Nora's Wedding Blog » International Destination Wedding Photography

I officially have a new favorite location for engagement photos and it’s the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, IL. This is where I shot Gina and Ryan’s engagement photos this Sunday. There are a few drawbacks to shooting here and one is the crowds of people. We did this shoot on a sunny Sunday in June so I think that during the week there are probably less people. The other drawback is the fee, there is a $125 permit for photography as well as a $20 parking fee per vehicle. I think it’s worth it and hopefully once you see the pictures you’ll see why. There is a Japanese Garden, English Walled Garden, Fruit & Vegetable Garden, etc…23 total display gardens on 385 acres!! Gina searched for the perfect location for their engagement session and I think she found it!

One of our first shots and they were already modeling like pros.

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Love the emotion on Gina’s face.

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Looked good in B&W too!

The “formal” picture that the parents want to see.

A not so formal picture that I like!

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An example of different processing.

The light was amazing and I couldn’t resist doing a couple headshots.

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Relaxing on the grass.

Found this cool staircase and couldn’t resist.

One the bridge to the Japanese Garden.

A building in the Japanese Garden.

Still in the Japanese Garden. Gina’s shoes were hurting her feet but you can’t tell in the picture and she’s still glowing with happiness.

A quiet moment sitting near the waterfalls at the Waterfall Garden.

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From far away…

At the English Walled Garden.

 

Katie and Matt got married at the cutest cathlic church in Valparaiso, Indiana called Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church. After the ceremony we headed over to Deep River County Park for some pictures before heading to the reception which was held in a huge tent in back of Katie’s parents business.

Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church.

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The bride’s flowers.

Hopefully comfy shoes. Kate did say she was looking forward to changing into her ballet slippers for the reception.

The rings!

Mom helping her daughter get ready.

Her bridesmaids made her laugh.

Look at this cool guy getting ready.

Cute kids.

Matt had some tears when he saw Kate walking down the aisle with her dad. I see more guys cry than girls at weddings…by far!

All smiles.

On the outside looking in.

Bubbles!!!

The flower girl, Morgann, is going to be a future model. Throughout the day whenever I was near her taking pictures she’d turn, smile and pose. I wish all kids were like her when it came to having their picture taken! She also had different colored eyes which I didn’t notice until I snapped this!!

On a bridge at Deep River County Park in Hobart, Indiana.

Everyone got seeds to plant and grow their own garden.

Customized fans as party favors for keeping cool.

The bride’s dad had a saying that when a monkey is hanging from the ceiling, you know it’s a party!

The first dance.

The cake tolerated the heat untile Katie and Matt cut it.

This is the first underwear bouquet I’ve seen in my life. The midwest is weird.

…and one for the groom.

Some girls could really dance!

Dancing to “Bille Jean” as a tribute to Michael Jackson.

Having fun during the reception!!!

Okay, this is an older wedding I shot last year in August. The reason I’m posting it on my blog now is because, a) I never put it on my website, and b) I saw this church, which is St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica, in US Weekly a few months later which I though was pretty cool.

Fun fact: Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady were married here (the first official ceremony, not the second one in Costa Rica) a few months later!

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One of my fave flower shots.

The reception was held at The Victorian at Heritage Square which is a historic home built in 1894 and located on Main St in downtown Santa Monica. Since I lived in Santa Monica for over a year and passed this place multiple times a week, I always wanted to check out the inside and finally had the opportunity to at this wedding :)

I am now proud to offer canvas prints from Simply Canvas. They have custom print sizes from 6×6 to 60×100. Also available are design templates and “canvas clusters”.

Sides can be white (shown here), black or full bleed.

Full bleed sides.

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Here is a sample of a “canvas cluster”.

Here is a sample of a template.

Part II of the weekend. My boyfriend and photographer-in-training, Andrew, was my second shooter for this wedding. He took some excellent photos which I will post here later, giving him full credit of course! I was a little jealous of some of his pictures which I thought looked fantastic. We headed to Eldora, Iowa for Katie and Trent’s wedding on Saturday. Where is Eldora? It’s a small town about 25 miles west of Waterloo. With a population of just over 3000 people, it’s not huge, but if you’ve seen the movie Twister it was filmed here so you may have seen it on the big screen if not in person! The ceremony was held at Camp Quaker Heights and the reception at the lodge at Pine Lake State Park.

The cutest flower girl!!

The rings.

The Maid of Honor and sister of the bride who was also the caterer/wedding coordinator at the wedding!!! Talk about multi-tasking. The food was delicious!!

Katie looking beautiful and relaxed!!!

Usually I think the bride is glowing but in this picture I think Trent is!

Flowers by Tara Dudley of Plant Life Designs.

Butterfly theme…

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Becoming Mr. and Mrs.

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The kiss.

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Butterfly release after the ceremony. One decided to stick around longer

A quiet moment.

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Great detail shot by Andy!

They had strawberry shortcake for their cake and Andy got this great shot.

The Lodge at Pine Lake State Park.

This weekend was a busy one with my first “double header” of the season. The first was on Friday in Itasca, Illinois at a beautiful resort called the Eaglewood Resort & Spa. Unfortunately the stormy weather from earlier in the day forced the wedding indoors but we were able to get some pictures outside after the ceremony.

Prairie-style architecture influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Guys “getting ready”.

The ceremony before the guests arrived.

At the alter.

The beaming bride.

Outdoors with her flower girl.

Newly married!

Genuine happiness together.

 

Her flowers.

Walking back inside.

Despite the humidity, the bride looked as cool as cool as could be.

 

Walking upstairs to mingle with their guests.

The gorgeous cake that looked like a Tiffany gift.

Enjoying their first dance together.

Bridesmaids fighting for the bouquet.

How fitting that my first wedding in Illinois is also my first blog post.  I’m still a newbie at this blog posting thing so bear with me.

Ceremony: St. Francis Church
Portraits: Lake Katherine Nature Center and Botanic Gardens
Reception: Chicago Gaelic Park

A man and his dog…

The bride with her bridesmaids…

By herself

“Going to the chapel and we’re gonna get married”… despite the rain, Jessica had a great attitude.

Making it official.

At beautiful Lake Katherine. Rain threatened but no one’s spirits were dampened.

A  stolen moment…

Having a blast…