When I took Brittany & Byron out for their engagement session, I thought that I had died and gone to photographer's heaven. They are, well, a really good looking couple plus they were totally up for anything I threw at them. Some of my favorite images are from that session. A few months later, they were blessed with an unexpected gift... a baby. True to form, they were totally up for it. They switched the wedding date, planned a nursery and a wedding and Byron made an amazing career change. They took it in stride and made it look easy!
Of course the reality is that having your wedding a mere 3 months postpartum and while your breast-feeding your new bundle of joy presents some challenges. Heck, it was a chore for me just to go grocery shopping with my 3 month old. I would roam the aisles of the grocery wearing a spit-up stained shirt and a sloppy ponytail while juggling a colicky baby and a wobbly-wheeled cart (never failed, it was always the wonky cart.) Imagine holding your wedding. But Brittany was super-mom on wedding day. Brittany and I had worked on a timeline, and even though we built in feeding times, everyone knows that sometimes it's the baby that's running the show. Brittany just rolled with it. Family photos ran over? No problem. Baby too hot in this fancy dress? Put her in a onesie. 30 minutes of bride and groom photos whittled down to 7 min? Ain't a thing. My bride was awesome! I feel like she should write a book called "Bride with a Baby: How to look amazing in your postpartum body, breastfeed your newborn and have the wedding of your dreams."
Their wedding was held at the Bellbrook Presbyterian Church. Generations of Brittany's family have been married in the church. It's an intimate church full of charm and beautiful details like the stained glass windows and restored chandelier.
Byron is an interesting person. He's the kind of guy you'd like to sit with at a pub and hear his story over a good beer. He's an accomplished foilist and instructor. Is that the right word? He's a fencer who fights with a foil. Err, maybe it's not a foil. It's like a foil but maybe different. Somehow.
Okay, I know nothing about fencing.
But he does. And it's COOL.
The ushers flipped that aisle runner every which way to get the darned thing to work. They sweated. They laughed. They nearly abandoned the thing.
Finally, to the delight of the guests, they got it rolled out for the bride.
It's such a lovely treat to hear live music while I wait for the wedding to begin.
I'm usually a shoot-it-like-it-happened gal, but sometimes ya just need a little heart shaped bokeh.
I've always watched the groom when the bride comes down the aisle. Now that I'm a wedding photographer, it's one of my favorite moments to capture.
Stained glass reflections on the piano and heads bowed in prayer.
The only girl who can wear white and look as gorgeous as the bride is Baby Chloe.
Venue: Bellbrook Presbyterian Church
Reception: Arbor Hall
DJ: Party Pleasers
Hair/MUA: Hannah Davis
