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Nicole and Mike’s story begins years ago back when they were 9th grade – first meeting one another in Algebra class that was taught by Mr. Kaylor (in honor of Mr. Kaylor, they have named their dog Kaylor!).  They went on their first date together during their senior year of high school – and went to their prom together – there is an awesome photo of a picture of the two of them from their prom that they put on display along with several other photos of their time together (the photo of the prom photo will be in the slideshow…you’ll love it – how can you NOT love the 90′s!).  Through the years, they went separate ways, but found one another once more in 2005, started dating and have been inseparable ever since.

It has been a few years since I last photographed at the Springwood – it was as lovely as ever for Nicole + Mike’s wedding.  I arrived a bit before Nicole so that I could begin to photographing some of the details and preparations – before I got started with those, I took just a minute or two to get a few photos of some of the flowers and surroundings.  The raindrops on the petunias in the lower left tell the story of the showers that were happening on and off that morning.

Loved the vibrant orange and fuschia that Nicole + Mike used for their wedding colors.  The crocheted butterfly on the lower right was at the bottom of Nicole’s hankerchief she carred that day.

The photo on the left just pulls me – I love this moment with her two sisters preparing to get Nicole’s veil placed on while Nicole’s mom is in the background getting ready to take a photo.  And how gorgeous is Nicole?  We had a moment to get a few quick portrait type photos before heading down to the ceremony site.

Three of the 4 photos here were taken with my macro lens showcasing some of the flowers from in Nicole’s bouquet – the macro shots would make fantastic canvas prints to decorate in a home.

As I mentioned, it had been raining off and on that day, and they had to make a decision about moving forward with the ceremony outside or move it indoors.  While it was still iffy – the hourly weather forecast said that it would be clear – luckily for everyone, no rain!  The couple included several wonderful readings and traditions within their ceremony to make it their own.

Because Nicole + Mike opted to have a receiving line right after the ceremony, the time was cut short, leaving us almost no time to get photos of the two of them between the ceremony and the start of the reception, so after they finished their meal, we stole a few more moments for them to have some private time together to enjoy being with one another while I took a few photos.  For the photo series that includes the image on the far right, I climbed up on a picnic table to get a higher vantage point – while doing it, I banged my leg pretty nicely and wound up with a lovely bruise that still hasn’t gone away…the things an artist does for her craft and her couples!  haha

I think that the first dance is often one of my favorite traditions at a reception – it seems like it’s a time when the couple just allows themself to soak in that they are husband and wife.  You can just FEEL the love that Nicole and Mike have for one another.

Congratulations Nicole and Mike!  Wishing you years and years and years of happiness together!

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Ceremony: Springwood, Pittsburgh, PA
Reception: Springwood, Pittsburgh, PA
Reception Entertainment: Hear to Please, John DeJames
Floral Designer: Joan’s Designs, Joan, Verona, PA
Bakery: CoCo’s Cupakes, Shea, Pittsburgh, PA
Hair Stylist: Venetian Aveda Salon & Spa, Jennifer, Homestead, PA  
Makeup Artist: Venetian Aveda Salon & Spa, Jennifer, Homestead, PA
Flowers used: green hydrangeas, gerber daisies
Colors: magenta/fuschia, orange, white, green

Jessica + John were married at St. Jane Frances de Chantal Church and held their reception at Bethesda Country Club. Last year, we got together for their engagement session at the Country Club as well and you may remember it from here: Jessica + John: engaged

I received a call from Jessica back when she was JUST starting to plan the wedding day…even before she and John had set a date so that she could make certain I would be available on their wedding day.  During their planning, many things changed, most notably  finding out that Jessica’s mom (who was battling cancer) was not doing so well.  At one point, Jessica sent me an email with a photo showing Gwyneth Paltrow and her mom, Blythe, in a photo taken by Annie Leibowitz and wanted to have a photo created similar to it…yeah, no pressure there!!!  We discussed how and when we would create it to make it our own…yet, sadly, Jessica’s mom passed away before the wedding day.  It’s moments like that which are a reminder as to why the job of a photographer is so important and it’s why I always do my best to capture any photos with loved ones that my couples request.

The day started out at Bethesda Country Club where Jessica and her bridesmaids got ready and I had an opportunity to get a few of the detail photos I always like to get. An interesting thing to note: Jessica selected her gown at Hitched during a trunk show for Judd Waddell…she was the first to purchase the gown AND super bonus…the designer did a sketch and gave it to her of her in the gown!  How awesome is that?

I love these two photos – Jessica was just looking down as her dress was being buttoned and the other photo is of her Aunt (who is Jessica’s mom’s twin) and Jessica’s dad looking on as the transformation into a bride on her wedding day took place.  One of my favorite parts of the day is seeing those few moments when people recognize a woman is becoming a “bride” after all the planning.

Though I couldn’t hear what was being said, I think that John was telling Jessica how gorgeous she looked in the photo in the upper left. 

After the ceremony, they had a nice toast and ride to the country club where we took a few photos. The tree covered lane was perfect for capturing a photo of the Rolls.

What a great bridal party!

A few more with just Jessica and John before they went in to mingle with guests during their cocktail hour. (They planned a little longer break in time so that they would be able to get photos AND attend the cocktail hour.)

Loved the candlestick vases with a profusion of baby’s breath.  Hydrangea’s were the secondary flower and were used as a decoration for the back of Jessica & John’s chairs and also as a centerpiece for the center table during cocktail hour.  BTW, the vibrant fuschia color of the hydrangea’s was produced by the florist spray painting them! Such an excellent idea to make a donation in the honor of their guests to the John R. Marsh Cancer Center.

First dance as husband and wife – after taking one dance lesson and deciding that it was one too many, they opted to dance to God Only Knows by the Beach Boys.

The band had everyone up and moving – everyone was having too much fun.  And hopefully there are no photos of me as I danced around a bit while I took photos!

Probably some of my very favorite time to take photos is toward evening and dark.  Jessica and John came out for a few minutes…John dipped her without prompting on my part!  I was impressed!  Just shortly thereafter, the sky was turning dark and I asked Jessica to just give me a simple pose with a bit of attitude…she did a great job!

Great warm glow from the lights and candles during the reception as well as a few more glimpses of the fun people were having dancing.  The photo of the sign and looking back at the country club and lane was taken as I was leaving for the night…Jessica emailed me to let me know that she had meant to ask me about taking a photo of the sign for the country club, but her boss was driving down the lane at night while I was taking the photo and already relayed to her that I got it! 

Congratulations, Jessica and John!  Wishing you many, many years of happiness!  Thank you for allowing me to get to know you and play an important role in your wedding day.

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Ceremony: St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Bethesda, MD
Reception: Bethesda Country Club, Bethesda, MD
Gown: Judd Waddell through Hitched Wedding Salon, Georgetown, Washington D.C.
Ceremony Musicians: Cherry Blossom Strings
Reception Entertainment: Midnight Movers
Floral Designer:  Da Vinci Florist, Silver Spring, MD
Bakery: Georgetown Cupcake, Georgetown, Washington D.C.
Hair Stylist: Salon Red, Christi, Gaithersburg, MD  
Makeup Artist: Make-up Design, Meredith Seidel
Transportation: Lasting Impressions, Westminster, MD
Flowers used: baby’s breath, hydrangeas, roses
Colors: magenta/fuschia, white, and gold accents