I loved this wedding. I mean I really, really loved this wedding. And let me tell you why. . . because it was like being in the middle of the best romantic movie you have ever seen. There were tears. There was laughter. There was face-touching (which you know is my favorite). There were groomsman shenanigans. There were sweet and sassy bridesmaids. But most importantly, there was love. Giant, rushing, warm, shiny, sparkling waves of love.

(Jeez Louise, I’m crying already and I’m only two paragraphs in.)

Even though several months have passed since this wedding, when I look at the images, I can feel it like it was yesterday. I can feel Kari’s exuberant dance around the dressing room after she put on her mother’s cathedral veil. I can feel the unique (albeit mysterious) bonds of masculine friendship when Logan is hoisted onto his best man’s shoulders. I can feel the pain and pride of Kari’s oldest brother speaking on behalf of the father they lost. I can feel the sorrow, comfort and love as Kari dances the first dance with her mother, and they wipe away each others tears.

And although there was certainly sorrow, there was so much joy. Kari and Logan stood hand in hand in the middle of the dance floor as Minnesota’s Wedding Entertainment Director Extraordinaire Bill Hermann spun the tale of their love – from a match made on eHarmony, to their engagement, to their wedding day. Everybody – and I mean everybody – was hypnotized. Watching the two of them gaze at each other while Bill’s low, melodic narrative carried us along in their story was beyond moving. It was epic.

And then things got crazy.

It’s not often that you get to see a dance floor packed from edge to edge at a wedding. And all the events that might go quietly into the night at a reception, like the garter and bouquet, were done with such flourish that they became events in and of themselves. When Kari threw the bouquet, there were hands everywhere grasping at the floral projectile. When Logan removed Kari’s garter, they were literally surrounded by every man and boy in the place. When they did the anniversary dance, the floor was packed shoulder to shoulder with couples in love, which as you can imagine, is heaven for a mush bucket like me.

 So this is my Valentine’s Day gift to you. Looking at these images will not only make your feel Kari and Logan’s love and joy, it will make you feel your own. You’ll think of how much you love those around you and how lucky you are to have their love in return. And it will feel oh, so good.

 Happy Valentine’s Day!

 Now go kiss somebody, already!

Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_02 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_01 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_03 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_04 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_05 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_06 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_07 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_09 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_11 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_12 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_13 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_15 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_16 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_17 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_18 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_19 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_23 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_24 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_25 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_27 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_28 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_29 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_30 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_31

There wasn’t even a photographer . . . besides Alicia.  Alicia is my capital “A” Awesome Assistant.  And even though she was the one getting married, she was also the photographer.  She set up her camera on a tripod and hid a wireless remote in her hand.   Although I don’t have any of those images to show you, I do have some that we took at her Minnesota reception.

Cecil and Alicia booked The Wilds in Prior Lake  for their reception.  We ran outside just before the first dances and then again afterwards and were able to create three entirely different looks as the sun changed.  As special thanks goes out to Alicia’s cousin and his partner who played the part of Alicia since she was busy playing the part of the bride.  And what a beautiful bride she was! 

 But I don’t have to tell you – see for yourself.

Congratulations, Alicia and Cecil!  

When I shot their engagement session at the Peace Gardens at Lake Harriet, I knew that they were my kind of couple.  They’re fun, genuine, don’t take themselves too seriously, and are perfectly at ease with being schmoopy in front of the camera.  They’re the kind of couple that I can put in good light, take a step back, and give them a two-word direction: snuggle up.   And they are champion snuggle-up-ers.  

Although I would have been more than happy to photograph Erin and Brian in the basement of the local VFW, when I met them at the Calhoun Beach Club for their final consultation, my jaw literally dropped.  It’s a beautiful facility with a very unique style.  Elegant and contemporary with an abundance of natural light, I became positively giddy thinking of all the possibilities.  As fellow photographer Michael Overbeek recently quoted from Top Gun – it’s a “target rich environment.”

Of all the places I’ve photographed, there are only a handful that really put attention and thought into the bride’s room.  The bride’s room in Calhoun Beach Club is one of the loveliest I have ever seen.  It has four separate stations for hair/make-up, gorgeous mirrors, two beautiful white couches with crisp clean lines, and ornamental hooks  high on the wall, perfectly placed for handing a wedding dress. 

But even better than being a gorgeous building with beautiful light and a lovely bride’s room, The Calhoun Beach Club has personal significance to Erin and Brian.   This is where their story began.  Right outside the gated pool area is where they spoke to each other for the first time.  So of course on their wedding day, to bring their story full circle and pay homage to the god of symmetry, we had to sneak away for a few minutes and go to the place where it all started. 

Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB32 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB31 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB30 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB29 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB28 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB27 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB26 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB25 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB24 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB23 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB22 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB21 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB20 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB19 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB18 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB17 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB16 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB15 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB14 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB13 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB12 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB11 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB10 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB9 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB8 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB7 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB6 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB5 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB4 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB3 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB2 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Calhoun_Beach_Club_EB1

Ohh, Universe!  What a twisted bugger you are!

Now don’t jump to conclusions.  Alissa, Mike, their families and their bridal party could not have been more sweet, more cooperative, or more fun to spend the day with.  There was no Bridezilla, Momzilla or any other kind of Zilla.  Everybody was in a great mood, we started on time at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in East Bethel, MN, and Alissa and Mike looked fantastic.  But we hadn’t even taken the first formal portrait when Alissa heard something rip as she walked up the alter steps.  Yep.  Her wedding dress ripped.  And not somewhere in the back or under the train.  It was right in front where the gathers from the sides came together underneath a sequin embellishment.  Her personal attendant was wicked quick with a safety pin, and we kept moving.

The formal and informal portraits before the ceremony went swimmingly.  The ceremony was lovely, and the receiving line moved smoothly with lots of hugs and laughter – just in time to let the guests out into the pouring rain. 

Sigh.  We had planned on taking additional portraits outdoors after the ceremony, but it just goes to show you always need a Plan B – and a golf umbrella in the trunk of your car — nestled between a step stool, reflectors, extra extension cords, clamps, and folding chairs (seriously folks, you never know what you’ll need on a wedding day).  So instead of stopping at a park, we went to the bar, grabbed a few drinks (not me, of course, this girl needs to focus – literally), and headed to the hotel.

I stole Alissa and Mike away from the bridal party and wisked them up to their room to create some moody, dramatic images with my fancy new LedZilla video light.  Lordy, do I love that light!  And after I showed Alissa and Mike a few images on the back of the camera, I think they loved it too!

Just like Mike and Alissa, the reception was fun, full of laughs, and full of smooches.  Like always, the reception hit warp speed, time flew by, and I packed my beloved Nikons to go home and have a birthday dinner with my man.

No such luck.

Right as we were rolling our bags out, the hotel staff was at the door ushering everyone into a basement storage room because of a tornado in the area.  Now there’s a story the bride and groom will get to tell for the rest of their lives.  Knowing there was nothing you could do about spending part of your wedding reception in the hotel basement, Mike and Alissa used the time to visit with their guests.  And once staff moved some of us out of the storage room and into basement conference rooms, guests started making their own fun.  The folks in the room we were in played hangman on the whiteboard.  The room next to us had an informal family get-together.  I unpacked my beloveds and starting shooting.

After a few phone calls to my man to confirm that, yes, I could now drive home safely without fear of ending up in Oz and crushing a witch, we hit the road.  Thirty minutes later, I was safe and sound at home, opening up my birthday presents (thank you, Babe!).  And even though that tricky Universe tried to mess with Mike and Alissa’s perfect wedding, it failed miserably.  Mike and Alissa still had a gorgeous wedding, a delicious dinner, and a fantastic reception - including the part that was spent in the basement.  They will always have beautiful photographs of their day (if I do say so myself), and most importantly, they will always have each other.  That qualifies as perfect in my book.

 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_28 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_27 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_26 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_25 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_24 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_23 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_22 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_21 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_20 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_19 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_18 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_17 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_16 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Our_Saviour_15 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_14 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_13 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_12 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_11 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_10 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_9 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_8 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_7 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_6 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_5 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_4 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_3 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_2 Minneapolis_Wedding_Photographer_Northland_Inn_1

Last night I walked away with the following eight honors at the 2010 Northern Light Regional Convention for MN, ND and SD professional photographers:

• MN Wedding Photographer of the Year
• Distinguished Album
• Haga Wedding Award
• Court of Honor
• Northern Light Highest Scoring Wedding Print
• Fuji Masterpiece Award
• Kodak Gallery Award for Photographic Excellence in a Print
• Kodak Gallery Award for Photographic Excellence in an Album

But before I put down one more word of horn honking, I need to give a big, fat THANK YOU to David Grupa, David Johnson, David Jones, Erin Dunn and Kirsten Holscher.  I have a terrible time choosing which of my images to enter because I become too attached to the subjects.  I would make my selections based on the history of the image, how I felt when I took it, how I feel when I see it now, and how I feel about the people in it.  These wonderfully gifted photographers spent their valuable time helping me see my images with fresh eyes, and their advice was instrumental in achieving the list of awards above.

I’m especially proud of the fact that all of the images I entered were created for actual clients.  I didn’t hire professional models and stylists or rent a special location.  These are real brides and grooms being photographed on their actual wedding day.  It was a privilege to take part in their weddings, and I’m grateful  they allowed me the time and creative space to produce the images you’ll see below.  Meghan and Brandon, Jill and Paul, Katie and Sean, and Mary and Peter  – thank you, thank you, thank you!

Additionally, the images were awarded by trained, experienced professional photographers and judges, men and women who’ve spent decades learning, improving and sharing their art.  I value their opinions and greatly appreciate their gifts.  To have them recognize my work as being worthy of the awards above is truly an honor.

Album: It Starts With a Kiss

02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

Print: A Quiet Corner

Print: Leading Lady

Print: A Perfect Storm

Print competition, on the other hand, is an entirely different matter. 

I entered for the first time last year.  By the time I dropped off my prints (mere minutes before the deadline), I had bitten off every fingernail, twisted my hair into knots, and driven all my photographer friends batty with unending questions.  It’s a wonder of physiology that I didn’t barf all over the poor volunteer who took the print case from my shaking hands. 

And because I’m a true glutton for punishment, I agreed to announce the scores during the live judging event.  If I felt like yacking before, I was really in trouble now.

I have never been so close to having a full-on panic attack as I was when my first print came before the judges.  They immediately popped up from their chairs to put their noses within inches of my “Heavy Metal Love” print.  I began preparing my fragile psyche for the disappointment and emotional scarring that was sure to follow.

Usually during print competition, each print is only before the judges for a brief moment.  They enter their score, the average is calculated electronically, and the final score announced.  But for some prints the judges actually take time to discuss it, and be still my seconds-from-exploding-heart, they discussed mine – at length – the color, the expression, the lines, the composition.   

They loved it, and my fragile psyche remained intact. 

It was the second highest scoring print of the entire event.  It won the Fuji Masterpiece Award, the Haga Wedding Award, and it helped me win the Wedding Photographer of the Year Award. I was as giddy as a schoolgirl on Christmas morning. 

Apparently, I don’t like ties as much as I thought.

When selecting the potential competition prints for this year, I was lucky enough to receive guidance from four rock star metro photographers: David Grupa, David Johnson, David Jones, and Kirsten Holscher.  Now I just have to get it down to four. 

What do you think?039_JillPaul 085_KatieSean 114_AmyMike 155_SusanJosh 335_MeghanBrandon 353_MicaelaJosh 367_MindyJim 382_MicaelaJosh 391_ValBen 413_MicaelaJosh 444_SaraEvan 674_JillPaul DSC_0011 DSC_0036 Heather_Kraig_279 Mary_Peter_538

And here’s the deal-io muchachos, and I say this only because I have witnessed it personally, Sarah’s presence is more calming than prescription pharmaceuticals.  And for anyone that’s ever planned a wedding or participated in a wedding, you know that things can get downright frightening.  Moms get stressed.  Sisters get lost.  Best men get intoxicated, and red things get spilled on white dresses.  But with a qualified, experienced wedding professional like Sarah, all you’ll have on your to-do list is to enjoy one of the best days of your life with the most important people in your life.

And here’s a little secret you may not know about wedding photographers . . . we’re all terrible control freaks.  In order to create gorgeous images, we want to control the light, control the pose, control the location.   Having to “share” a wedding with another professional can rattle our obsessive-compulsive nerves.  But I can honestly say, and I’ve told Sarah this myself, that I wish she was at every wedding I’m invited to photograph.  And that, my friends, is the highest praise I can give.

071_LisaGary 090_LisaGary 145_LisaGary 170_LisaGary 183_LisaGary 272_LisaGary 285_LisaGary 366_LisaGary 1 377_LisaGary

210_KatieSean 674_JillPaul 444_SaraEvan 367_MindyJim 360_SaraEvan 173_MeghanBrandon 155_SusanJosh 211_MeghanBrandon 143_DanaGerald 127_SaraEvan 024_AmyMike 567_RichelleScottb 089_JillPaul 080_KatieSean 050_JillPaul 003_NikkiAndrew 332_SaraEvan SheilaMike_564