I’ve never been to the Lincolnshire Marriott Resort and I was expecting your standard hotel but it was definitely not. This place is huge and it had at least two and maybe even three weddings happening at the same time. There is a lake, golf course, indoor and outdoor pools… Yelista and Sergio opted to see each other before the ceremony and take photos with family and friends so they could enjoy the cocktail hour with their guests before the reception. I think that was a great idea since we were able to relax and take our time walking around. They also had me capture their “first look” and Yelitsa starting to get emotional and the bridesmaids had to tease her to stop her from crying!
The ceremony was outside and the officiant was very relaxed and allowed me go anywhere I wanted which was nice since sometimes I can’t go behind the alter which is the direction that the bride and groom face! Most people don’t think of these things, but if you want photos of your faces and not just your backs while you’re getting married then consider a place that has relaxed rules for photographers or face your guests. I’ve even shot at some churches where you can’t go down the aisle past the last pew. In these cases, if you see a close up shot of the bride and groom putting on rings, it’s usually staged. Just FYI.
Cute t-shirt!!
Pretty rings shot in the flower girl basket.
Yelista had her bridesmaids help her get ready and put on her jewelry.
Waiting to see Sergio!
A lady bug landed on Yelitsa’s veil and she was excited since it’s a sign of good luck!
The ladybug…
A guest getting a photo of the ringbearer coming down the aisle. Don’t worry Yelitsa, I got the photo of him too!
Guests blew bubbles at the end of the ceremony.
Aw!
Cutting the cake.
Sergio dropped a piece before he was able to feed it to Yelitsa!
Love the expressions… some happy, others look worried 
Sergio did a little dance before he went for the garter.
I started this wedding at the St. Agnes of Bohemia Church in Chicago. The bride and groom opted not to get getting ready photos which I always enjoy, oh well. The church was beautiful and the ceremony was all in Spanish, so I had no clue what was going on but most weddings follow the same format and I was able to figure it out. I finally got to meet the bride after the ceremony and we headed over to Douglas Park for some formal portraits with the bridal party. The light was perfect as it was slightly overcast which helped keep temperatures cool and comfortable as well as provided great light for pictures. There was a homeless person hanging out but he graciously moved out of the way when we started setting up.
After the portraits we headed to the reception at Chateau Bu-Sche’ which should have been only a 20 minute drive, but in Friday afternoon traffic ended up being 45 minutes. The grounds are gorgeous and we had planned to snap a few more shots, but since the traffic took so long we weren’t able to as the reception was about to start. The place is so big that there was another wedding going on at the same time. Edith and Jaime’s reception was in the atrium off of the Crystalane Room which was very light and airy. They newlyweds had a six piece mariachi band called Mariachi Durango (773-818-5045) who were excellent and went table to table taking requests from the guests during the dinner before the DJ took over afterwards for the dancing.
The outside of the church.
At Douglas Park in Chicago.
A fun traditional dance.
On Saturday headed up to Michigan for a wedding at Willow Harbor Vineyards in Three Oaks, Michigan. This place is a one stop shop with separate quarters for the bride and groom to get ready, a gorgeous ceremony area near a pond and a reception tent for guests to hang out afterwards and party up a storm!
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Getting ready in the bride’s cottage.
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Cute flower girl!
Love this shot. I think he was trying to swat away bugs but it was right before the ceremony and with the ring pillow sitting on table in front of him it looks like it could be something else.
Dad kissing his daughter goodbye.
The beautiful ceremony. Outdoors ceremonies are my favorite even though the weather has a lot to do with how comfortable they are.
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The kiss.
Together at the alter.
Fun post-processing on a photo taken right before sunset.
Mmmmmm..
Kids always have fun at the reception!
Sharing time on the dance floor together.
Have a great honeymoon in St. Thomas!
Another hot but sunny and beautiful day in Illinois I started at the bride’s house while the second shooter, Kevin Tanaka, went to the groom’s. Kristin was already dressed when I got there (surprise!) so we ended up doing some pictures with the family and bridemaids. We headed to the Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in Aurora for the ceremony. The church was very big and beautiful and one of the more stunning churchs’ I’ve seen. After an entertaining ceremony we headed to Phillips Park for some photos with just the bride and groom and afterwards to Gaslight Manor for the reception.
Sometimes the porch has the best light!
Who would have thought this church is in a residential neighborhood in Aurora? Amazing.
A joke during the ceremony about the Cubs winning the World Series.
Through the glass door in the back.
At Phillips Park in Aurora, IL.
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The front of the groom’s cake which was a replica of Wrigley Stadium!
…part of the groom’s cake believe it it not.
Their first dance.
Guys being guys!
MaryRose started the day at the pet friendly Hotel Allegro in downtown Chicago where she got ready with her bridesmaids. The hotel had a contemporary interior and MaryRose loved the silver wallpaper in the suite. After taking photos of the girls around the hotel we went to the ceremony at St. Benedict’s Church. Was a great place! Anthony got a little choked up when he saw his bride walk down the aisle towards him with her father. After the ceremony the bridal party got to ride in one of the biggest Hummer limos I’ve seen to the reception at Bristol Banquets.
The dress.
Getting dressed with the help of her bridesmaids.
Fantastic light looking out the window.
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St. Benedict’s Church.
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MaryRose’s veil flew off in the wind during their exit from the church. That’s the second bride to lose her veil in the last month! It’s not called the Windy City for nothing.
Outside Bristol Court before the grand entrance to the reception.
An American tradition. I think!
Kind of funny that the last wedding I did a week ago they had the same names! It was the hottest day of the summer but that was the only thing that put a damper on this wedding, everything else was perfect. After the ceremony at the church the newlyweds were sent off with personlized balloons! The reception was held at Independence Grove which is a great venue. It’s actually a forest preserve that’s free for Lake County residents and only $5 a car for everyone else. In addition to being very picturesque they had a lake for swimming and paddle boats. Have a great time in St. Lucia!!!
Pretty flowers outside the St. Paul The Apostle church in Gurnee, IL.
The ceremony.
The personalized balloons to send off the newlyweds.
Nichole was very nice managed to look cool and relaxed in the heat and humidity!
A nice posed candid moment.
Some couples look at me like I’m crazy when I ask if they can start dancing and then there are couples who like to dance. Nichole and William were the latter.
I didn’t get a lot of time with the flowers before the ceremony, so I got this shot with the focus on her bouquet.
A kiss on the cheek for his wife!
So much color here
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See where her hand is? Did I mention they had good senses of humor?
Just looking at this pictures makes me crave chocolate! There were brownie bites, milk, and rootbeer floats as well and that’s not even including the sweet bar and wedding cake!
I love how the moon looks in this shot.
Nicole and William met their first day of class at Elmhurst College. Nicole actually got ready to be married in the room they met in since it was located below the chapel. She’s a nurse and he’s a firefighter which is something else I thought was really cool. The campus was absolutely beautiful and the light in front of the chapel was perfect for pictures.
After the ceremony, we headed to the Morton Arboretum in Lisle for more pictures and the reception. The room for the reception had a wall of glass that overlooked a lake. This was my first wedding at the Morton Arboretum and I can’t wait to shoot here again
The guys requested this shot of them walking with thier jackets towards the chapel.
Getting ready shot through the window of the door.
At the alter.
Peaking in through the glass in the back.
Newly married! William is beaming.
Lots and lots of bubbles!
We staged this shot after the guests left.
Very cool classic car that took them away from the chapel.
At the arboretum.
They felt a little silly when I asked them to “pose and look natural” since the two don’t really go together but I thought these turned out great. Lots of natural looking emotion.
Simple shot of them walking away.
Perfect light. I highly recommend this place for shooting pictures.
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Taking a little break on a bench. The sun was behind them and I liked the sun spots.
The yummy cake
I like this one since it’s usually the guys who throw around the high fives and not the gals.
Nicole with her dad.
Cynthia and Mike are getting married at the Wilder Mansion in Elmhurst . Cynthia is originally from the area but they both now live in Boulder, Colorado which is where my sister went to college! The Wilder Mansion was originally constructed in 1868, aquired by the Park District in 1921 and was used to be the town’s public library (which has moved next door) until 1996, and now serves as a venue for special events. Our shoot cooincided with their enagagement party held at the mansion on Sunday afternoon. I look forward to shooting there next May!
Well, this was an interesting weekend. One of the busiest and also filled with strange coincidences. I thought there might be a full moon but there wasn’t.
Interesting things that happened:
1. Got rear-ended on the way to the wedding on Saturday 
I guess this is more crappy than weird.
2. Realized the engagement session on Sunday was literally across the street from the wedding I was shooting that afternoon. How convenient!
3. Ran into two guests at the Sunday wedding that had been at the same wedding I shot on Saturday!! What are the odds?!?! Seriously, I want to know.
Mary and Greg got married at the United Lutheran Church in Oak Park, IL. Their reception was at the Holiday Inn-Countryside.
My poor baby. It’s only 7 months old so this is the first ding. Minor scrapes, nothing serious so I guess I should be happy.
Mary’s daughters who were also her bridesmaids helped her get ready.
Cool toes!!
The beautiful church.
One of Mary’s daughters made the bouquets. Very talented!
Greg waiting for his bride.
Walking down the aisle.
At the alter.
View from the balcony.
Newly married!
Sharing a moment outside.
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The reception had a Vegas theme so the placecards were actual playing cards…
…and an Elvis cutout that was everyone received a ticket for to win in a drawing.
Ice cream!
Sharing their first dance.
