One of the greatest things about photographing a friend’s wedding is that I get to spend the whole day with them and make sure to get the most personal, intimate, and real photos I can get. Kelly was so wonderful to work with! I loved how every time Brian said something funny to her, she would have this full on, head thrown back laugh that was just contagious. I got my first taste of this during their engagement session in the spring. I had not met Brian yet so had no idea what I was in for. He is one of the funniest and sweetest men I have ever met. We had the best time and when the wedding came around, I knew we were going to have a wonderful day and was ready for it.

Kelly had a vision that was so beautiful and inspiring. First of all, the First Unitarian Society is one of my favorite ceremony venues in Madison. Not only because it is unique and the architecture is beautiful (Hello Frank Lloyd Wright!), but also for what they stand for. All inclusive, non judgmental of any faith,  unbiased and spiritual. During the ceremony Kelly brought in “The Blue Brigade” which was all of their young relatives, and had them each bring her a flower at the beginning of the processional to create her bouquet. It was such a sweet way to include everyone and since there were so many young people, it was only right to have the reception at the Children’s Museum downtown! The design of all the flower arrangements was done by the insanely creative bride and then given out to guests at the end of the night as favors. I even got to take one home and I just love it! It is a centerpiece in my living room right now! It had a very tropic vibe and the cake was amaaazzziiing!

Her look was magazine worthy from her gorgeous dress from Vera’s right down to her sparkly butterfly shoes by Badgley Mischka. As I was taking photos of the rings, I noticed the inscription inside of Brian’s ring that said “Per Aspera, ad astra” and then something else that I couldn’t quite make out. But what I do know, is what Per Aspera, ad astra means: “through hardships to the stars” in Latin! How cool is that???

By the end of the night, I had a chance to sit down with a couple of long time friends and play some pong and enjoy a delicious beer. I just know these two will have an insanely wonderful life together. With all that laughter, how could they not?

I had a hard time narrowing down to just a hundred images for this one. So, you get to see quite a a bit of this wedding. I hope you enjoy!!!

Awesome Vendors Involved:

Ceremony:  First Unitarian Society  //  Officiant: Reverand Kelly Crocker  //  Reception: Madison Children’s Museum – Coordinator: J Belmont  //  Cake:  Trish Figueroa  //  Catering: Blue Plate Catering  //  Bar Service: Roman Candle  //  Donut wall: Cedar and Spice  and Greenbush  Bakery  //  DJ: Kuhl Entertainment – Patrick Archer  //  Flowers:  Felly’s Flowers  //  Wedding Dress: Vera’s House of Bridals  //  Grooms Tux: Jazzman  //  Brian’s Ring: Boundless Bands on Etsy  //  Kelly’s Wedding Band: Blue Nile and Engagement Ring designed with Trisha and Brett at the Diamond Center

Chris and Pam put together this super fun, intimate wedding in just a few months. They met up with me beforehand at Olbrich Gardens where we had an hour to just walk around and take photos. This is one of the most beautiful places in Madison to go take photos, especially for weddings. This year they are renovating so they are not hosting weddings but we just got a permit and were good to go! Pam and Chris love the Thai Pavilion so we made sure to spend some extra time over there. They ran through a flock of wild flamingos and jumped over hedges to get the perfect shot! The ceremony was small and intimate with just some close family near by with Chris’s brother officiating and Pam’s niece and nephew as the ring bearers. Afterwards, we took advantage of the beautiful weather and got some great photos outside the Capitol and the top of State St. You wouldn’t really think about the Ale Asylum for a wedding reception but these guys did and it was just lovely. We took over the entire upstairs and patio and enjoyed all of their incredible beer and cocktails. I really enjoyed spending time with these two. Photos were important to them and you can tell by the way they look at each other and laugh at all the jokes that they had a great time and were relaxed and truly enjoyed their day.

Hailee and Daniel asked if I would come over to their house for their engagement session because they just got a new puppy and wanted to include the little munchkin in our shoot. OH MY GOODNESS! There is so much cuteness going on here that I can’t even handle it. The pups were the perfect subjects and did everything I wanted them to do…and that is basically: be cute!

Then we went for a little walk outside in their neighborhood and there was this gorgeous pond with a path all around it. It was a really beautiful evening and I really enjoyed seeing these two laugh together and enjoy this little moment of togetherness.  That’s why I love engagement sessions so much. You get to hold each other, look into each other’s eyes, smell them, love them and  just be WITH them. I can’t imagine a better way to spend an hour!

Two of my favorite places in Madison, WI are right downtown

Olin Turville Park off of John Nolen Dr. and the Memorial Union have some of the most beautiful and meaningful locations in the entire Madison area. Most couples who went to UW Madison enjoy time together at the Union and these two are no exception. This session was really fun because Lindsay and Jimmy were willing and ready to go out even if it was raining! I always keep a couple of cute umbrellas in the car so busted it out for them so we could run around in it singing and dancing. Ok, well, maybe not the last part. It only lasted a little while  anyway and then we had such beautiful light afterwards! I would also like to take a moment and just say how incredible her legs are! Amiright????  Jimmy’s legs aren’t bad either 😉

Jimmy and Lindsay have known each other for over 12 years but finally realized that there was something really special between them. Friendships don’t always end up in the friend zone…They like to go out with friends, hit up many of the amazing restaurants around town and have been enjoying Wisconsin’s winter weather and the fun sports activities that come with it. Hopefully it doesn’t all melt this week and they can enjoy more of it!

I am really looking forward to their wedding this weekend and will have another exciting blog post for that in a couple of weeks. For now, enjoy this really beautiful couple and think about summer!