Tabitha + Joseph // A Family Celebration - Pt. 2

A Wedding All Their Own

Here is part 2 of Tabitha + Joe's wedding just as promised. I hope that the photos communicate the fun spirit of this wedding, a wedding that was totally their own.

I really loved the non-traditional setting of this wedding - from the outdoor ceremony to the portraits shot on a hill in a nearby park. The feeling of family and friends was all over this wedding, and I loved it. You see my wife was the matron of honor, my daughter was the flower girl, and my brother-in-law officiated the wedding. So familiar faces were all over the place. It was really cool seeing Tabitha and Joe's families come together to celebrate their wedding day.

Shooting this wedding was special for me because I have known Tabitha since we were teenagers. I couldn't help but feel reminiscent of our teenage years! It was amazing seeing her at the alter and then think about where our lives have headed since we were 14.

So enough of my emotional babble and on to the photos. Here are just a few of my favorites from Tabitha + Joe's wedding day:

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So my many thanks to Tabitha and Joe for having me be a part of their wedding. It really is a pleasure and honor to photograph someone's wedding, it's one of the coolest jobs I can think of. My many thanks also go to the fabulous, and super talented, Suzy Rohan for assisting and shooting with me. I always have a blast working with her. You rock Suzy!

By The Way: During the formal portraits we were invaded by a small army of gnats. We had completed about 80% of the formals. My temptation was to move to a new location, and spend more of my clients time, but I knew that having all of the portraits in the same location would look best. Stick to your vision even if there are nasty little gnats annoying the entire family of the bride and groom :)

Playing in Andy Warhol's Silver Clouds // Grace Turns 4

Silver Balloons Make Me Happy

A good time for me involves a few things: cool balloons, a beautiful afternoon, good food, and taking portraits of a 4 year old full of energy. Thus, this shoot was a good time indeed.

The portraits took place in Crown Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology - I love the IIT campus! It's a great place to take portraits - it's peaceful and full of locations and amazing backgrounds. The coolest part of Crown Hall was Andy Worhol's "Silver Clouds" exhibit, as well as the Lego City exhibit. This made for an amazing and interesting photo shoot. Running through and around the silver balloons was a blast, and almost surreal. I could feel my imagination running at warp speed.

The portrait session ended at Pompei on Taylor street. I hadn't intended on shooting there, but the location and lighting was perfect for some candid and posed portraits of Grace. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of the day:

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Check out more of Crown Hall and the IIT campus.

Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Nikon 50mm f/1.4

Tamron 12-24mm f/4.0

Nikon SB-800

Nikon CLS for OCF

30" Umbrella

Adobe Lightroom 3 for editing

By The Way: Be a kid in order to take some fun photos of kids. I had a blast running though the balloons, and I am sure that Grace noticed my willingness to be a kid.

Henry Turns 3 // Hanging Out in Oak Park

Just Hanging Around

Henry's 3 year photo shoot was a cool and chilled out session - just check out his Superman shirt and Keens! We, my family and his, met up at the Caribou Coffee on Lake St. and Oak Park Ave. We ordered some drinks and I started taking photographs, all while chatting and hanging out. I guess this could have been considered my first ever lifestyle session.

After the coffee stop (no, the kids didn't drink coffee) we walked around the quaint Oak Park downtown area, where we found a few cool places to shoot. We then walked over to Scoville Park and finished the shoot there. The last three photos are from the park.

It was pretty much the perfect afternoon: hung out with friends, beautiful weather, ate good pizza, and took some cool photos. Here are a few of my favorite photos from our portrait session:

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Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Nikon SB-800

Pocket Wizards (2)

30" Reflector

Lastolite EzyBox Softbox

Adobe Lightroom 3 for editing

The Park District of Forest Park

By The Way: Shoot wherever the light looks best. There was beautiful reflective light inside the Caribou Coffee shop. I hadn't planned on shooting inside, but the light and location made for a great starting point to our session. Rock on!

My Pride & Joy Turns 3 // And Her Myriad Expressions

Time Really Does Fly By

My daughter just turned 3 and I still cannot make sense of how fast that happened. I still remember my wife being pregnant with our daughter, and how special that time was. I remember how we would try to image our daughters face, or how her laugh would sound.

But now she's here, loud and clear! I love her laughter and I gaze at her beauty everyday. I cannot imagine my life without her, nor can I imagine what I used to do without her in my life. What did I do with all of that free time :)

Here are a few of my favorite photos from our shoot. We shot these in the beautiful Sunken Gardens on Homan and Polk St.

Please indulge a proud dad and check out a few of these with me:

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Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Nikon 50mm f/1.4

Alien Bee 400

Pocket Wizards (2)

30" Reflector

Adobe Lightroom 3 for editing

By The Way: Kids never seem to stop moving. So I generally move with them. But stick to your guns and get the shot that you envisioned. I plopped my Alien Bee and battery pack and shot away until I got what I wanted.

Almost Too Cute // Chicago Fun Kids Portraits

The “Hat” Photoshoot

Hattie is seriously a little cutie. This shoot was a lot different from her 3 month shoot, but a ton of fun nonetheless. She was just so easy to work with, and those hats were amazing!

The idea for this shoot was to do something a little different and to create some colorful images. The lighting set-up was simple: one light with a beauty dish modifier and colorful background. Here are a few of my favorites:

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Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Alien Bee 400

Pocket Wizards (2)

22" Beauty Dish

Adobe Lightroom 3 for editing

By The Way: Sometimes a very simple light set-up is all that is needed to create some fun photographs. Total time for this set-up was about 4 minutes, and total shooting time was abut 12 minutes or so. Rock on!

Chicago Wedding Vendors Unite // Thanks Tweet-Up!

I had the honor of being the official photographer at the Wedding Industry Cocktail Hour Tweet-Up hosted by the amazing Five Grain Events and bon moment! - Joan and Maureen, you gals are amazing!

Amazing Chicago Wedding Vendors

The event was held at Elate Restaurant in the Hotel Felix Chicago. It was the perfect setting for the event. The location and style of the restaurant was really inspiring. Thanks Elate!

Other sponsored wedding vendors were the talented Keiko of Keiko Studio. Her floral arrangements were amazing and very unique. I had never seen floral arrangements with pieces of lime before. Awesome stuff indeed.

Candice of cacao sweets & treats provided the delicious treats that we all enjoyed. I loved seeing her work, and tasting it too!

My many thanks to Joan and Maureen for making this event happen. I had a great time meeting with so many Chicago wedding vendors. I was also able to catch up with a few old friends. I look forward to the next meeting. Rock on!

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Elate At The Hotel Felix Chicago 111 West Huron Street Chicago, IL 60654-8706 (312) 202-9900

Tabitha + Joseph // A Family Celebration - Pt. 1

We Go Way Back

Tabitha and my wife, Christina, are best friends and have known each other forever. I met Tabitha when I was 16 years old, so we go way back as well. In fact, Tabitha was there the night that I asked Christina to be my girlfriend, and was also there on our first date. She means a ton to us, so it was an amazing experience being her wedding photographer. What a treat!

A Few Quick Pics

I am so excited about how well Tabitha + Joe's wedding went. It was supposed to rain the entire day, but we were able to somehow dodge the rain. In fact, the sun came out the moment she started walking down the aisle - NO JOKE! It was awesome.

Here are a few pics from her wedding that I am pumped to share. More to come for sure!

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By The Way: Let's keep a positive outlook when it comes to weather. The most important part of a wedding is that the couple wed - plain and simple. So we must keep that in mind when the rain is pouring or the humidity is at suffocating levels :)

Jennifer + Rob // Naperville Wedding Photography

The Wedding Photographer Connection

I met Steven Chellappa about a year ago. Steve is my boy and a fellow wedding photographer. I shot a wedding with him earlier this year and went on a photo adventure late last year. We ht it off quickly and have fun every time we hang out.

The Long & Short of It

So Jennifer if Steve's sister - in case you were wondering who Steve was. He forwarded her my info, she emailed me, we set up a meeting, I photographed her wedding, and now you're reading the blog post about her wedding. That's how I met Jennifer and Rob in nutshell.

Jennifer, Rob, and I met up at a local Starbucks and it's safe to say that I liked them right away. They kind of reminded me of my wife and I before we married. They posses this quietness and integrity that I rarely get to see in a younger couple. They're both crazy bright and a lot of fun to talk with. It was cool getting to know them as I listened to them share about how they met. I was excited to meet Steve's family and spend time with them at Jennifer's wedding. It was such a beautiful wedding and Jennifer looked amazing in her dress. I am sure Rob would agree. Shooting with my girl, Jaclyn Simpson, made this wedding even more of a blast.

Awesome Naperville Wedding Vendors

All weddings are a huge collaboration of many talented vendors. This wedding was no exception. Here are the vendors that made the wedding amazing: • Jennifer's hair was done by the talented Mia Sorella Salon & Boutique - Tiffany Christiansen rocked it out and was great to work with. • Floral arrangements by Karen's Floral Expressions - The bouquets looked amazing and were a blast to photograph. • The wedding & reception were at the beautiful Meson Sabika out in Naperville.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from Jennifer + Rob's wedding:

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By The Way: Always be ready to think on your feet! Weddings are great events, though sometimes the day goes by a little faster than expected and thus we have to make quick decisions about locations, posing, and lighting. But remember: creativity is brought on by limitations. Rock it out!

Happy Anniversary Vanessa + Luis // 07.25.09

One year Ago

It was one year ago today that Vanessa + Luis tied the knot in the beautiful Holy Cross Church. I was so honored to have been their wedding photographer and to have experienced their amazing wedding day. You can see the original post here. Congratulations to you guys. I hope that you had a great year - and here's to MANY more!

Here are a few of my favorite photos from Vanessa + Luis' wedding:

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Laughter & Love // Elysia + Donny Married

Donny The iPod Guy

It's an honor doing what I do. Photographing my bride and groom is something I never take for granted. Elysia + Donny's wedding was particularly an honor because they are my friends - and they are totally into each other :)

I met Donny back when I was a student at The Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago where we were both Visual Communications (graphic design) majors. Donny was the first person I ever met that owned an iPod - remember how big and monochromatic they used to be? That pretty much made him the coolest person I knew at that point in my life. As time passed I got to know him and had the chance to work on a few jobs together. He's a brilliant person, and both compassionate and crazy talented. Yes, he's one of "those" people, the type that just get things so much quicker than most. Oh, my daughter loves him and he introduce me to Penny's Noodles. What more can I say?

So one day I hear that he and Elysia are getting married! My wife and I flipped (not literally). You see, we had secretly been hoping that they would wed. I totally wanted to shoot their wedding and was so glad that he and Elysia felt the same. They are amazing people, the kind you just want to hang with, chat, laugh, and have meals with.

Awesome Chicago Wedding Vendors

Weddings are all about collaborations. And when each do their part, amazing things happen. These Chicago wedding vendors rock:

• Floral arrangements by the amazing fleur - Kelly and her crew did an amazing job!!! • Elysia's dress was custom made by Dame Couture in Evanston. • Location: Glessner House Museum and Woman's Park and Garden in the South Loop.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from Elysia + Donny's wedding:

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Elysia and Donny: thank you again for having Christina and I be a part of such an amazing day in your lives. Seeing you guys make your vows was so inspiring. I hope that you have amazing futures and that we have many more dinner dates. You guys rock!

My thanks also go to my friend Nick for assisting me. You rock Nick!

Glessner House Museum 1800 S. Prairie Avenue Chicago, IL. 60616 312.326.1480 fax - 312.326.1397

By The Way: I always listen to and enjoy the vows made at the ceremony. This is what the wedding day is really all about! I know as photographers we want to capture those really cool and sexy photos after - but let's enjoy all aspects of the wedding day.

It's All About The Album! Collages.net Brilliant Album

I am really excited to share my Collages.net Brilliant Album with you all. The look and feel of this wedding album is stunning - it is both solid and elegant. You might be tempted to think that I am "supposed" to say all of this stuff because it is the album that I offer my clients. But that just isn't the case. I loved this album the first time I held it in my hands. I imagined my clients photos on the pages and got really excited. Heck, I thought how awesome my wedding photos would look on these pages. This album rocks, from the high gloss/full bleed cover, to the awesome printing job, to the flush-mount pages. I am so glad to provide my clients such a quality product as this.

Here are a few photos (these pictures don't do this album justice): [gallery link="file" columns="1" size="large" orderby="title"]

            

By The Way: Brides - Getting a wedding album should totally be on your wedding to-do-list. I wish that my wife and I could have ordered a wedding album like this one. Were these type of albums available 8 years ago? Instead I have a few framed prints and a shoe box full of negatives. All of your weddings memories should be in one place and an album is the perfect solution.

I Love These Kids! Chicago Fun Kid Portraits

I really do love these kids. The first two lil' ones I have known since they were newborns and the last is my daughter. These are milestone photos, as the older ones are turning 3 and the little Hatted Cuttie is 6 months old. It has been so cool seeing these kiddos grow up and being there taking their portraits along the way. More pics to come. [gallery columns="1" size="large"]

Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Nikon SB-800

Pocket Wizards (2)

30" Reflector

Lastolite EzyBox Softbox

Adobe Lightroom 3 for editing

The Park District of Forest Park

            

By The Way: Patience is indeed a virtue. Photographing kids is a challenge, but the return on that energy/patience investment is amazing.

On the Fasttrack // One Year Later

It's been a little over a year now that I attended the Dane Sanders Fasttrack Roadshow - now the Fasttrack Workshops. I decided not to blog about my experience right away because I felt - and feel - that an experience like I had would take time to show its fruits. I mean I could have written something like "Wow, I had such a great time at the Fasttrack Workshop! Dane is a really cool guy. I am so glad I went to the Workshop. You should go too." I felt that saying something like that would have been without heart and a bit empty. The Roadshow meant a whole lot to me and I wanted to share just a bit of what has happened in the last year.

This Is My Life/My Business

The biggest reason that I'm a big fan of Dane's Workshop is that it centers around "you" - well, in this case "me." So many other workshops or seminars are centered around f/stops and posing. The technical stuff is essential, but at this point in my photography career I needed more: more substance, more insight, more business savvy, etc. And this Workshop delivered on that, and then some. Seriously, it was a game changer for me in terms of how I viewed myself and my business. It helped me to mature and to view myself, business, and peers differently and with more respect.

These People Are Awesome!

I love the Fasttrack community. I met some really amazing people at the Workshop, and have since met a ton of them via the Fasttrack Forums and WPPI. It was cool meeting other photographers that were like me - wanting more and wanting change.

What stood out to me about this community was how open and willing everyone was to share about their life/business/art, etc. And I firmly believe that Dane Sanders attracts such people because he is such a person. His honesty and openness were refreshing, and his love for people was unexpected.

On The Fasttrack - or at least the Righttrack

So have I "arrived" at a better place in my photography career because of the Workshop? Well, life is a journey and the Workshop was an amazing stop for me. My goal in life is never not "arrive", but to constantly grow, change, and get better.

So with that goal in mind I have to say that the Workshop did help with my photography business. The Workshop is worth every last penny, and then some. If you are on the fence about going, then just get off of the fence and go. I know that I could have written so much more about my experience, but no one would want to read that much. Feel free to contact me and I will gladly share my experience with you or even answer any questions.

Dane, thank you for sharing so much with the photography community. I appreciate what you are about. You really give of yourself unlike anyone I have ever met in this industry. I hope to see you again at either Skips Summer School or at WPPI 2011.

Thank you.

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By The Way: Continued education and networking are such vital parts of our photography business. I encourage you to check out workshops like this one, but do your homework first and make sure that it is what you need. There are so many workshops out there, but not all are what you need right now.

Araceli + Mike // Navy Pier Engagement Photography

So here is the rest of the post that I blogged last week as promised :) First off, Araceli + Mike were so much fun to work with. Their willingness to try things and forgo the original shooting plan was amazing. Secondly, I loved that they came prepared to be photographed, both in spirit and wardrobe (I mean, C'mon, just look at her dress!). These 2 things made for an amazing experience. That and Navy Pier looks amazing after a day of rain.

The original plan was to meet up at Milton Lee Olive Park, a.k.a. Olive Park, and shoot the engagement photos at the beach. Well, that didn't work out as planned due to rain making the beach look less appealing than usual. So we walked around Olive Park (which I LOVE) and made use of the many nooks and crannies available to shoot in and around. That park is seriously like a candy store for photographers. I had my friend and fellow photographer Jenn assist and second shoot with me. I am so glad that she was there. She is awesome and helped out a ton.

We then headed out to Navy Pier and hung out inside to wait out the rain - yes, it started raining again. A few places were closed off around Navy Pier, which was a bummer. But we were still able to shoot at the indoor garden, the one with the cool water arches. After the rains came and left the dramatic clouds rolled in and the sun came out for a while. Very cool and I could not have asked for a better day to shoot. We went outdoors and finished the shoot to a beautiful sunset.

Here are a few of my favorite images:

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Thank you again Araceli + Mike! This was an amazing shoot and I am glad that I could serve you both. I hope you guys have an amazing wedding in Mexico. I look forward to hearing about it.

            

By The Way: Again, stick to your guns and do the shoot. The rain kept coming and going all day and I was tempted to cancel the shoot. After talking with Araceli we decided to shoot!

Something A Little Different // Matt Pond PA Show

My friend Todd invited me to the Matt Pond PA show a few weeks back. The band was playing at Lincoln Hall, which is a really cool and intimate venue - a perfect place to see a band like Matt Pond PA. I had never heard of the band, but was won over by a few of the tracks on their site. I love going to live shows, so I was pretty pumped and ready to see, feel, and hear some new music. It was amazing being so close to the band. I love seeing how the band members interact with each other at live shows, as well as how they communicate and play together. It was a great night all around: I enjoyed some food/drink with some of my favorite people and the bands were amazing. Here are a couple of my favorite photos from the night.

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By The Way: I challenged myself to only one lens for this show. I took my nifty-fifty and shot mostly at f/2.0. It was cool seeing how differently I shot the band compared to if I had brought my wide or zoom lens.

Congrats to the 2010 Grads // Graduation Portraits

Graduation season is upon us. It's easy to take this season for granted if you don't know anyone that is graduating. But if you have a family member or friend that is graduating, then it is a big deal. It's such an honor to be graduating, to be done with school, to have completed your studies. And what a perfect time to not only document this time, but to do so with a beautiful portrait! I am so privileged/honored to have spent time with these outstanding graduates and to have taken their portraits. What is even cooler is that they will forever have these photos of themselves on the day they graduated from college. They will be able to show these to their children, and for now can share them on Facebook and show their family and friends, with pride, that they have graduated.

My many thanks to the graduates: Mickey, Edwardo, Maureen, and Dana! Here are a few of my favorite graduation photos:

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By The Way: Shooting in different environments is so much fun. Mickey's portraits were on location at Northeastern University. Edwardo's portraits were in my home-studio. Maureen and Dana's graduation portraits were taken in Forest Park. Different locations bring with them challenging lighting situations and we must be quick on our feet.

Oak Park Family Portraits // The Shannon Family

I received 2 separate emails a few weeks back, on the same day, asking if I was available to do family portraits. Cool. Not a problem. Both emails were asking for the same type of portraits and then were asking if I was available for the same date. That was a little odd. I thought "hey, two family portrait sessions on the same day works for me." I come to find, a few days later, that it is the same family inquiring. Pretty funny stuff indeed. So that is how I met the Shannon family, a beautiful and warm family from Chicago. They were looking for both family portraits and graduation portraits, as both daughters were graduating from college. I was really excited about this shoot as it would take place outdoors and in Oak Park - 2 places I am fond of. The shoot ended up taking place in Forest Park, the park on Harlem Ave. and Lake St. But I digress.

I was finally able to meet Maureen and her family - what a great group of people, and they all looked amazing! This shoot was truly a family event as my wife and daughter hung out with us as we photographed the Shannon family. This had to be one of the most relaxed and fun shoots in a while, and all thanks to the Shannon's. They were just cool, laid back, and fun to be around.

I had my friend, the very talented Nick Wrzesinski, shoot with and assist me on this family session. It was awesome having Nick there to help with lighting and second shooting. He captured some amazing portraits!

Here are a handful of my favorite photos:

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Set-Up

Nikon D700 - shooting in RAW

Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8

Nikon 50mm f/1.4

Alien Bee 400

Pocket Wizards (2)

Medium Softbox

Adobe Lightroom 2 for editing

The Park District of Forest Park

            

A Wedding with Style // Adler Planetarium Wedding Photography

I had a great time seconding shooting with my friend and fellow wedding photographer Veronica Hinojosa a few weeks back. We had the privilege of documenting Adriana & Steven's wedding. My day started over at Steven's house, over in Alsip, where I met him and his family. What a warm and funny family! I must say, I had a great time being around them. Seeing them work as a family unit was inspiring to say the least. After a few family portraits we headed over to the beautiful St. Mary of Perpetual Help Church.

After the ceremony we went around Chicago for the bridal party photos. We visited the Adler Planetarium first and then went to the Kinzie Street Bridge. The weather was a bit on the gray/gloomy side, but this was a fun group and they didn't care, so neither did we. The rains were held and the Adler Planetarium and Kinzie Street Bridge are great places to photograph, so no worries. Onwards to the reception!

The reception was held at the Chateau Bu-Sche in Alsip, IL. The decor was spot on and the reception was beautiful.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from Adriana + Steven's wedding:

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My many thanks to Adriana & Steven and to their amazing families for being such a joy to be around. And a huge shout-out to V for having her own style and for having me shoot another sweet wedding with her.

            

By The Way: Seconding shooting is a TON of fun. But I never forget that I am there to assist the main shooter - this helps make our days go a lot smoother.

When It Rains It Gets Colorful

This past Sunday was pretty wild in terms of the weather. The morning was amazingly beautiful - blue skies and all. By the afternoon the clouds started rolling in. By the early afternoon it was POURING! But then it stopped, but then it started again, and so on and so forth. It was a bit frustrating, but "the shoot must go on" I kept telling myself. And the shoot did go on at Navy Pier and it was an amazing shoot with dramatic clouds and a pretty darn cool couple. Here is a quick sneak peak of sorts. More to come.

            

By The Way: Stick to your guns and do the shoot - that is of course if your client is also willing.

Zion Wedding Photography // Melanie + Ashley Married

I met Melanie and Ashley through my friend Jill, whose wedding I photographed 2 years ago. It's always so cool and encouraging to get a referral from a past bride whose wedding I photographed. It means that they were willing to give my info out without me having to ask. That is good stuff indeed. So thanks Jill for introducing me to this fun and loving couple! It's been really fun getting to know Melanie and Ashley (M+A) - I liked them right away and I could tell that they really cared for each other. What was there not to like? They're both fun and creative, love to laugh (Ashley), mad comm skills (Melanie), and had custom Chuck's made for their wedding. Enough said.

Their wedding took place in Zion, Illinois at the Illinois Beach Resort and Conference Center. The coastline of Lake Michigan looked sweet that day - thanks dramatic clouds! It was my first commitment ceremony, so I was very excited. The day started off really rainy and overcast. I was hopeful it would get better. And then it got REALLY cold. I think it got down to like 50 degrees at one point. I was still hopeful it would get better - I had to since the wedding was to be outdoors. The rain was still coming down as M+A walked down the aisle, but I could see that the clouds were going away. It finally stopped raining as the ceremony began (finally!) and then never rained again. Awesome!

Shooting at Illinois Beach was really cool. The sand and dramatic clouds made for an amazing setting. M+A were totally up for walking around the beach and we all had a blast shooting out there. I was assisted by the talented Suzy Rohan who took some beautiful detail shots and also kept me laughing the entire day.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from M+A's wedding:

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Melanie and Ashley, thank you again for being such a joy to work with. Photographing your commitment ceremony was such an honor and I, too, had a great time. I hope that you have amazing futures, as I am sure that you will. You guys rock! My thanks to my "dos" shooter Suzy again for making that day fun. Your willingness to learn is refreshing.

Illinois Beach Resort & Conference Center 1 Lake Front Drive Zion, IL 60099 (847) 625-7300

            

By The Way: Don't get too discouraged if the weather is nasty. Have a plan B and communicate it with your couple. Setting them at ease is a huge plus and a success to the rest of the day.