There is something magical about photographing a wedding. Perhaps it's the fact that I get to spend more time with the bride on her wedding day than anyone else, and we usually haven't known each other all that long. Yet, I am invited into the inner circle of a bride's closest friends and family and become one of them. I am constantly amazed by this. In what other role would you be welcomed with such open arms to follow someone on their most cherished day?
I had the opportunity to shoot with Paul Barrios for Mike and Kati's wedding at the University of Maryland. Paul was easily the most laid back and efficient photographer I've had the honor to work with. He breezed through formal portraits with the ease of a veteran photographer; he allowed me to work the angles of the church and spend time with the gorgeous bride; and he never showed signs of stress even in a situation in which I knew any other photographer would. In other words, he was a dream to work with and I am thrilled that I had the chance to be at this particular wedding.
But the main reason I was so happy was because of how completely Kati and her family embraced me. After only a couple hours, I was ready to be adopted. The family was a constant flow of smiles. You could feel how close they were, and how excited they were for the wedding.
When I arrived and saw the chapel, I was excited too.
The bridesmaid on the left with the red hair is Kati's sister, Lucy. She is also fabulous, and made the day go by smoothly. She was a very prepared maid of honor. She reminded me of Jennifer Lopez in the Wedding Planner as she kept pulling out odds and ends from her bag to solve any wardrobe snafu.
Kati did not stop smiling. Seriously, I need to bottle her happiness. If I could combine her happiness with my little sister's energy and sell it, I'd be a billionaire. So cute.
Oh, and I have to mention her amazing hairdo. It was done by her now sister-in-law, and I was obsessed.
Mike wrote Kati a letter for her to read before the ceremony. Let me just say... he did good.
Look at how she's touching the paper in the shot on the right. You can see her love pouring through her fingers.
The veil is on, and the excitement built even further...
I have a special soft spot in my heart at weddings for the father and bride. This father-daughter combo exemplified that weakness for me. They had a bond beyond words. She was just as excited to see her father in her dress as she was to get married. And had planned exactly what he'd say to her on this day for years.
He stopped her at the top of the aisle to tell her everything he'd been saving to tell her.
The expression on her face tells you it was good...
Three seconds later, she flipped from tears to laughs.
I loved the architectural details of the chapel.
Seriously, I love this family!
My blog posts usually don't have this many black and whites, but there was something about this day that called for it.
They're married!
As everyone was collecting their stuff to move to portraits, I captured this shot of the most adorable little ring bearer and his parents.
How amazing is this campus!?
Got to love a bride in Aviators.
Thanks to Kati, Mike, the families, and especially Paul for letting me be a part of this day. I am blessed to have to been there to witness the love you all share.
To see more shots from this wedding and read Paul's take on the day, you can see his blog post about it here.
No comments:
Post a Comment