Kendra + Robert

Sometimes you have to climb up a gigantic hill and take some photos at sunset to get that perfect photo for your engagement session! When Kendra first asked me if I would be interested, I jumped at the idea. I had not been to this particular location yet and always love going to new spots for photo shoots. It really keeps the inspiration and creativity levels at their highest.

Gibralter Rock is located in Lodi! Make this a must visit this fall. I’m sure the views will be amazing when the colors start to change too!

These two adventurous people are getting married tomorrow! I am so excited to capture their wedding day.

Paul and Kristin first met at a New Year’s Eve party in downtown Chicago. The fun part is that they were both from Wisconsin! I had the pleasure of going down there for their engagement session and had wonderful time getting to know these two. Their wedding was seriously s blast. The wedding party was full of incredibly nice, fun, crazy and beautiful people! One of our stops after the ceremony was the University Golf Course and the ride there and back on the Mad City Party Bus was full of wild pole dancing, shots, singing and laughter. What a fun day! Thank you so much for having us document it!

List of amazing vendors who put this day together:

Ceremony: Holy Redeemer  //  Reception Venue: Concourse Hotel  //  Hair and Makeup: Organic Beauty  //  Florist: Sweet Pea  //  Baker: Rolling Pin Bake Shop  //  Dress: Stone Manor Bridal  //  Groom Tux: Men’s Wearhouse  //  Travel: Mad City Party Bus  //  DJ: Vital Image  //  Second Shooter: Angie Stroud Zelora Photography

First Look!

Azena Photography | Madison Wedding Photographer

Downtown Madison Wedding

A tropical themed wedding was the perfect opener to the wedding season after this wildly unpredictable Wisconsin winter.  There were beautiful florals of orchids, protea cynaroides, magnifica, birds of paradise, and little beta fish swimming around in the arrangements! The tables all had  cute little decorations of alligators, fish, turtles, tiny pineapples and exotic plants! Even the signature drink was bright blue with pineapple! We had an nice warm yet breezy day to compliment this beautiful April wedding. 

There were so many wonderful personal touches. Danielle’s dress had some lace in the back from her Mom’s wedding dress and I found out that a her Dad had carved the little wooden fish that were next to the place cards. The floral was done by her Mom’s cousin too!  Danielle even surprised Alex by having his “baby”, a souped up Stingray Corvette that he built out brought out to the parking lot for photos! It was awesome!

At the end of the night, you left with a donut from Dunkin for either a late night snack or breakfast! I grabbed one for my son because he absolutely love the chocolate ones with sprinkles.

Heidi and I truly enjoy our couples and these two were no exception. Everyone was so welcoming, fun, and felt pretty relaxed around us. I think we got some really beautiful photos and am so excited to share a few below! Congrats to the newlyweds!!

None of this would have been so beautiful and so much fun without all these amazing vendors!

Vendors:  Venue: Blackhawk Country Club  //  Floral: De Voe Floral  // Cake: Blackhawk Country Club  //   Hair: Strands  //  Makeup: Ava with Poshbeautybyava //  DJ: DJ Magic Entertainment  //  Men’s Attire: Nedrebos  //  Dress (out of Chicago)  //  Wedding Planner: Bailey Solverson from Blackhawk Country Club  //  Decor: Danielle’s Family  //  Second Shooter: Heidi Johnson

One of my favorite moments about Michaela and Mike’s wedding was a little surprise after the ceremony when one of their parent’s friends brought up a sweet classic car and let us take photos with it! I know sometimes, if not done right, these types of photos can look cheesy or dated, but to me, the car lover, I was in heaven. I have always loved different cars and everything about them. I wish I had thought of something like this for my wedding oh so many years ago. I shoot so many different things because I love so many different things. Maybe I should add car models to the list!

I met Michaela and her awesome bridesmaids at Aniu Salon for their hair and make-up appointments. Aniu is one of those amazing places full of gorgeous architecture and lighting. And the staff was more than welcoming. Check out the arm tats on the guy doing make-up! Now that is one cool make-up artist.

The Marriott is always super fun to shoot. If you haven’t been there, it has all of the floors and rooms surrounding a large open area that you can look down on. If you are afraid of heights, you probably shouldn’t go up the elevator which looks out over everything. The arial shots of the ceremony turned out really cool thanks to Heidi!

Mike was incredibly dapper and cool waiting to catch a moment with Michaela before the ceremony. I was with her getting in a quick wedding day boudoir session. I do that ladies! It is such a cool surprise for your groom. Well, little did he know, she wasn’t wearing much when they talked through that door! I hope she shared that little secret with him in later 😉

One of my favorite places to shoot in Madison is Pope Farms. That place is so beautiful all year long. The long path and rock wall is so pretty!  One of Madison’s many gems. We took some time with the wedding party and enjoyed the beautiful September weather.

At the end of the night, the kids were dancing like crazy and eating blue M&Ms (you know, for Michaela and Mike) and having the time of their lives. I loved shooting the little girls flying through the air from their dads and big smiles on everyone’s faces. What a happy day.

Vendors: Second shooter: Heidi E. Johnson // Venue: Madison Marriott West //  Hair and Makeup: Aniu Salon and Spa  //  DJ: Madison Mobil DJs //  Florist: Blooms  //  Cake: Carl’s Cakes  //  Ceremony Officient: Karen at Ceremonies by Design