Allie & Fiona | Wedding at the Hyatt in South Boston

This wedding! These two! Happiness abounds. We first met Fiona a few years back when she went through our Photography Mentorship program. We take a small number of individuals per year whom we mentor one-on-one to help them reach their photography goals. We loved getting to know Fiona during that time, and was excited to learn about Allie coming into her life shortly after that season. It wasn't long before they were engaged and planning a wedding in Boston. They share a love of rescue dogs, their own sweet pups topping the charts of their affection. It was only fitting that Lena and Flip play a part of their wedding day, and they made donations toward a local rescue as part of their wedding experience. Even their reception tables were named after dog breeds. Chuck had the honor of photographing their big day at the Hyatt Harborside on the East side of Boston (with the most beautiful view of the skyline!) and brought along the fabulous Vina to second shoot. Fiona is from Ireland, so many guests traveled across the world to share in their big day with them, as well as brought some serious Irish dance moves to the floor. Chuck reports that is was one of the most fun dance floors he's ever photographed. We couldn't be happier for these two and know that their future together will include much joy and a healthy dose of dog snuggles. Congratulations Allie and Fiona!!

Noelle + Chris = Married

Noelle and Chris had such a fantastic wedding day. It's always such a treat for me to photograph a wedding in my hometown of Yankton, South Dakota - and their wedding was no exception. The day started at the Historic Cramer Kenyon house where the ladies all got ready together. The house was buzzing with excitement when I arrived and Noelle was cool as a cucumber, handling any day-of nerves like a pro. She opened gifts from Chris which included a stunning necklace and tickets to see Beyoncé live (nice work, Chris) as laughter echoed through the hallways. Having your wedding party get ready at a home or historic place like this makes for such a great mood as the final preparations occur. Chris and his guys made their way to the Cramer Kenyon house in time for the bride and groom to share a private first look. Noelle beams when she's around Chris, and Chris is pretty much always smiling when Noelle is around. The rest of the day went off without a hitch: we went to the Lewis and Clark Lake for some fun bridal party photos, asked Noelle and Chris to trust us as we dragged them to the most random field off the side of the road for couple portraits, their ceremony by the Missouri River was beautiful and heartfelt, and the party was filled with laughter and fun down the road at the historically renovated Old Mill wedding reception space downtown...it was a good day. The party wouldn't have been complete without the outpouring of love from their family and friends who showed so much support for the newlyweds (the pizza fest for dinner also didn't hurt anything!) Noelle and Chris, we are so happy for you two. Congratulations on such an exciting time in your lives!

Megan + Jennifer = Married

Megan and Jen's Wedding at Heartland Restaurant in Saint Paul was a delight to photograph. As we've gotten to know these two throughout their engagement, we've learned that they are not only well suited for each other, they bring so much joy into people's lives with their generous hearts, boundless talents and compassionate outlook on life. They have been together for a long time (they have the sweetest daughter) but it wasn't until recently they decided to make their commitment a legal union. A few highlights from their wedding included a traditional Japanese flute and drum performance featuring the brides' very own ensemble which brought a personal touch to their ceremony. Their guests shared various readings and accolades throughout the day which left few without dry eyes. And of course the phenomenal food Heartland provided for the guests brought Megan and Jen's vision for an intimate gathering with really good food to life. All in all, it was a great day and we were honored to tell Megan and Jen's wedding story. Congratulations to the newlyweds!

Lif + James = Married

What a lovely little wedding this was! Lif and James were married with an audience of three guests back in April. James grew up here in the states, and Lif grew up aborad, but Minnesota brought them together. They will be celebrating with two more traditional weddings (one here and one abroad!) but wanted to make their commitment legal before they waited any longer. They had a brief ceremony at the Semple Mansion in Minneapolis and I joined them afterward for some portraits around the Mansion and since it was rainy we hit up one of our favorite Minnesota indoor spots - the Como Conservatory in Saint Paul. The lush greenhouse provided a beautiful backdrop for the newlyweds who were literally giddy with excitement at their new state as husband and wife. It made my job a piece of cake as they waltzed through the Conservatory on their cloud of wedded bliss. Lif and James, thanks for trusting us to capture this special day, we know there will be so much happiness in your future together! Congratulations!

Autumn + Kate = Married

We love this wedding and this couple for so many reasons. The one that sticks out the most though, has to be their natural ability to make each other smile. In their vows, Kate promised to keep Autumn safe, and Autumn promised to keep Kate wild. How beautiful is that? Their entire wedding day was filled with genuine love and infectious laughter. We could not wipe the smiles off our faces watching these newlyweds together and know the world will be a better place because they are together. Some highlights from the day included taking photos in front of the Bob Dylan mural downtown Minneapolis (with NO cars in front of the wall, thank-you universe!) and watching their guests (unsuccessfully) resist the impressive dessert table. And when I say impressive I mean IMPRESSIVE. Their day in one word could easily be summed up as: happiness. Congratulations Autumn and Kate! We are so happy for you both.

Bohemian Proposal Editoral Shoot

Well hello there! We've taken our annual blogging hiatus for the month of January and are excited to share this project on the blog with you today. Late last summer, the National Stationer Wedding Paper Divas reached out to us about doing a wedding inspiration project with one of their paper suites. We were intrigued and then promptly gathered some of our favorite Minnesota wedding vendors to collaborate on the project. Lizie from Lizie Anne Weddings and Proposals, set the stage with a concept she dreamt up for a Bohemian Wedding Proposal among dreamy weeping willow trees. The lovely Tara from A Day in Provence  joined forces to create lush, bright florals for our scene that complimented the summery green foliage. Julie from Julie Swenson Beauty made our models even more beautiful with breezy hair and makeup and our real-couple Paige and Savaughn who made my job a piece of cake. The shoot was featured on 100 Layer Cake last week which felt like just the right avenue to share with their readers. It's always fun for us to work on these sorts of projects because it's not often we (as vendors) get full creative control with a team who shares the same vision. Then, by the time wedding season comes we have new vendors to recommend to our couples who are looking to round out their wedding day team. It's a win-win for us all, and this shoot definitely makes us anxious to get the 2016 wedding season rolling!