Wow, it has been way too long since I posted! Hopefully you all are still around after my week hiatus on the blog. Thank you for coming back, I am so excited to share with you the wedding of Ashley & John! There are so many images I want to post from their wedding, so sit back, relax, and enjoy!
Ashley and John were married on May 1st near Verona, on a warm and breezy spring day. When we arrived at the church to take photos of the girls getting ready, the sun was shining, the lilacs blooming, and everyone was buzzing around the small church with excitement. It was a perfect day!
Ashley had these adorable hoodies made for her bridesmaids - I love em'!
While the girls were getting ready, we kidnapped the dress and Ashley's accessories to have some fun! I absolutely loved this little church. Large, beautiful stained glass windows with really unique chairs, and all natural lighting... and not to mention Ashley's dress was gorgeous!
The flowers accented the beautiful spring day perfectly.
Ashley didn't believe me that it would take an army to put on her dress, but needless to say almost everyone in the room got involved - and she looked stunning! This is always one of my favorite times during the day. To see the transformation from ordinary to bride is so exciting!
The little church was a flurry of activity and excitement. I love the picture I caught on the left of John's step mom :)
Now the only thing left to this wedding equation is a groom! John was pretty good at staying out of the view of my camera before the ceremony, but I did catch him awaiting the ceremony with the Pastor. I am sneaky :)
Let the ceremony begin! There were 4 beautiful bridesmaids that came down the aisle before this little girl, but she was just so cute I decided to skip right to her!
Here comes the bride! (Kaitlin's shot is on the left)
Throughout the past year that I have known and met John, I can tell he is a very even keel kind of guy. Never showing too much emotion one way or another. It was very touching seeing him tear up a little as he watched his future wife walk down the aisle. This is why I love my job, getting to witness these beautiful moments never gets old!
:)
The ceremony was beautiful. Short and sweet, and Pastor Sarah even made the first Ole & Lena joke that I've ever heard in a wedding ceremony - it was great!
Announcing for the first time Mr. & Mrs. Deal!
Having fun with just the ladies....
The guy's turn...
Everyone together!
This one cracks me up... so everyone wanted to do a jumping shot. Well when it came down to it, I counted to three and, well, everyone forgot to jump. We were all cracking up. This was attempt three or four I think!
Since Ashley looked absolutely gorgeous, we stole her away for a few pictures by herself. Stunning!
Doin' the bustle... not quite as fun as the hustle... lol
The whole wedding party then gathered up and headed to a local little bar... where calamity ensued!
Cheers!
Event Details:
Church: Zwingli United Church of Christ, Belleville
Reception: Deer Creek Sportsmans Club, Mount Vernon
Cake: Family Member
Catering: Hosley
Flowers:
Now onto the party!
One of John and Ashley's grandmas made the cake. Isn't it beautiful?! She did such a great job. It was so cute to watch her during cake cutting, spying from a corner to make sure that everything was going ok. Precious. And speaking of precious, this cake topper looks just like their little doggies!
Ashley and John made a grand entrance - he carried her all the way across the reception hall!
Touching speeches by the best man and maid of honor, I like the photo on the right, looks like the speech was a little too close to home!
Awe snap you two are cute!
Ashley's Dad gave a very touching speech, but told them that they don't have to have Grandkids quite yet ;)
As the guests were enjoying their cake, I snuck Ashley and John outside into the beautiful setting sun (insert photographer freak out), I love these images, thanks guys for indulging me!
I'm lovin' the one on the left
I think a little celebration was in order!
Then it was on to dancing! Ashley and John shared their first dance
Ashley & her dad
Alright, now it's time to get down! BOOGIE! (ehm, that is uber dorky... I mean DANCE!)
Ashley and John: thank you so much for inviting me into your lives to capture your wedding day. I had a great time getting to meet all of your wonderful friends and family, you two are truly blessed! What I loved about your wedding was your commitment to keep things simple. The best advice I can muster up is to do the same in your lives. It's so easy to get caught up in all of the details, that you forget what brought you together in the first place - love. Nothing but the best for the two of you!
Also, a big thank you to Kaitlin Benoit of Kaitlin Sheran Photography for coming along with me as a second shooter - you rock girl! Go check out Kaitlin's blog post on the wedding!
http://kaitlinsheranphotography.blogspot.com/2010/05/mr-and-mrs-deal.html
And just for a little extra added bonus, a few shots of Kaitlin and I in action!
Apparently the party is on the ground because that is where we are hanging out - yeah, we're cool like that!
Part one of standing on things I shouldn't stand on (I had to take my flash off because I was wonking it into the ceiling!)
Kaitlin in action! (watch out for the groomsmen with bridesmaid on back coming atcha!)
Part two of standing on things I shouldn't stand on - notice the look on my face on the left. That's because they wanted me to take a shot. And ordered me one. Uh yeah, if I take that I won't remember how to work my camera that's how cool I am!
Thanks for reading! Have a nice weekend everyone!
