Chicago Wedding and Elopement Photographer

Winter Wedding at The Allure – Aaron + Kelly : 1/17/15

April 16, 2015

Welcome to a winder wonderland wedding! When I shot their engagement session I got caught in a monster of a storm driving back to Chicago (you can see that HERE) , so I was hoping the weather would agree a little more this time around. We got incredibly lucky that it was around 40 the day of their wedding! Considering it has been in the negative digits the week before that felt like a heat wave! Which meant not freezing to death for a few outside shots and there was even some snow still on the ground.

I met the girls in the morning at the wonderful Grand Marina Hotel (if you’re staying in this area seriously stay here). After hair & makeup we got Kelly into her dress and off to the church! The hotel was in one time zone and the church in another so all morning you heard “Indiana time”. They were married in Kelly’s hometown church in Michigan City. It was a beautiful ceremony complete with a bubble exit after (thank you again Mother Nature). After some shots at the church and downtown we made a quick stop with the Bride and Groom on our way to The Allure in Laporte.

Being from Indiana I’ve seen many photos and heard lots of talk about The Allure so I excited to finally get to shoot there myself! And it didn’t disapoint! Complete with amazing lighting, a balcony for awesome overhead shots and indoor snow for their first dance (What?!) it was a great venue to shoot at. Toast were given, dances were had and all in all it was the perfect winter wedding!

Congratulations to Kelly & Aaron! Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your day!

Photography: Becky Brown Photography

Second Photographer : Chris Zibutis

Ceremony Venue: St. Paul’s Lutheran Church

Reception Venue & Catering : The Allure

Hair Stylist : Jemiah Feech- Peisyk

Makeup Artist : Sta- Glam

Flowers : Patty Hemphill

Cake: C’est La Vie Cakes

Invitations: Carlson Crafts

Bridal Gown : A Paris House of Bridal / Mary’s Bridal Gowns

Bridesmaids Dresses : David’s Bridal

Tuxes : Louie’s Tux Shop

DJ & Lighting: Hanson Productions

Videographer : Ryan Blaske

Photobooth : S & S Photobooth

Popcorn Bar : Garrett’s

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When I found out they were going to make it “snow” aka use a foam machine for their first dance I talked them into turning it on briefly for me to take these shots 🙂

I love that Aaron decided that he wanted pie as his dessert so he got it…. a whole one… to himself!

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2014 Favorites!

March 30, 2015

Hi everyone! Each year I try to do a Favorites blog series. Clearly since it’s almost April I’m a little behind….

This year I’m just going to do my favorite images from each wedding and tell a little about why it’s my favorite. I also emailed my couples to let them pick their favorite as well. It’s always fun for me to see what they pick and why. Sometimes it’s the same for me, but not always! I didn’t hear back from everyone, but for the ones that I did you will find their favorite image below mine and any information as to why they picked it if they provided any.

Enjoy and thanks to all my couples for an amazing 2014 wedding season!

April + Joe 4/12/14

MY FAVORITE: This was my favorite image from April and Joe’s wedding because they look so calm, peaceful and happy. In reality I shot all of the wedding party and couple photos in 8 minutes…. literally 8 minutes!! It was a little crazy, but we still managed to find a couple minutes of calm to soak in the fact that they were newlyweds!

Emily + Tony 5/10/14

MY FAVORITE:

Mel + Pat 5/17/14

MY FAVORITE: I just love the happiness in this photo!

CLIENT FAVORITE : “We loved this one most because you can tell we just have genuine smiles on our faces. I love wedding photos that just capture a couple’s sincere happiness on their big day and this one totally does that!

Although I have to say, #523 was a close runner up- but patrick said we can’t say one of me and my brother was better than any of the actual bride and groom ;)”

(Naturally I had to post this one as well! )

Maryna + Ryan 5/30/14

MY FAVORITE: I’m cheating on this one and picking two. I love the second shot for the composition, but the first one is a favorite because it captures their personalities so I couldn’t resist posting both!

Alysaa + Mike 6/21/14

MY FAVORITE: When I walked into Wilder Mansion and saw the lines of these frames I couldn’t wait to get my couple in there!

CLIENT FAVORITE

Kate + Josh 6/27/14

MY FAVORITE: Although I had absolutely shot at the Basilica on the campus of Notre Dame before I was still so excited to go back here. This church is beyond gorgeous and I had envisioned this shot in my mind before their wedding. I was so happy to make it come to life!!

Melissa + Matt 6/28/14

MY FAVORITE: Melissa and Matt picked my favorite so I went with a runner up! I love their pick from their first look photos though. It was my favorite first look of the year!

CLIENT FAVORITE: ” Our favorite photo is #163 from the first look. It’s our favorite photo because it really shows how excited we were to get married & see each other that day. It brings back all the wonderful memories of that day & all the love that we have for each other. “

Mal + Tom 7/19/14

This was a tough one as again I had many favorites. Since Mal & Tom picked one of my top one as their pick when with my other option. I love this night shot of the Chicago skyline at their Adler Planetarium wedding. You just can’t get this view anywhere else!

MY FAVORITE

CLIENT FAVORITE (And one of mine as well, I have a big canvas of this at the studio! )

Julia + Max 7/26/14

MY FAVORITE: I always love images that capture the couple’s personalities and these two were full of laughs and smiles all day! I had to choose this one as my favorite because to me it sums up how happy and excited these two were all day long!

CLIENT FAVORITE

Megan + Matt 8/9/14

MY FAVORITE: I was soooo excited when we got to our photo location and I saw this gorgeous light coming through the trees!!! Put a gorgeous couple in a gorgeous setting and it’s an instant favorite!

Robyn + Bobby 8/16/14

MY FAVORITE: Although they also picked my favorite images this was a close second and I didn’t even shoot it! Sami got this image during their toasts. I’m a sucker for a good real laugh photo!

CLIENT FAVORITE: “I have way more than one favorite, but if I have to pick, I’d say my favorite (but it’s more than 1 image) is the series of us when we snuck awayOur wedding day was amazing and extremely hectic so we hardly had a second alone together. After the ceremony and the receiving line into cocktail hour, Bobby grabbed my hand and pulled me away so we could have a minute alone together to celebrate that we had just gotten married!! Becky, I can’t thank you enough for being our paparazzi for the day and hiding in the bushes to capture this special moment. 🙂 <3”

Katie + Brandon 8/30/14

MY FAVORITE: This was one of my most favorite shots of the year!

I love the couple, the setting, the elegance and everything about it! Thanks to Regina for nailing the veil toss!

Dena + Poonam 9/6/14

MY FAVORITE(s): Dena & Poonam also get two favorites as they had two weddings! The first is my favorite from their city hall wedding day in Chicago and the other is from their wedding day celebration in Michigan. I love the contrast of these two. The branches and framing of the first image are what made it a favorite, but it’s such an opposite to the bright and warm image from their September celebration!

Mary + Kepha 9/13/14

MY FAVORITE: I love this shot because we took a last couple minutes of our photo time to walk away from everyone and just enjoy the city. This one also has special meaning as it’s the part right beside where Mary is getting her MBA and we wanted to shoot there for their engagement session but it was all so cold and dead. I was determined to get this city shot on their wedding day!

Cathy + Matt 9/20/14

MY FAVORITE: This is my favorite shot from Cathy and Matt’s wedding day because not only was Lake Michigan a stunning backdrop, but I was so happy that we made it to the beach for some photos since their ceremony that was supposed to be at this location was rained out.

Cindel + Kent 10/18/14

MY FAVORITE: There are very few places in the fall that beat the colors that show up in Southern Indiana. This was my favorite shot (although there were many) from Cindel and Kent wedding as they are literally surrounded by the fall colors.

Vladana + Eli 11/1/14

MY FAVORITE: I always try to pick a favorite image that sums up the entire day and this one does just that! Although there were many image and more posed shots that I loved as well this image is one you just can’t script. It was the perfect moment during the Hora where they had huge grins and were just enjoying being surrounded by friends and family!

Tiffanie + John 11/15/14

MY FAVORITE: Again there were many that I loved from this wedding but there is something about this image and the moment that I just adore. The detail on the back of her dress was stunning so I wanted to make sure I captured that and we grabbed this shot right after their ceremony as the sunning was setting.

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Hotel Allegro Chicago Wedding : Tiffanie + John 11/15/14

March 5, 2015

This was my final wedding of 2014 (I’m behind on blogging) and it was an amazing one to end the season with! You may remember Tiffanie and John from their epic New York City Engagement session (you can see that HERE). That day was hot and humid July day in Central Park…. I wish we could have brought some of that warmth with us to their wedding day! November in Chicago is never known for being a warm month, but as their date approached it seemed we would looking at temps possbile below freezing, which is a little abnormal for that time of year. I was watching the weather like a hawk, trying to come up with back up plans if they didn’t want to shoot outside. Chicago loves to make you pay for photo permits to shoot anywhere indoors so it’s an uphill battle. I definitely lost some sleep stressing myself out about it, but in the end it all worked out!

After heading down to Hotel Allegro a few days before the wedding my nerves were calmed a bit. Even though I had shot there before I forgot just how many amazing options it provided. They are currently re-doing the lobby so it won’t look like these photos, but I can only imagine it will just as fabulous if not more so! One of my favorite hotels in the city!!

I met the girls in their suite as they were finishing up hair and makeup while my assistant Robyn joined the guys in what I call the “Man Suite” as it has a lounge area and pool table. I knew we were in good hands with the ladies of Clementine Events keeping everything on track. After Tiffanie got into her gorgeous gown we set up first look with her and John in the back part of the lobby area. A few photos around the hotel and we were off to brave the cold! And boy was it cold…. maybe in the 20’s? I have to give a HUGE thank you to this wedding party for toughing it out!!

After their ceremony at Assumption Catholic Church we made a quick stop at Kinzie Bridge for some night photos before heading back to Hotel Allegro to party the night away. They won guests over (especially the guys) with a private Koval tasting room during cocktail hour! The reception room looked amazing thanks to Four Finches and the wonderful KT and her staff were top notch as always. Stitely Orchestra was still bringing down the house when we left!

Thank you again to Tiffanie and John for allowing us to be part of your wedding day!

Getting Ready and Reception Venue : Hotel Allegro

Ceremony Venue : Assumption Catholic Church

Wedding Planner : Clementine Custom Events (Loren)

Wedding Cake : Alliance Bakery

Florist : Four Finches

Videographer : Smiling Toad Productions

Hair & Makeup : Sonia Roselli

Band : Stitely Orchestra

Transportation : Windy City Limonsuine

Cocktail Hour : Koval Distillery