Chicago Wedding and Elopement Photographer

A City View Wedding – Maggie and Dave : Chicago, IL

October 25, 2013

Meet Maggie and Dave, two of the sweetest people I’ve ever had the chance to work with….. no really…. I challenge you to find two sweeter people in the world. Before I even met them in person I could tell from their emails and our phone converstations (and a few spreadsheets form Dave haha) that really wanted their wedding to be an amazing day not only for them, but for their friends and guests as well that had traveled in from all over the place. I think they succeeded and then some 🙂

They were married at the gorgeous Assumption Catholic Church in downtown Chicago. We truly took in the views of the city during photos around town. And followed that by with stunning views of sunset over the city at the reception at Holidy Inn Merchandise Mart.

Congratulations to the newlyweds! Here are some of my favorites form the day!

Ceremony Venue: Assumption Catholic Church

Reception Venue : Holiday Inn Merchandise Mart

Flowers: Steve’s Flower Market

Cake: Lucious Layers Bakery

Bridal Gown:Liv Harris / Bridesmaids Dresses: Alfred Sung

Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse

Hair and Makeup : Brides by Kelly

DJ: DJ Chicago

Photographer’s Assistant – Rebecca with Rebecca Marie Photography!

Ceremony Time!

Then it was off to Olive Park for photos …… Now that’s a happy bride 🙂

I wish I had this view of Chicago all the time 🙂

Father Daughter Dance 🙂

We snuck outside for a few nighttime photos on the bridge

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A Manhattan Wedding: Leann and Thomas – 9/5/13 New York, NY

October 3, 2013

What happens when two ballet dancers decide to get married? A gorgeous Thursday wedding in Manhattan with dancing, posture and grace unlike any wedding I’ve seen!

I met Leann through Renata, fellow dancer and previous bride of mine. You may remember her from her wedding to my wonderful cousin Ron back in 2010 ( You can see that here). Luckily for me she had taken up photography and was able to assist me for this wedding! If you want to check out her amazing behind the scenes ballet photography here is her website – http://renatapavam.com/.

I met the ladies at Gotham Beauty Lounge where they were getting all glammed up while Renata hung out with the guys. From there it was off to Leann’s apartment to get dressed before the ceremony. Cuteness alert – their dog Benson might be the cutest thing ever. He was the perfect model in his wedding tuxedo.

After a gorgeous ceremony and portraits in a nearby park it was off to the reception at the Manhattan Penthouse. With great views of the city and a room full of professional dancers what more could you ask for?!

Thanks again to Leann and Thomas for having me out for your wedding!

Hair and Makeup – Gotham Beauty Lounge

Ceremony – St. George’s Chapel

Reception – Manhattan Penthouse

Flowers- Allan’s Florists

Cake: Cheryl Kleinman Cakes

Bridal Gown: Vera Wany by David’s Bridal

DJ: Nancy Battino

Meanwhile……

Enter Benson….. show stealer 🙂

And then we headed to the church for the ceremony.

Reception time! Well first cocktial hour!

I was really irritated that we couldn’t get on the rooftop for skyline photos so I worked a little double exposure photoshop magic for the next two ….

And lastly me with the happy couple!

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A Mavris Wedding : Barb and Ali – Indianapolis, In 8/23/13

September 17, 2013

You may remember this wonderful couple from their engagement session in Chicago this spring . They are both amazing people so I knew that the wedding was going to be a blast.

They choose to get married at The Mavris in Indianapolis which is a gorgeous lofty venue that I’ve been looking forward to shooting at forever. The small ceremony was held in the outdoor garden with just family present. Ali is from Mauritania so unfortunately a lot of his family couldn’t be there for the big day, but thanks to the wonderful world of technology they were able to watch via Skype!

The rest of their friends and family were invited to help them celebrate later that evening at the reception. It was awesome for me to see many familiar faces from IU and get to catch up with some of my volleyball girls that I hadn’t seen in years.

Congrats to Barb and Ali and thank you again for allowing me to be a part of your day!

Cermony & Reception Venue: Mavris Arts & Events Center

Hair & Makeup : True Colors Indy (Rebecca Shorter)

Flowers: Dream Weddings (Chris Prange)

Cake: Heavenly Sweets

Invitations: Wedding Paper Divas

Bridal Gown: Bridal Designs by Kotsovos

Bridesmaids Dresses: Donna Salyer’s Fabulous Bridal

DJ: Track 7 DJ’s ( Noel)

Photobooth: FreezeFramez

Transportation: Mustache Rides

Meanwhile in the “Man Cave”

Love the cufflinks! This is the flag of Mauritania!

I LOVE it when my couples do a first look 🙂

Ceremony time!

Then we headed down to the canal for photos on the Mustache Ride buses….

So this was happening as we were taking photos…. pretty sure that’s not a good thing haha…. luckily we made it back to the Mavris despite the smoking/overheating.