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

 

When Gretchen and I first drove up to Joe and Sue’s beautiful farm out in the driftless hills of Avoca, WI, we couldn’t believe such a perfect place could exist. All around the valley were hills, trees and winding roads. It was so quaint and pretty! The backyard was set up for the ceremony and there were beautiful gardens everywhere. I picked up Andrew and dropped him off at a tiny little church up the street with Gretchen so we could do a first look over there. Then I went back and picked up Miranda. She had on this incredible dress with lacy sleeves and a tee length skirt. It was so perfect for the setting!

These two are really into outdoors fun like fishing, hiking, camping and skiing. They live in Oregon so I know they get to enjoy some gorgeous scenery. They also like to cook! I loved how everything seemed to mesh with their personalities from the photos hanging on the clothesline showcasing memorable moments in their lives together to the delicious jam they made together in Oregon and shipped over for the their favors. They also made this incredible peach topping for the wedding cake. I didn’t try the one with brandy (I had an hour drive home!) but I’m sure it was also amazing. The song Peaches comes to mind when I think about it….You know, Millions of Peaches, Peaches for Me! Haha.

During the Ceremony, I was blown away by Miranda’s sweet little 7 year old son reading this beautiful writing. What a cutie!  Miranda’s friends also read and cried with happiness for them. I loved it! Such raw emotion! Beautiful!

Then we got to eat Pig! I love a good backyard pig roast. Mmm Mmm Mmm. We set up a little photo booth and got some crazy photos of everyone acting all goofy. I made a slideshow in the next post. Check it out! Then Miranda and Andy changed into their comfy clothes and cowboy boots and had kickin’ shindig! I had the best time photographing the “wild dancing men”. I love that term. Nothing better than a bunch of people dancing out in the great outdoors and having the best of times.

 

 

Vendors: Second Shooter: Gretchen Olson // Venue: Private Residence Joe and Sue’s Farm // Baker: Craig’s Cake Shop  // Catering: JL Richards Catering // Music: IPod // Floral: Miranda’s Mom!

 

They met at the El Dorado Grill and from then on, it was love…

Robin and Ryan are the kind of couple who when you meet them, they immediately become your friend. That’s how I felt anyway. The couples I photograph usually end up feeling like family after the wedding, especially all the time we spend together. The intimate moments before the ceremony, getting ready, time together alone around sunset to get those amazing warm honey toned romantic portraits-all of which are some of my favorite moments of the day.

We arrived at the newly renovated Park Hotel (formerly called The Inn on the Park) and spent some time  with Robin, her sister and future daughter, Willow. These getting ready photos were really fun with the beautiful blue tones of the room and the incredible gem toned emerald bridesmaid dresses. Once we were ready, it was time to head on over to the Monona Terrace for a first look with Ryan. It was a pretty hot day (and I mean upper 90s humid and hot!) but everyone was mentally prepared. The walk over was so gorgeous with deep blue skies and white puffy clouds and Capitol in the background. I love downtown Madison! Robin had the biggest smile on her face when Ryan turned around and saw her! You could just feel the love and excitement. We spent the better part of the afternoon walking around the Terrace and Capitol shooting and having fun.

The ceremony took place at The Top of the Park at the Park Hotel. It was an intimate gathering and the musician was really amazing. This guy had a voice like butter! For some reason, I didn’t get his name though. I’ll have to do that. There were a lot of smiles through tears and wine and delicious cake. Willow read a speech and I don’t think there was a dry eye in the place. She was amazing. These guys also had a choreographed first dance! It was twirly, spinney, smiley and dips galore. We got so many great photos of these two. It was hard to pick just a few but here goes…

Vendors: Second Shooters: Van Ganchang and Gretchen Olsen // Venue: The Park Hotel // Florist: Hy-Vee// Dress: Vera’s House of Bridals // Hair and Makeup: Insignia // Baker: Carl’s Cakes // DJ: Midwest Sound

Lauren + Mathias

When Heidi and I met up with the wedding party at the Memorial Union, we knew this day was going to be fun. Everybody had a smile and a beer. Some even had two beers! The sky was amazing and everywhere you looked, there were people out and about having a blast. After about an hour hanging out at the Union, we headed over to one of my favorite parks in Madison, Olin Turville Park. Lauren and Mathias’ family met us there for some pre-ceremony family photos and a few more wedding party shots. It was free spirited and full of fun. The Ceremony took place at Madison Turners which is a little gem just off of Stoughton Rd. It was very casual and emotional. I love weddings like this where you can tell everyone is great friends the smiles go on for days.

Here is a little showing of the day!

Vendors: Second Shooter: Heidi Johnson // Venue: Madison Turners // Caterer: Hy-vee // Florist: Hy-Vee // Dress: Flutters Bridal Boutique // Baker: Karen the Cake Lady // DJ: Midwest Sound