Em & M teaser

To say its been a busy three weeks would be an understatement and to say the last three weeks has been an blast would also be an understatement. Three weeks ago we were shooting on the beaches of Santa Barbara, CA and last week we were shooting in the urban setting in Chicago, IL and yesterday we were shooting in woods among the Fall leaves and good friends in Rockford, IL. Trying to keep this brief - Mark and Emily casted their idea to us last winter about hosting their wedding in Emily's mothers backyard. Mark talked about building some wood benches and other things. Well when we arrived to scout last week we walked into a full blown outdoor chapel, and of course  a sweet wood bar for the reception. :) Mark & Emily and their team of friends and family pulled of an amazing DIY wedding - all the way to Emily making all the cakes for everybody. We loved getting to see old friends, meet some new ones and share the day with you two! Congrats again! 

Jeremy and Vienna

In the heart of catching up with past weddings - why not join the throw back Thursday crowd. Here is Jeremy and Vienna's wedding, some really good friends of ours in the midwest. Love these guys - and their style :) From Vienna's brooch bouquet to Jeremy's perfect fit suit and hair, these two were a blast to photograph. With some creative locations like the parking garage of the Church to the forest arboretum - we got some pretty unique photos. Love you guys and wish you the best! 

Eric and Courtney

We are continually catching up on this past summers weddings... :) Heres Courtney and Eric's wedding at the Prairie Street Brew House in Rockford, IL. They had their beautiful wedding on the deck of the old brewery building right along the Rock River, with the skyline of Rockford in the background. The thing with midwest weddings is they yield such a wide variety of possibilites from rain, thunderstorms, snow, fog and of course intense heat in the summer. For Courtney and Eric's wedding it was a heat index of 100 degrees with few clouds in site. But it wasn't just the heat that made the day interesting. Due to some recent construction on the Brew House there was some unseen wear and tear on the deck which caused it to sink down a few inches(it was completely safe :) as the wedding began. Things calmed down and the wedding continued - but what amazed me was Courtney's composure through the whole day. From fighting the heat and pushing thru the deck sinking, she rocked a great smile and was extremely happy through the whole day. A testament to her love for Eric and excitement to marry her best friend. They both also had amazing support from their bridal party. Their bridal party had the energy and love that made it the picturesque group that we love to capture. When it came to photos outside they were so optimistic, willing and just a outgoing group of people.  We didn't have to go to far to find some sweet spots around the Prairie Street Brew House for the bridal party photos and then with the great tact of the groomsman, they had someone bring a car around for Courtney.

The day ended with a great reception inside at the Prairie Street Brew House with lighting and DJ'ing by my good friends company Luxe Production's. From the speeches to the dancing you continued to see the connection and love that all the family and friends had for each other. The final event for the day was the releasing of lanterns down on the dock by the river. The scene was amazing, as if it was out of the movie Tangled. We had such a great time with everybody at this wedding! Definitely looking forward to shooting one of the brides maids wedding this coming Summer!  ~ D