These guys live in Houston, and they just barely made it away from Ike for the wedding.  Some of their friends and family didn't make it out for the celebration, but it was still a great party.  The ceremony was at the Old Cathedral, with a reception at the Lemp Mansion.  Fortunately the rain held off for the outdoor reception (something that the bride and groom were thankful for all night!)  For a few songs Johnson joined the band to play the guitar and sing - that really got the crowd going.  If you watch the SLIDESHOW HERE and wonder why there are so many cake photos, it's because Johnson didn't quite play fair.  They did the traditional cake cutting, serving with forks and being very classy.  Then right after that (and after the videographer had left the area and could no longer document it) Johnson grabbed another slice of cake and attacked Courtney with it.  She fought hard, but in the end she did have frosting smeared on her face.  Honestly, it was pretty funny, and she had a good sense of humor about it.  Plus I got a lot of funny shots, so I'm for it :)

These guys are in St. Lucia for their honeymoon, staying away from Houston for a bit.  I hope all is well for them when they return!

The storm clouds parted just in time for Stacy and Shawn's wedding last weekend at Caroline Vineyards (now called Riverbend Chapel) in Washington, Missouri.  The ceremony ended up taking place during the most beautiful part of the day, with the sun shining down into the crowd and making Stacy's necklace sparkle (according to Shawn, who said that was the first thing he saw as she came down the aisle.)  This is one of my favorite venues, so I had a great time photographing this wedding - especially because these two were so low-stress!  View their SLIDESHOW HERE to see more photos of the day.  Congratulations to them!

Meg and Rusty were married Sunday on the dock at the riverfront, with a reception following on the Becky Thatcher Riverboat.  They get the award for the best first dance this year - they danced to "Beyond the Sea" by Bobby Darin and had a great routine (there was even a lift.)  They proved to be great dancers the rest of the night as well, as did most of their guests.  I've never taken so many dancing photos at a wedding before!  You can view their SLIDESHOW HERE to see more photos.  Think the classical cover of Journey is an odd slideshow song selection?  Well, they used it in their processional, and the original song made a big hit at the reception, so I thought it was perfect for them.  I hope they enjoy their honeymoon in Mexico - congrats guys!

Anne and Adam were married at Eliot Chapel in Kirkwood this past Saturday.  While this chapel is very nice, and well lit, it posed quite a challenge to photograph.  The giant windows at the front of the church provided some significant backlighting for the 3pm ceremony, and just outside the window was a bright red mini van parked in a neighbors' driveway.  It was a challenge to shoot (no one wants a minivan in their ceremony photos!), but I think I pulled it off in the end.  The ceremony went very smoothly, and the reception at the St. Louis Zoo went according to plan as well.  In fact, everything went so smoothly all day long that when we couldn't take photos with the polar bears at the zoo (they were hiding in there somewhere) Anne commented "Well, something had to go wrong!"  It was a good day for these guys - which is good because they waited 11 years for it!  You can see the SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks for being so relaxed and fun Anne and Adam - congratulations!

I had never met either Mindy or Matt on their wedding day - that was a first for me!  I worked with Mindy's Mom before the wedding because the couple lives in New York, so the day of I had to introduce myself (after I sorted out who they were!)  They were married at the Graham Chapel on Washington University's campus with a reception at Windows on Washington.  At the reception they gave everyone an Absinthe shot instead of champagne for the toasts (they met in Prague, so it seemed fitting.)  I think maybe they should have warned everyone what they were drinking before they took the shot, though.  There were a lot of audible groans in response to the flavor :)  They also seemed to dislike slow dancing.  After about 10 seconds of their first dance, Matt busted out a matador outfit and Mindy ran at him like a bull as the song "Matador" played.  And for the father-daughter dance they spent about 10 seconds slow dancing before they broke into "Footloose."  It was all pretty entertaining - you can view their SLIDESHOW HERE.  It was nice meeting you guys finally - best wishes!

Their wedding from last October was selected by The Knot Magazine as a featured wedding!  It will appear in the Fall/Winter issue, which will be on newsstands in June.  The Knot people called me today to verify name spelling, but I'm not sure which images they've selected.  I'm sure this one will be in there, though.  Now everyone out there can mooch off their great wedding ideas. :)

Hot pink was the color of the day for Sarah and Dan's wedding on March 14th.  Bridesmaids dresses, flowers, reception lighting - they even both had hot pink shoes to wear at the reception!  What a fantastic color for photos.  The pink light at the reception at Mad Art posed a bit of a challenge for me at first, but in the end I think it made some really cool ambient lighting for their dancing photos.  The ceremony was at First United Methodist in St. Charles, which had some pretty great light of its own with all those big windows.  Add in the sunshine and warm weather (slightly unexpected in March), and let's just say it was a good day for shooting!

I stayed until the end of the reception to catch the couple's exit, which was pretty entertaining.  As a surprise, Sarah's mom rented a vintage police car to escort the couple from the reception to their hotel.  They even had a police officer handcuff Sarah and lead her and Dan out to the car - they were both a little shocked, but I'm pretty sure they enjoyed it! 

Thanks to Kelly Park for doing a fantastic job second shooting with me for the day.  You can view more photos in Sarah and Dan's SLIDESHOW HERE.  Congrats to the new Alvarezes!

Most people get a bit on edge if it is rainy on their wedding day - not Renee and John.  They were totally laid back and calm.  Which is how they should have been - what looks like horrible cloudy gray sky to the average person looks like fantastic light to the photographer.  Add to that great light a really cool old barn and I'm a happy shooter :)

The ceremony was down in Ste. Genevieve, with the reception out at the Chaumette Winery (fantastic food, by the way!)  What a party!  The dance floor was packed with people all night, which led to loads and loads of dancing photos.  In fact, there were just loads of photos, period.  Both Michelle and Katie were shooting with me for the day, and between the three of us we managed to take over 4,100 photos.  I think that's a record for me!  You can view their (much edited) SLIDESHOW HERE. 

I get to see these guys again this weekend at Colleen and Jeff's wedding - can't wait to get more photos of them dancing :)

I don't know if Colleen and Jeff had a Plan B in case it rained on their wedding day, but fortunately they didn't need it.  It was sunny and gorgeous for their outdoor ceremony and reception on Saturday.  Both were held at Colleen's parents' house near Wright City.  I couldn't believe how laid back Colleen was - just a few hours before the wedding she was still figuring out what veil and shoes to wear, and searching for flowers for her hair and she wasn't stressed about it at all!

You can view their SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks again to Stephanie for helping me shoot.  Hope these guys are having fun in Aruba!

Forest Park was a disaster on Saturday.  Apparently there were graduations and events going on all morning, and hundreds of people trying to go to the zoo.  That meant insane traffic moving through the park - it took us easily 35 minutes to get to the Jewel Box from the park entrance.  Poor Angela must have been biting her nails in her brother's car as they sat in traffic (and sped ahead of traffic, waiving her veil out the window as proof that she was important!)  Fortunately most of the guests made it in time for the ceremony, which was beautiful set against the lush trees.  We had to be a bit creative on where to shoot portraits after that, having to avoid areas like the World's Fair Pavilion and being scared off by 5 other wedding parties at the Muny.  Good thing Angela and Tyler are very flexible and relaxed!

After a few photo stops, we were off to the reception at Hendri's, where the kids ruled the dance floor.  You can view the SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks to Katy for second shooting with me.  I hope Angela and Tyler honor their promise not to check email or cell phones while they are honeymooning in the Dominican Republic!

I just received a copy of the Fall/Winter issue of The Knot, featuring Tricia and Jon's wedding from last October.  Looks nice!

On a side note, I'm leaving for Washington, D.C. today for the weekend.  If you need me I'll be back Tuesday!

Their wedding was selected by The Knot magazine for publication later this year!  It should be on stands sometime in November of this year :)

Just FYI - I have 3 weddings this weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday.)  It happened by accident, with a few people changing their dates after they booked.  I'll be pretty busy with shooting and editing for the next few days, so if it takes a little longer than usual for me to get back to you please understand!  I'll have lots of blog posts for you next week!

Anne and Jonathan laughed a lot during their wedding day on Friday - through the portraits, ceremony and reception.  It was a pretty good indication of how much fun they were having together, and it made it really easy to photograph them throughout the evening.  When these two initially approached me to shoot their wedding, I turned them down because I had another one scheduled for Saturday and didn't want to do a double-header.  A few rounds of emails with "please" written out numerous times managed to convince me otherwise :)  While the weekend eventually turned into a triple-header (more on that later), I'm still glad I was there to witness Anne and Jonathan's wedding.

You can see all of their SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks to Kelly for helping me shoot this one!

All of the details at Kate and Tony's wedding coordinated beautifully - matching the stained glass windows in St. Peter's Cathedral and the decor of the Grand Hall in Union Station (I particularly loved the flowers she chose.)  And I think Kate managed to do it all without a wedding planner - kudos to her!  A beautiful wedding, and a sweet, fun couple - what else could a photographer ask for?

You can see the whole SLIDESHOW HERE - their first dance song was Beyonce's version of "At Last", which was just too short to get in all the good photos I wanted to add!  Oh well...better to have too many :)  Thanks to Von for her help second shooting.  Congrats Kate and Tony - I hope you enjoy Jamaica!

I heard Janos say on Sunday that every time he looked at Liron he just wanted to cry.  I got that sense from both of them all day - they are such a happy, loving couple.  Their wedding at the Coronado was a blast, with all of the traditional Jewish elements and SO much dancing (crazy props and jump ropes included!)  Liron is from Israel and Janos is from Hungary, so there were several guests there from out of town, and so many different languages flying about.  Even with all the family and hoopla surrounding them, I still got the sense that this couple really enjoyed themselves.   What a wonderful ending to my three-wedding weekend :)

Liron and Janos chose not to go on a honeymoon just yet, and I already heard from Liron that when they got the link to the proofs they connected the computer to a TV so all of the family could watch as they flipped through the images.  So smart!  You can see their SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks again Kelly for shooting with me.  Congrats Liron and Janos!

Melissa and Chris live in Chicago, so they actually booked me for their wedding before we met.  When I did finally meet Melissa, she told me that once she saw on my blog that I am a yoga instructor she knew I would be a good fit for them.  And when I saw her doing yoga in her hotel room before getting dressed for the wedding, I knew they were a good fit for me :) 

Since both ceremony and reception were held at Mad Art, we had initially made plans to take photos in Soulard and Lafayette Park.  But anyone who was outside on Saturday knows it was crazy hot, and no one wanted to get into a car and go stand in the heat for photos (my camera was even sluggish.)  So instead we did all the portraits at the venue, popping in and out of the AC when the humidity became unbearable.  I think we got some cute images, and no one melted - I'll call that a success!

Check out the SLIDESHOW HERE to see more images.  There was so much emotion all day - from tears on both bride and groom during the ceremony to hysterical laughter during the many many toasts - it made for some great images.  Thanks to Von for shooting with me.  Congrats to Melissa and Chris - I hope they enjoy their two week honeymoon in Spain!

Elizabeth and Dan are a goofy couple...mostly because Dan is a goofy guy.  I'm pretty sure the expression he made when Elizabeth came down the aisle was for my benefit (he started getting emotional after that), but it made for a pretty funny image.  I think he made crazy expressions in most of the photos I got of him during the day.  And when he wasn't making a crazy face, he was doing something to make Elizabeth laugh hysterically (like trying to feed her the entire slice of cake.)  That sense of playfulness led to a lot of crazy dancing at the reception as well, which made for a good party with a lot of energy. 

Check out their SLIDESHOW HERE  to see more photos from the day.  Thanks to Michelle for second shooting with me - and congrats to her on her upcoming wedding next month!

It was almost chilly on Saturday for Laura and Bryan's wedding - what a gift in July!  We didn't have to sweat it out during the outdoor portraits, most of which were taken near the couple's house in the Central West End.  I love taking portraits near something important to the couple.  It makes them so much more meaningful.  And how could I forget to mention that they rode from the ceremony to the reception in the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile!  Definitely a first for me :) 

Bryan's family has Macedonian roots, so in addition to the American tradition of the cake cutting Bryan and Laura participated in the tradition of breaking the bread (there may be a more traditional name for this that I missed!)  Basically all of the reception gets out on the dance floor in big circles and dances around, taking turns to pay $1 to dance with the bread.  At the end, the couple breaks the bread, and the individual who gets the larger side is said to be the one who will be in charge of the household.  Turns out these guys broke the bread dead even down the middle!  

For more images from their day (so many good ones!), the SLIDESHOW IS HERE.  Thanks to Kelly Park for second shooting.  I imagine I won't hear from Laura and Bryan for a while - their upcoming schedule is chaotic.  A two week honeymoon in Thailand (so jealous!), a second wedding ceremony in Ohio, and moving to another state to start new jobs all within the next month!  Best wishes to them with everything they have ahead :)

Angela was a little nervous on her wedding day.  But it wasn't marrying Sean that made her nervous (she was confident about that decision.)  It was the thought of everyone staring at her while she walked down the aisle :)  After the processional, I think Angela felt a lot more relaxed.  It was all smiles and laughter for the rest of the day. 

After the ceremony, we headed to Faust Park for some photos and then on to the reception.  Apparently Angela and Sean know a lot of married people.  When they did the Anniversary Dance at the reception (the tradition where all the married couples come out to dance and the DJ narrows it down to the couple who has been married the longest), the whole dance floor was covered.  At the end there were two couples who had been married longer than 60 years.  That's crazy!  Normally you're lucky to see a couple that's been married over 30 years.   I guess they have some great examples to look up to!

Thanks to Von for shooting with me.  You can view their SLIDESHOW HERE.  I'm off to shoot a wedding in Colorado this weekend - I'll be back next Tuesday.  Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Caitie and I went to high school together, but I hadn't seen her since we graduated.  She found me on Facebook, discovered that I photographed weddings, and hired me to fly out for her wedding in Colorado this past weekend.  And I'm glad she did!  It was a beautiful wedding at The Sanctuary.  The lighting was a bit of a challenge photographically (a seriously backlit ceremony, and reception with high vaulted ceilings and walls of windows), but I like how the images turned out.  Check out the SLIDESHOW HERE.

Lisa served as my second shooter, and did a wonderful job.  This wedding reminded me what it's like to shoot in Colorado, and I'm excited to get back and shoot mountain weddings once again.   I will miss some of the great St. Louis venues and cool run-down buildings, though.

Congrats to Caitie and Brian!

I haven't posted album pages before, but this one makes me laugh.  It is a two page spread from Ashley and Adam's wedding last year.  That's Adam going nuts on the dance floor.  It was Ashley's idea to do it like a filmstrip so you could see the many phases of Adam's dance moves.  Click the image to see it larger.

Jackie's purple shoes for the wedding were fantastic.  She said she wanted something she would wear again after the wedding.  I personally can't imagine a circumstance in which I would wear bright purple heels (I'm always barefoot or in flip flops!) but they looked completely fabulous with her dress.  And she managed to wear them all night, so they must be comfy.  I'm sure she'll find a great use for them down the road.

After a ceremony at St. Cecilia's, we did some photos in Tower Grove Park and down at the City Garden, and headed to the reception at the Crowne Plaza downtown.  Both St. Ceclia's and the Crowne Plaza were exceptionally dark - good thing I'm not afraid of a high ISO :)  Thanks Kelly Park for shooting with me.  You can see the SLIDESHOW HERE.

Sheena loves having her photo taken.  Tim...not so much.  But he was a good sport about it on his wedding day Saturday, even braving the planters full of bees to get the photos his new bride wanted.  And after enduring the humidity, climbing through the mud, and smiling for about an hour and a half, Sheena let Tim off the hook.  As a reward, they spent the next few hours eating at Steak and Shake and partying in the bus with their wedding party before moving on to the reception. 

You can view Sheena and Tim's SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks to Stephanie for shooting with me on such a rainy, muddy day.  Congrats to the new couple - have a fantastic time on your upcoming honeymoon in Jamaica!

Kelly and Joe had a beautiful wedding.  So beautiful, in fact, that Von and I shot 5,052 images of it.  But with a ceremony at the Shrine of St. Joseph downtown, and a reception at the Crowne Plaza in Clayton, we just couldn't help it.  It didn't help that everyone was on the dance floor at the reception, either.  At one point the wedding party was trying to get me dancing as well, offering to take my camera for me.  It was nearing the end of my 11th hour of shooting and I was feeling pretty lame, so I refused (plus I am never willing to hand over my very expensive camera to a slightly inebriated groomsmen :) ).  I hope the couple wasn't offended that I didn't dance with them - I was still celebrating with them in spirit!

You can view more photos in the SLIDESHOW HERE.  Congrats Kelly + Joe - thanks for letting me be a part of your wedding!

Jennifer and Patrick were graced with a beautiful fall day (the colors are turning early this year!) for their wedding on Saturday.  It was just a touch chilly, though, so after a few outdoor photos we went to their hotel to let the wedding party warm up.  The Hotel Lumiere has a cool lobby, but it was full of Fashion Week stuff.  Regardless, I think the photos we took in the lobby and in their room at the hotel are some of my favorites.

The reception, at Windows on Washington, was a great party.  I think the highlight was Patrick doing his rendition of "I'm on a Boat" - possibly the funniest thing I've seen at a wedding in the last year.  Tempting as it was to use that song for their slideshow, I opted for their first dance song instead.  You can watch the SLIDESHOW HERE. 

This was my last wedding of the 2009 season in St. Louis.  Thanks for making it a great one, guys!