdom and magic. These two have been together for so long, you can't help but sense how magical their love is for each other! And after hearing stories from their friends and family about how strong this love is, and all they have overcome and just how they met and have managed to stay together this long. Well, that. That is magical. A most perfect shade of purple.

Brandon. Amy. I am thrilled to finally be able to show you your story. In living color...well, with a few of those beautiful black and whites thrown in here and there of course! Thank you both for hauling me along on your adventure! The wedding was just beautiful and you two are just adorable together! I'm always prepared for a great wedding, but the two of you just kept that energy all day and the party was amazing! You've got a great bunch of friends and family too that I can't wait to see some of again soon at Lindsey and Evan's wedding! Forgive me for keeping you in suspense longer than anticipated, but I truly hope you enjoy your photos!



























































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