Becky & Marty's DIA Wedding Photography!

Becky and Marty are a wonderful, warm couple who are loved and adored by everybody who meets them.
We took photos (as per special request... I don't think this is something just anybody can do... they were after all,
a magic couple!) at the Detroit Institute of Art. I couldn't find any other DIA wedding photos or any wedding photography
from the Detroit Institute of art on the web at all for that matter! So here are a few of my favorite wedding photos from
their incredible wedding.

Jason & Julie's Royal Park Hotel Wedding

Here are Julie and Jason seeing each other before their wedding ceremony. They laughed, they cried... they kissed!





This was my favorite "found" moment of the day, although I also loved the photo above!




48 degrees and sunny at the end of November? Are you kidding?! Loved this couple. From having Jason drop his pants within five minutes of meeting me to having Julie actually laughing when I came back upstairs singing, “I saw London, I saw France, I saw Jason’s underpants”, I knew I was in for a great ride on their wedding day. Here’s where I’d like to take the blog... instead of just gushing about my brides and grooms (which I just might not be able to avoid since I do seem to end up really, really loving them), I was hoping to make them a bit more instructional. Sort of a pros and cons of the day. Not to expose things that went wrong during the day (since all of us have had things go a bit cafluey on our wedding day... it’s the nature of the day!), but so that I can share things I’ve experienced so future clients might be able to take away things to make their own wedding planning easier, more informed or at the very least, avoid something that could easily be avoided. Today’s “wedding lesson” is one I only get the honor of seeing only a few times each year. Although most of my wedding clients are pretty independent thinkers and like to put their own unique stamp on their wedding day, most of them still do not want to see each other before they walk down the aisle. I’m talking something like 90% of them, maybe even higher. I don’t think it’s superstition, since most of these couples have chucked out all wedding things that smack of wrought tradition. No, I think they just want the element of surprise... the big reveal. What they don’t know is that it also tends to crank up their stress levels and emotions. And that it’s all avoidable. I’ve seen some of my most calm and blasee brides completely morph as the hour to walk down the aisle gets closer. Think about it ladies.... you’re up at the crack of dawn to get your hair and sometimes even your make up done. Then you have to sit around and kill 6-8 hours until the actual ceremony. The one person who knows you best and will set you back to an even keel is the one person you banished for the day. This is the one day most people stay away from the one person who knows exactly what you’re going through. The one person who can make it all better with a quick smile, a reassuring hug and simple words of encouragement; your best friend. The one you’re going to marry. Some of my favorite life moments have been watching a bride and groom meet in private (with me watching, catpturing it all and trying not to be too stalker like) for the first time once they’re dressed. There are just a myriad of things you can do in that private moment that you simply cannot do when you’re an aisle length apart, things you cannot say once you get to the front of the altar, releases that can’t be expressed in public. I’ve seen more touching, heartfelt and romantic things during these pre wedding meetings than I’ve ever seen at the “big reveal”. Groom who run their hands all over their bride’s beautifully beaded gown, girls who squeal like school girls when their prince charming rounds the corner, grown men who melt into tears of joy when they see their future coming to greet them. It is a moment. A rare and touching moment. They don’t always make the very best photos, but they will undoubtedly serve to bring the couple right back to how they were feeling when they saw each other for the first time. Their reactions are so authentic and over powering, it really is such an honor to be a fly on the wall to witness this truly blessed event.
If you’d like to see what I have to say about lighting candle light wedding services and more photos from this wedding, check out my other blog at www.themichiganweddingphotographer.com.

Reza & Dawn's Dearborn Inn Wedding!

Okay, so after going on and on about the fantastic weather Pam and Dan got last weekend, somehow Dawn & Reza managed to top that and in the middle of November, none the less! The florist arrived and was lamenting the fact it was too bad they couldn’t move their Dearborn Inn wedding outdoors to the gazebo. I pointed out that the wedding wasn’t until 6:00 and it would be pitch black by then, so even though it was a balmy 70 degrees, I didn’t think anyone would enjoy the wedding as much! This was a fun wedding for me. I’d met Dawn at a wedding she stood up in a few months back. It’s always a treat to work with someone who know what to expect from me and knows they’re in safe hands. There’s a mutual respect right off the bat. Our only hitch was that I wanted to take advantage of the gorgeous day and wanted to take some photos of Dawn and the girls outside before it got too dark. We would have been fine light wise except getting make up on took about 45 minutes. This is pretty typical, it’s just that neither of us had put that into the schedule! So with light fading very fast and Dawn starting her internal countdown, we headed outside for some very quick photos. Dawn could’ve knocked me over with a feather when she asked if she and the girls could do a jumping shot! And so we did... pregnant bridesmaid and all! I headed off to find the too long ignored groom, Reza (his brother was sleeping in the room Reza was supposed to get ready in, so we decided to let the very jet lagged best man get some z’s instead of intruding for photos). By the time I got back to the bridal suite, it was time to walk down the aisle. A last minute panic had everybody rushing out the door. It wasn’t until after the ceremony started that I wondered why on earth both sides of the wedding party were so darn chatty DURING the ceremony. Lots of whispering, gesturing, giggles. Had no clue what was going on. Then I see the very last groomsman passing something down the line of groomsmen towards the best man... each of them smiling very broadly. Once the ring exchange started, I saw Dawn’s shoulders heaving. Her veil obstructed a good view of her face. I thought she was sobbing. Nope, turns out she was laughing uncontrollably! Seems their rings had been left back at the suite. The officiant pulled off her ring and the furthest groomsman had donated his ring to Reza for the ceremony. The officiant’s ring didn’t fit Dawn at all. It was funny that everybody who was standing up knew what was going on, but none of us watching could figure out just what exactly was wrong! The reception went really smoothly. Skye ran the photobooth with the full backdrop and props. Everybody had a great time. If you'd like to see more photos from Dawn & Reza's Dearborn Inn wedding and reception, please check out my other blog at www.themichiganweddingphotographer.blogspot.com.

Pam & Dan's Grosse Pointe Wedding

Pam and Dan must be the luckiest people on the face of the earth. 67 degrees in early November? Are you kidding?! Talk about well connected! I skated in 30 minutes ahead of the ceremony (1 and 2 o’clock ceremonies often face a wee bit of a time crunch for my 8 hours of coverage) in Grosse Pointe at the Star of the Sea church (always makes me think they mean tuna fish... sheesh, advertising!). This is the first time I’d worked with Kate McClellan from Purple Clover (http://www.purpleclover.net) who coordinated the event. She’s great, very easy to work with and has the signature of a truly good planner... I never noticed she was there! We were lucky enough to be able to spend as much time as we wanted outdoors (until the sun went down!) before heading into the Grosse Pointe War Memorial for the reception. We'd been able to take wedding photos at a Grosse Pointe park, then on the Grosse Point War Memorial's beautiful grounds as well. I had the rare opportunity to get all of my editing done and the slideshow up and running before the guests started arriving. I’m so used to being the last person to get there, this was a real treat! DJing was Sara Gharacheh from Platinum Mix (http://www.platinummix.com), who always seems to know the latest crowd pleasers and is, as always, so easy to work with. Here’s a quick heads up for any couple actually reading the blog.... I’ve noticed this year couples have started to combine their dances. Probably it stems from them not wanting to be the center of attention for so long, or feeling they’re interrupting their guests attention for too long or something along those lines. Here’s a word of advice; the only song you should consider doubling up on is the mother/son and father/daughter dance. You may not realize this, but sometimes the dances are tricky for photographers. You’re moving, the lighting is dim and nobody’s been out there yet, so I’m dinking with the lighting to see where shadows fall, etc, the entire time you’re dancing. I’m also waiting for you to rotate (which some couples don’t do!), or eventually if I’m not getting the angle I like, I’ll have to scoot into a new position. If you share your first dance with your bridal party (which is what Pam and Dan chose to do, unbeknownst to me), I got about a whopping 60 seconds to get their photos done. Unless you choose an extremely long song, somebody’s going to get cheated big time and I really don’t want to do that! So if you do opt to double up on some of the songs, pick nice and long ones to ensure I can cover all my bases! If you'd like to see some more fun photos from Dan & Pam's Grosse Pointe wedding (including some really fun windy veil shots!), please check out my other blog at www.themichiganweddingphotographer.blogspot.com.

Sam & Dave

I’d had a lot of contact with Samantha (or Sam as she’s known to just about everyone) before the wedding, yet we’d never actually met! I got there early since it was in Adrian and since I’ve been paranoid about all those orange cones all over the state of Michigan, I gave myself plenty of cushion time. Sam is hilarious. Anything and everything the comes into her mind shows up on her face, so watching her navigate the treacherous waters known as getting into your wedding gown were pretty funny. They also had a ham of a flower girl who seemed quite convinced the day was really about her! Dave was pretty laid back, go with the flow kind of guy. I was pleased I could light the gigantic Adrian College Chapel with my lights bounced off the ceiling. It was a dark day with threatening weather with dark approaching quickly and I was able to make the church look just like what your eye was seeing so you wouldn’t miss any of the details. The reception was just down the square at what is probably usually called Adrian College’s student union, but had a fancy, shmancy name instead. Nice DJ, good food, loved the individual cakes at each table and everybody who wanted to got to dance. Sam wanted a sparkler send off, so they left while there were still guests and that effectively ended the celebration. If you'd like to see more fun images from Sam and Dave's Adrian College wedding, please go to my other blog at www.themichiganweddingphotographer.blogspot.com.