It was a day that's usually all about the future - starting a new life together as husband and wife. But that morning she took a few minutes in the middle of the excitement and rush of getting ready to think about the past - how they got this far. Steps away from the make-up chairs and styling products she had placed a frame on the table. The frame had a large word on the top right corner, "Dreams." In the center of the frame was a picture of the two of them at the very first dance they attended, over seven years before. No doubt it wasn't long after that dance that she started to think about what it would be like to be his wife. She just knew that he was the one for her. But in high school that was just a dream, something that may be possible one day, a day very much in the future.
So on the day when that dream was finally coming true, she took that frame off the wall and put it in a place where she'd see it all morning - a reminder that dreams really can come true. She told her bridesmaids the story of that first dance, laughing about how young they look in the picture. As different as they look today, there is one thing that is exactly the same: the big, bright smiles on their faces.
When it came time to see each other for the first time that day shortly before the ceremony for their "first look," you could see a glimmer of what their first meeting must have been like years before. He smiled at her with that same boyish grin and she looked up at him with a face of pure joy. And just like the day of the first meeting they would share another first dance together that afternoon - this time as husband and wife. As the music started to play and they took to the center of the dance floor it had all come full circle - from one significant dance to another. It was a very different image than the one in the frame on the table at home, but one thing was exactly the same: the big bright smiles on their faces. She closed her eyes for a few seconds in the dance and rested her head on his chest, thinking about just how lucky they are. After all, how many people actually have their dreams come true?
JILL & CHRIS
The morning began bright and early with Jill and her girls. Dana Bartone was doing the finishing touches on Jill's make-up when we arrived to a warm greeting from both of them (we have seen quite a bit of Dana this year, always great to see her!) Jill showed us where her dress and shoes were and we were excited to get started photographing them on the location we had already taken note of on our way in - the very cool stairs on the way up to their place. It had looked like it might rain all morning, but Jill & Chris really lucked out - the rain held off for most of the day. Once Jill was ready we had plenty of time to get some shots of her, which was especially fun since she was up for anything - even going up on the fire escape!
We headed over to Crossroads Church of God for their ceremony, where Chris was waiting with his guys and where we met up with our friend Megan who helped us capture their day. He was very excited for the day to begin and to see Jill. They had their first look outside the church - the two of them both completely elated when they first laid eyes on each other. The ceremony was sweet and romantic and even more special since it was presided over by Chris's day who is a minister. Afterwards we had some fun with the church auditorium, getting some shots of Jill & Chris on the basketball court (how could we pass that up!?). It was a fun compliment to the shots we took over on the grounds of their reception venue, Aqua Turf, where the leaves on the trees created some colorful backdrops - exactly what you'd want for a fall wedding!
Jill & Chris thank you so much for inviting us to be a part of your day. We have loved sharing it with you and hope to see more of you very soon!
Since Jill & Chris' Wedding was a morning wedding we arrived at their apartment incredibly early. Despite the hour we were welcome by a very excited bride and equally as excited bridesmaids. Jill is one of our most loyal blog followers and she had a suggestion for us of where to photograph her dress. Based on our style she thought that the front stairway would be a perfect spot and she was right!
We also used the stairs to grab a couple shots of her shoes and flowers.
Right before Jill got in her dress the girls helped each other with their jewelry and last minute details.
{FILM} I captured this shot of Jill's sister zipping up Jill's dress. We shot a couple rolls of film throughout their day so be sure to be on the lookout for some more film shots throughout this post.
Jill looked absolutely gorgeous and as we like to do we used the natural window light to get this stunning portrait of her.
Once everyone was ready we all headed outside to take advantage of the weather that was starting to clear up. Kathleen captured this shot of Jill coming down the front stairs.
Did we already mention how beautiful Jill looked?
Kathleen and I loved these large bushes on the side of the driveway, the deep green color provided a really nice backdrop for this image.
{FILM} This shot is just a moment later and shot with film. There is something so gorgeous about the subtle grain and timelessness of black and white film.
There was a fire-escape on the back of their house that Jill was more than willing to climb up on for a few shots. These three really make us smile.
We love shooting against all kinds of textures and thought this garage door was fun. We were really loving the fact that we had a bunch of time to get so many bridals of Jill.
Right before heading over to the church we captured this photo of Jill fixing her veil.
Jill & Chris chose to see each other before hand for a first look. I love the anticipation in the first one as Jill starts walking up to Chris and then the smile that comes over his face as he hears her get closer in the second one. First looks are among the sweetest moments and filled with such great emotion.
We took a couple of images right outside the church before heading in for their ceremony. I liked the green grass contrasting with the bricks of the building. The random window was fun too. This is my shot...
...and this is Kathleen's at the same moment.
At the beginning of the ceremony, I love being up front so pretty obviously this is my view...
...and this is Kathleen's a couple minutes later as Jill is being escorted down the aisle by her parents.
Chris patiently waits for his soon-to-be wife as she makes her way down to him.
We first noticed this when we photographed their engagement session. The way they look at each other is simply wonderful and there was no exception during their ceremony.
{FILM} One of their family members decorated the normally very simply church with tooling. It was quite a project from what we understand, it all had to be drawn out and them was very time consuming. It added a nice atmosphere. On another note we shot black and white film during their wedding but will be introducing some really great color film in the future so be sure to be on the lookout!
Out of these three my personal favorite is the happy look on Jill's sister's face as she watches on.
We caught a couple images of Jill's parent's and family as they sat right up front.
See what did I tell you, there is that look again! :)
Almost husband and wife!!
I got right up front in the center aisle and got ready for their first kiss...
{FILM} ...which I thought would be fun to shoot in film.
Kathleen made sure to also capture it in living color! :)
This is one of my favorites from their wedding day, I just love this image. There was this one pew in the back of the church and the way it was positioned underneath this block window really inspired me. We also really love how into each other they were here... and of course they would be, they just got married!
There was a gym / auditorium attached to the church where we thought it would be fun to get a couple of shots before heading over to the Aqua Turf. We really love how a rough textured background contrasts with the clean and smile feel of a wedding gown. It is so beautiful.
Chris grabbed a basketball for this shot. Can you guess what is coming up?
Before they made good use of that basketball we grabbed this fun portrait of Chris.
And then Jill showed of some of her game skills. These two are so much fun, how often do you get to photograph a bride in her dress shooting a couple of hoops?!
After we played for a couple of minutes we grabbed one more relaxed portrait of Chris.
Since Chris' Dad is the minister at this church, the church is obviously very important to them and they wanted us to incorporate it into a photo or two.
When we got to the Aqua Turf we gathered Jill & Chris' Wedding Party together for a few group shots. We were really loving the clouds and the barn in the background.
As if we didn't feel lucky enough, we got some more time with Jill & Chris. Photography is really important to them so they made sure to make time throughout their day. This shot that Kathleen captured is another one of my personal favorites.
{FILM} This is my view at the same moment.
We loved these moments and the fall foliage. These are my views...
...and this is Kathleen's at the same moment.
{FILM} I know that I mentioned it already but we really love the feel and timelessness of film.
A nice and smile portrait, perfect for the mantle or maybe Facebook profile picture! :)
Their contagious smiles continued throughout their first dance. This is Kathleen's shot...
{FILM} ...and this is my view just a moment later.
This bright yellow flower was the perfect place for this shot of their rings.
Cake Cutting!
Jill danced with her Dad...
...and Chris danced with his Mom.
Jill & Chris, we had such a wonderful time (as we knew we would) with you both. Your day was filled with such happiness and we are so glad we got to share it with you. We can't wait to catch up with you soon! ~Rob & Kathleen~
From the happy, excited energy inside the house that morning as she got ready with her bridesmaids you'd never know that dark grey skies were above. She had set the tone for the morning spreading her joy to everyone in the house. When she saw the weather forecast earlier in the week she decided that she wasn't going to let any little rain put a damper on this day. After all you can't always control the weather, but you can control how you feel about it. She already knew that every day since he came into her life was sunnier than any day she had known before, even the rainy days. So when she saw him at the end of the aisle, smiling at her as she walked up to take his hand it wouldn't have mattered if there was a tornado going by, the whole world disappeared at that moment and all she saw was him.
The rain fell gently as the ceremony took place in the little chapel by the water. At the front of the chapel, he reached over and took her hand and she smiled sweetly at him. They looked out to the rows of people that they love that came to support them as they took their vows and knew in that moment just how lucky they are - not only to have found one another, but to have so many people that love them. Almost as a thank you for the understanding, the rain stopped just as they walked out the church giving them plenty of time to greet their guests and grab a few pictures by the water before heading to the reception. As the stood on the rocky edge of the water, looking out on the horizon they knew that from this day on each day would be sunnier than the one before. And on grey days like this will bring them right back to how they felt this day, the day they became husband and wife.
ELIZABETH & BEN
We started the day at Liz's parent's house in Niantic. She was having the finishing touches done to her make-up and gave us a very warm welcome. We had spent a great day with her and Ben back in August for their engagement session and knew we'd have just as much fun with them on their wedding day. When it came time for Liz to put on her Mon Cherie wedding gown, all her girls and her mother gathered around, many of which had to wipe away tears.
We then headed down the road a bit to St. Francis chapel for the ceremony. It was a small, intimate chapel - perfect for the sweet and romantic ceremony. Thankfully for us there was a beautiful bit of coastline walking distance away, ideal for some photos of Liz & Ben together while the rain was holding off. We really lucked out that the weather continued to cooperate on the drive over (where we stopped to grab some shots by some rustic old barns) and when we arrived at the Water's Edge where we took even more shots. Once the dance floor opened at the reception, there floor was packed most of the time - with Liz in middle of it all. Whenever there was a slow dance, Ben came and found his wife. By looking at them you could tell that in those moments, it was like they were the only two people in the world.
When we arrived at Liz's parent's house we saw these hooks and immediately thought that it would be such a fun spot for a shot of her shoes. This one is my view...
...and this is Kathleen's.
Liz's gorgeous burgundy flowers were perfect for their early autumn wedding.
When photographing details such as shoes, flowers and rings we look for interesting backgrounds and textures (as you saw from our shoe shots above). It makes the photos more fun and interesting. This is Kathleen taking a shot of Liz's rings on a rocking chair that we found in one of the room's of the house. It is also important to point out that we moved it right by the window to take advantage of the beautiful light coming in.
Here is the shot of the rings on the chair.
Liz's Mom had a pink bow for the family dog so of course we had to get a portrait with her!
We never did find out exactly why Liz's wedding party did this, I think it was some kind of inside joke. Lining the pathway into the house were Dairy Queen red spoons as well as a sign on the front door. It was a detail that made up the day so we thought it would be fun to include it.
I am not sure why but when something is written on a calendar it almost makes it more special, more real and more official.
Liz got help getting her dress on by a couple of her bride's maids...
...while her Mom and the other girls watched on.
A couple of the girl's details.
Liz & Ben's chapel such a quaint and intimate place for their wedding ceremony to take place.
"We Celebrate".
Kathleen captured this shot of Liz's nephew right before he performed his ring bearer duties.
At the beginning of the ceremony I was up front and captured this priceless moment. On the left the flower girl began her journey down the aisle and on the right quickly realized that she wasn't ready to come down. :)
Liz was walked down the aisle by her Dad.
Getting married!
Liz & Ben often had a smile on their faces during their ceremony.
Hands tell such an amazing story and we love capturing the. I like the simplicity of this moment.
The blessing of their rings.
Their blessing, ring exchange and first kiss, the moments that officially made them husband and wife.
There was such excitement as Liz & Ben came out of the church.
After their ceremony we headed right down the street to a little strip of shoreline where we took advantage of the break in the weather.
It was low tide when we arrived which is one of our favorite times to photograph by the CT shoreline. Low-tide expose such nice textures.
Liz & Ben are so sweet and so into each other. We had such a fun time with them!
They constantly made each other laugh and smile.
I really like this moment. This is my view...
...and this is Kathleen's at the same time.
Right before leaving the water, we made sure to capture a couple more with the cool textures.
On the way over to Water's Edge we made a pit stop to take a few more images by a barn, bridge and long grass. All things we love! :)
We stopped traffic for these few but I think it was worth it.
When we arrived at Water's Edge we got the wedding party together for a few shots...
...before stealing away Liz & Ben for a few more minutes.
I climbed high above these rocks for this photo. I think it may be my favorite photo from their day.
Another use of the rocks.
I absolutely love this photo that Kathleen captured. It is so sweet!
We spotted these boats and thought it would be a fun way to incorporate a little color into some of their photos.
We captured a couple of their details before anyone got into their room...
...followed by a shot of their cake.
Their wedding party gathered around the dance floor for their first dance.
Liz & Ben never took their eyes off of each other.
Have we said how much we love their smiles?!
Here is Sue (our good friend and associate photographer) capturing a couple moments during Liz & Ben's first dance.
Liz danced with her Dad and Ben danced with his Mom.
Here is my shot of Liz and Ben beginning to cut their cake...
...and here is me after just catching it. As you can see I have a lot of help getting it. :)
Liz & Ben - We had such a great day with you both, thank you for always having such wonderful energy and happiness. You two are so much fun to be around! We hope you had a great time on your honeymoon and can't wait to catch up again soon! ~Rob & Kathleen
