Amy & Zander // Camp Blodgett Wedding Photographer

Amy and Zander had so many cool things at their wedding! A wooden bouquet, stickers and temporary tattoos of their faces, photo booth signs of their heads and this super cool seating chart showing how everyone was connected to them and to each other!

I think my favorite detail had to be the tattoos since everyone had the same idea of NECK TATTOO!! hahah It was so great! The photo booth signs were also hilarious and I kind of just want one of those in my life to confuse Grace with.

It was such a great party with so many people who were just so into dancing and just such a good overall vibe. There were so many funny images so it was hard to decide what should just stay in the story and what should be highlighted in the funnies so be sure to go at the way to the bottom to see those! :)

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FUNNIES!

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This is a fun example of the difference in lenses! Ryan shot the left one with a 35mm and I shot the right on with a 14mm!

Everyone kept coming up to Ryan and Zander saying how much they thought they looked alike! It must be the beard because Ryan could only dream of having those luscious curls!

First look on the beach…

It’s just a little sand hah

We were taking these really nice bridal portraits and Zander just came up and started poking her with a stick! hahaha

I don’t think we have shot a wedding where SO many people had such a serious love of moss!

Reese // Kalamazoo Family Newborn Photographer

We have shot Kim and Gary many times starting with their engagement and wedding in our first year shooting. 10 years later, they have their third baby, Reese.

She is SO tiny! Grace was a giant monster baby so whenever I see normal or little babies I’m just so confused how it could be a real human and not a doll hah

There’s a shot in here where the boys were jumping on the bed while Gary was swaddling Reese on the floor and from where I was sitting I was like oh man, this would be so great. She’s just chilling down there all burrito’d up while the boys are going bonkers. I love all the beautiful peaceful shots but the little glimpses into reality are nice to have in the mix :)

Amy & Zander // Grand Rapids Engagement Photographer

Not taking yourself so seriously in life is probably the key to living forever. Zander and Amy have the best sense of humor and were so energetic and fun together. As we all know, I love motion in my work. I’m always trying to get people to loosen up and move because I think it really creates more life to photos and these two take the cake on that! Even the images that appear to be still, they have a good energy to them because it’s a still moment in the midst or or right after doing something weird haha

I just love the spirit they have together and I’m so excited for their wedding. We have some really funny ones I put at the end of this post as well so be sure to make it all the way down. I had them doing a bit of a bouncy run and Amy didn’t know how legs work in that scenario and looked like a crab running around confused about being upright. It was so funny!

We hope you enjoy this set as much as we do! I realize I have been saying that in almost every blog but I just love our work so much. Sometimes it seems surreal that we created all these things since I try to blog everything. It all just seems like a lot and I have so many memories from each session. I just hope it brings joy to other people as well :)

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FUNNIES!

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Alli & Jon // Cheney Place Wedding Photographer // Grand Rapids Wedding Photographer

So many things were awesome at this wedding. The light was AMAZING, the weather was incredible, Alli and Jon were so relaxed and happy which made them a breeze to work with, their family and friends were the happiest, nicest people and we were ahead of schedule so much that Alli got to take a nap.

Talk about a dream day! Literally…since Alli was napping. :) Seriously, we have never photographed a bride who took a nap on her wedding day and I think it’s the most genius idea ever. Apparently she loves naps so it’s awesome there was time in there to just relax enough to take a little sleep.

Our favorite caterer, Kangaroo Kitchen was there and it was a taco bar so I was living my dream on that front.

There was also a herd of cows that showed up at the reception. It was both hilarious and terrifying.

We hope you all enjoy these as much as we do! We had such a great time shooting this day!

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FUNNIES!

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Alli is the cozy nap queen!

Ryan said something about boobs I think and that is how this wonderful expression was created hahahaha!

PROTECT HER FROM THE COWS!!!!

Tiffany & Adam // The Brick Wedding Photographer // South Bend Wedding photographer

So many exciting things for me on this one! First off, I really love the brick. Their bathroom is awesome, the loft area with the cool spotlights is awesome, their sign is awesome, the garage door in there is amazing for bringing in great light and it’s all around super cool.

They didn’t want to see each other before the ceremony so ALL the bride and groom photos were done at night. It’s unusual but really exciting for us because night shooting can be a lot of fun if you are in the right place. I just get super jazzed about working with weird light and colored lights! It was SO COLD out and they were such good sports walking through the snow and choosing to be happy rather than realizing they were slowly freezing to death haha

Their rings were also super cool and unique which I love. She designed her ring as this flower and his has the forest on it which is a really cool. I used some trickery with my lights to make it look like the northern lights in the forest on his which I’m prreeettttyyyy happy about haha

Adam was actually a groomsmen at a wedding we did earlier this year where it was 1,000 degrees so this was a complete opposite experience! You can see that wedding here: http://www.gauperphoto.com/blog/rachel-jason-mill-creek-wedding-photographer

Some weird burning things happened in this wedding as well. If you scroll all the way to the bottom you’ll find the outtakes/funnies section where a bridesmaid had her curling iron explode on her and burn her arm and then when my hair almost caught on fire during the sparkler exit. There’s always something funny and dangerous happening at weddings and they make for great stories!

Oh also, doesn’t Tiffany look like Winnie Cooper from the wonder years? I couldn’t place how I knew her for like half the day then it just hit me and now I can’t stop seeing it.

Enjoy!

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OUTTAKES / FUNNIES

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There was this BIG pop and and sparks and the bridesmaid using the curling iron was burned by it! Once we realized she didn’t die from being electrocuted I think we all decided it was funny hahaha

Maybe it’s karma for laughing earlier because a guest practically set me on fire during the sparkler exit! Luckily another guest and Jason got it out of my hair before it caught me on fire. This has always been one of my fears and when I go out there I always yell at the guests and tell them NOT to set me on fire. There was so much going on because everyone was so cold that I don’t think I said it this time and SEE WHAT HAPPENS! hahaa

Courtney & Brian // Chicago Wedding Photographer

I love this wedding for the following reasons.

1. First, At the end of this long blog post are some “outtakes” but really I think I will start calling them just funnies because they are for sure not outtakes. They are hilarious and amazing. So if you don’t want to look through the whole blog, at least scroll to the bottom to see the funnies!

2. When we arrived, the bridesmaids had cleaned up and placed the dress in this beautiful spot. Usually we have to wander around and clean up rooms and move the dress and it’s a big ordeal. This was AMAZING. There were 17 bridesmaids and most have already been married so these girls knew the drill!

3. There’s so many dancing pictures in this post because I couldn’t possibly leave any more out than I already did. Ryan and I have been doing different lighting during dancing lately and I kinda love the variety of it. In this wedding, we have 3 lighting techniques being used! Regular bouncing, shutter drag and then with a colored backlight across the room.

4. Courtney is one of my favorites. She’s hilarious, laid back, super kind, beautiful and just a happy person in general. It’s no wonder she had 17 bridesmaids, I can’t imagine anyone that wouldn’t want to be her friend after meeting her.

5. Everyone was freezing so we took a break from photos and went to McDonalds where they bought 30 cheeseburgers. It is just my favorite that she went back behind the counter to grab them all and just ran. hahaha!

6. Outside of being super cold during portraits, it was such a fun and easy day. Their friends and family were so kind to us, super helpful and everyone was just there for them. It’s always the best part of weddings to see how much their circle of people care about them.

7. Also, I have learned my lesson this time. Next winter if we have a bald groom, I’m gonna bring along a fur lined hat for in between photos. Sorry Brian for making your brains freeze. It was worth it, right?!!!

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OUTTAKES/FUNNIES

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QUICK! Get him to the hospital, he’s about to deliver!

Give me my burgers, I aint got time for this! 😂😂😂

Nolan LOVES this guys suit!

I LOVE the people who are great laughers and have weird faces. Thus why Courtney is my favorite hahaha

Oopsies…. hahaha I just love how graceful she is

We brought along little heating pads to try and keep people warm. We never want to make you freeze…but…Mother Nature is a butt sometimes.

While editing this made me laugh for a bit hahaha It looks like Dad is just saying OK FINE TAKE HER!

The Kwong Family // Grand Rapids Family Photographer

I love when kids get just old enough to take direction really well but still be full of energy and generally bonkers. It’s the most incredible balance haha

We arrived a little early for their session so we were just driving around and saw all these low hanging leavings exploding with orange and we both audibly gasped. It was so funny! We frantically sent them a message and told them to meet us here instead. This was just the perfect magic of fall all in one little park downtown of all places!

Colleen & Brandon // Packard Proving Grounds Wedding Photographer

You know what, I think crazy weather just brings out insane sunsets. I’m convinced after the last few weddings we have shot. This was a cold one but then out of nowhere the sky exploded in this amazing sunset and we just RAN! There’s a great image at the end of this blog in the outtakes of them just running down this long parking lot to get to the perfect spot. At this point it was FREEZING out but they were such troopers!

The proving grounds were so cool with all the old cars and my goodness, we eat a LOT of wedding food but the food here was INSANE. It was family style and it was just so incredible. I want to remember how good it was forever!

Colleen and Brandon were such good sports with how cold it was and I feel so lucky to have had so many awesome clients this year that just bring a good attitude to everything. Colleens laugh is just the best and I just love the photos of her when laughing. It feels like you can almost here it because she just goes straight to 100% which I think is the best.

Winter weddings are so magical and I’ve got two more coming up next! Enjoy :)

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OUTTAKES

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It was just cold, dusk and then Colleen was like the sunset! From where we were I didn’t think we could get a good clear shot then Ryan was like the tree row! So we went around the corner and oh my word! We knew we would only have a couple minutes where it was most awesome so we just RAN! 😂

I like to do this wide shot where the guys charge at me when I have the right group for it and normally I don’t get injured or die. This was a close call though! I about had a heart attack! 🤣

Dave & Tiffany // St. Joseph Wedding Photographer // Shadowland Ballroom Wedding

Short Version:
- Gale force winds!
- Power outage all over town, oh no!
- Moved ceremony indoors, thank God because it POURED!
- Fire department came, kicked us all out for a while because of a gas leak
- DJ was awesome getting a generator in time (http://www.djjimmyrock.com)
- The planner was amazing and the glue that calmly held the day together. I remember as he was smiling telling us some bad news I said “sooo, are you dying inside yet? hahaha” (http://holdenmichaelevents.com)
- Tiffany and Dave were the best and didn't let any of this take them down.
- Their friends and family were also the best. Everyone was so nice and happy and those are the kind of people you really want in your life!
- Honestly, I love weddings like this. It shows who people are and it’s an honor to be a part of preserving their memories from a day with so many great stories!
- Oh let’s not forget that incredible Hayley Paige dress! 😍

Long Version:

This wedding is the ultimate example of why having a good attitude and a good team of vendors is SO important! You can dream, hope and pray all you want, but you never have control of the weather or other random things and that can change everything immediately. We’ve experienced a lot of things in our 10 years of business, plenty of rainy days, hurricanes, ect. but this day just had it all!

The weather on Friday was perfect. The weather on Saturday…well…the words “gale force winds” was very accurate. I’ve never experienced winds quite like this at a wedding before! It was so intense! The wind made it cold but we’ve been cold plenty of times. There were little tornados of leaves and trash flying around everywhere and don’t even get me started on what it does to hair! hahah I felt like I was going to blow away several times. The key to working in the wind is to work with it because if you do it right, it gives an amazing sense of movement which is my favorite thing!

But oh if it was only the wind, haha! That is really just the beginning. The power went out all over town, they had to move the ceremony to the reception venue since it was outside and it POURED rain during the ceremony. There was some sort of gas leak concern at the venue so the fire department had to come and kicked everyone out of the building until they could make sure everything was safe and then once all of those things happened I was like well what else could happen at this point?! hahah thats when the planner, Holden, told us we were on borrowed time. Honestly, he was so collected and calm I thought he was joking at first.

The fire department said that once all the emergency exit signs went out, we all had to leave the building. So we were like GET ALL THE THINGS DONE! When we lost the first sign, I felt a sense of doom haha

The carousel obviously didn’t work without power so we did some shutter drag images to try and give it a sense of movement. You can either be bummed about no power or make your own movement one way or another!

But here’s the thing. This wedding was AMAZING. I love these photos, I love my memories, I love this couple and I couldn’t be more proud of how this day went.

Life is not perfect. Just when you think you’ve been hit with plenty of things going wrong, 10 more things happen. There’s no escaping it sometimes. The only thing you can do is stay calm, be a problem solver and move forward. Having a good sense of humor I also find to be helpful :)

The DJ arrived early enough that he had time to quickly jump into problem solving mode and was able to find and go get a generator so he could run his stuff all night. Without that quick thinking, I can’t even imagine what a bummer that reception would have been! Instead it was awesome and we got so many great dancing shots and everyone had a blast!

Not all our weddings have planners but I am so thankful Tiffany hired Holden! He was so on top of things, so calm, had a great sense of humor about it all and was just wonderful to work with. I can’t recommend him enough!

I don’t recall being stressed at this wedding. Because of a good team, good attitudes and a couple that handled each piece of crazy news like champs, it was such a peaceful day oddly enough. A good attitude goes A LONG WAY!

When Ryan and I got engaged all our plans got messed up (If you have never heard that story, you can read about it here: http://www.mudeyes.com/i-engaged-her/) even though he had great plans, what it came down to was pulling off the road into a car dealership and this happened “I didn’t really want to propose to you in a car but this is what we have been dealt. I am going to love you even when things aren’t perfect and things don’t work out as planned. And I asked her to marry me. And she said, “I would marry you if we were covered in mud” =)”

Tiffany and Dave, I think you guys are mud people too. I’m so glad we were able to be a part of this day and give you these images to help remember all the things! Nothing can stop you guys from having a great time together!

You guys - if you need a planner or DJ - HIRE THESE PEOPLE.
http://holdenmichaelevents.com
http://www.djjimmyrock.com

Mary & Steven // St. Joesph Wedding Photographer // Shadowland Ballroom

Ryan has known the Mulder family for a long time since he used to work construction with them in Kalamazoo. We even shot Mary’s senior pictures back in the day and her sisters wedding a few years back. So when we heard Mary was engaged I was like ohhhhh yeeessss!

When we met Steve through a FaceTime call, we thought he was a cool guy but as we got to know him better on the wedding day, we really got to see how much he adores her and thats my favorite kind of dude. I like Mary so much because she speaks her mind and has such a great laugh. The laughers are always the best!

It was such an awesome day with great families, awesome people, beautiful weather and incredible diamonds. You can’t forget the diamonds! hahah I literally gasped when I saw her ring and started imagining what I would end up doing with it and boy oh boy do I love my ring shots in this one!

Alex & Anna // Detroit Wedding Photographer

We’ve done two weddings in one weekend many times before but this was a bit of a special case. We had their wedding on Friday in Detroit and then a wedding in St. Joseph Michigan on Saturday. Soooo basically on complete opposite sides of Michigan.

The plan that made the most sense was to drive from Detroit to St. Joe after this wedding on Friday night so we wouldn’t have to get up crazy early which was a great plan. We had NO IDEA the day that was ahead of us on Saturday and boy am I excited to blog that craziness but generally, we got nailed with impossible weather and so much bad luck but somehow, the day ended up awesome.

On the other end of the spectrum, Alex and Anna got SO lucky with weather! You couldn’t have had more opposite days since It was so beautiful out. Anna had two dresses and in my opinion, more dresses is always the right choice :) The second one was for the reception and there’s this twirling shot with it that I am NUTS for! I try to do this cool backlit shot for the first dance at every wedding now. Ryan is always on close ups so this twirly backlit shot is my only goal for the whole song basically and it’s always worth it.

The pride their families have for them was a beautiful thing to experience. A large portion of the ceremony was spent talking about how awesome they are and all the amazing things they have accomplished. This is the first time we have experienced that. I honestly wish it happened more! It’s really something to honor what you’ve done that made you who you are up until that point since everything is so different once you join your to another person.

Two Things:

1. I may have outdone myself with the ring shot below. So feel free to enjoy the heck out of that :) I CAN NOT STOP STARING AT IT! hahaha

2. The shot with the shoes and jewelry… It’s a face! You see it right?! This was not intentional but hilarious when I realized it later hahah :)

Matt & Julie // Ann Arbor Wedding Photographer

Occasionally on off dates, Ryan will do smaller weddings solo and this is one of them. It’s cool for me to edit this work since I didn’t shoot it and I tend to praise Ryan to death which I’m sure he enjoys. But seriously, this wedding is so great! It’s simple, laid back, beautiful even light, awesome reception venue and most importantly of all, awesome people.

You see, I wasn’t there but just from looking at the images, you get a feel for who they are. Out in the rain, having fun, being playful and happy. It’s just the best! Little things like rain should never bring you down on your wedding! One way or another, there’s always a way to solve it. The best one in my opinion is if it’s not pouring, is to go out in it!

There’s one in here where I literally GASPED when I first saw it and yelled at Ryan “MARY POPPINS!” haha I just love when people have ideas of their own. It’s such a cute picture and a contender for new portfolio work this winter.

So everyone pat Ryan on the back for being awesome without me. Well, shooting at least. Lord knows I’m not going to let him edit pictures hahahaa :)

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Dress: The Bride's Project It is a non-profit staffed by volunteers and ALL the money raised from sales of bridal gowns supports families touched by cancer through the Cancer Support Community of Greater Ann Arbor.

Car: Detroit Classic Car Rentals

Church/Officiant: University Lutheran Chapel / Gabe Kasper

Makeup: Imagine Three Beauty Studio

Venue: Vinology 

DJ: Dan and Tray Productions

OUTTAKES

Let’s be honest these “outtakes” are certainly keepers but it’s fun to shine a light on wonderful personalities! These two are so fun!

Mike & Amanda // Grand Rapids Public Museum Wedding

Ryan convinced me to get new cameras right before this wedding. I was freaking out since I don’t like change but oh my goodness, it was all basically amazing so I stand corrected. Our new cameras have wifi so I was able to get them a decent sized preview I edited on my phone on the drive home which is nuts!

Amanda is so organized but also laid back enough to be a normal person which is such a hard balance to have. Days like this are just so easy because everyone is where they are supposed to be, all the things run on time, nobody is running around stressed and we have lots of time to do REALLY COOL THINGS. It’s basically a dream for me.

The twirling of her dress had me going nuts. It was big enough but also light enough to catch the wind in the most amazing way so I was just bouncing around screaming like a dumb dumb as usual hahaha

I can’t wait to get a few of these images into our main portfolio which is always a place of honor as the best of the best!

Lindsay & Patrick // Detroit Engagement Photographer

The amount of clients we have for 2019 that are hilarious is overwhelming. We are settling in nicely with a super funny crowd and I love it. It’s great having people just do the things you ask without feeling weird because weird feels right at home. Even though most things look pretty normal, the process of creating them can feel weird so it all just works so well when everyone is on the same page.

Lindsay and Patrick are just such nice people and memorable humans. 10 years into marriage and I can say that laughing with Ryan is the absolute favorite thing. Having someone to laugh with for the rest of my life is the most comforting thing in my world. I know that Lindsay will also enjoy that life at Patrick is a gem. haha I started following him on Instagram and a small series on a rainy yard sale made me laugh for a longer than it should have hahah

So excited for their wedding!

Austin Family // Muskegon Family Photographer

The Austin’s are some of our favorite people and it’s an absolute joy to give them beautiful photos of their incredible family. It’s hard to meet such kind, easy going, real people so we feel incredibly lucky to have them in our lives. When they watch Grace, she just blends right into their family as the 5th child and it’s super cute!

This session went better than I remember it. It was super windy which was making it chilly and a lot of the fall color had fallen off the trees recently from the wind so I was kind of bummed about that. When I started editing their images tonight it was the first time I had actually looked at them and I was like WHAT this is amazing! hahah It’s fun to be able to relive experiences that I remembered differently. I guess that is the beauty of photography.

Ellie and her magical curly hair stole the show on this one for me. The wind, the light, it was all perfect. The 3 photos towards the end are my absolute favorite!

Aynna & Craig // Kalamazoo Engagement Photographer

Craig and Aynna must just be lucky people because fall was weird this year. It sorta showed up and then all the sudden seemed over. We had a ton of rain and really windy days that blew all the leaves off of the trees quite early. They weren’t even supposed to have their session until later this week but they were in town and we were able to move some things around to make it work and boy am I glad we were! The light was INCREDIBLE and the leaves were perfect at heritage hall.

We shot around heritage hall many years ago before it was totally renovated so when we came back to it for the first time, we were amazed at how much it had changed! It is such an incredible building. Aynna’s dad was actually the architect on it so it was cool to do her engagement photos there. We have shot weddings here as well and just love it.

These two are just the definition of kind and laid back. They made our job super easy and were such a joy to shoot. We love when people just play around and do all the weird stuff we ask without questioning the process haha If it doesn’t end up being a cool shot, at least we all got some laughs out of it :)

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😂 OUTTAKES 😂

I had recently done something bad to my right foot. It’s like turning in weird and I can’t bend it properly.

I really shouldn’t have been walking on it but we all know I am not going to cancel sessions because of a bum foot.

However, climbing hills was like climbing everest to me haha. It’s super hard to hobble up a hill and we all need a little help sometimes! hahaha :)

Kaitlynn & Justin // Lovett Hall Wedding Photographer

Kaitlynn is one of those people you meet that when you walk away, you say to each other “Oh my word, she was so nice!” Nothing makes me feel more calm than organization and my goodness, this girl is organized. It seemed to bring her just as much joy as it brings me…which is a LOT.

Her joy for her family and friends happiness says a lot about her as well. Maybe we are just lucky, maybe our work just brings in the same kind of person but I love how so many of the weddings we shoot are not just about the couple. It isn’t this “my day” kind of vibe. It’s about everyone. It’s this beautiful cycle of everyone making each other happier and happier.

Justin reminds me of Ryan. Supportive, kind, patient and her ultimate supporter. During the ceremony they were talking about how when camping, she really just wanted a hotel and I thought to myself, oh my goodness, it’s us! hahah I like viewing nature but don’t so much love it ON me.

The Henry Ford museum is such a cool place to shoot and Lovett hall is just a stunning building! We always love the gems that Detroit has to offer.

As always, it was a pleasure being part of such a beautiful day and although this blog is HUGE, it took a lot of harsh cuts to get it down to this hahaa Enjoy!

Oh and if you want to check out their amazing Ann Arbor engagement session, you can see that here: http://www.gauperphoto.com/blog/kaitlynn-justin-ann-arbor-engagement-photographer

Taylor & Sam // Muskegon Engagement Photographer

When we are shooting anl engagement session on a fairly overcast day and then all of the sudden THE SKY EXPLODES. We run as fast as we can to get to the water to get some sweet sky shots before it’s gone. Now, I’m not much of an “athletic” person and Ryan was carrying a bunch of gear but none of that matters when you see a sky like this. YOU RUN!

Great memories are made when you think your lungs are about to explode. hahaha

For funzies, here’s a majestic outtake in the wind. :) Not every image is a winner hahah!

Bridgette & Sam // Kalamazoo Wedding Photographer

We met Bridgette & Sam when we shot their entire family (you can see that post here). Right away, we knew these people were a special bunch. They were so fun and joyful and just the kind of family you dream to be a part of.

Bridgette and Sam weren’t engaged at the time but when we left the session that day, Ryan and I both were like WE GOTTA SHOOT THEIR WEDDING! I am so glad we were able to be a part of this day because it was amazing. They have such a good energy together.

Sam is just so kind and has an excellent sense of humor and Bridgette is just a light in the world. She is one of those special people that could brighten anyones day. She reminds me a lot of Maisha from our last blog. Being able to be around people like this, even just for the day, impacts our life in so many ways. These images are not just memories for our clients, they are for us as well and being able to be a part of so many awesome events for so many incredible people is for sure the greatest perk of what we do.

Maisha + Nick // Goshen Indiana Wedding Photographer

WHERE DO I EVEN START.

This wedding was special. Like…we were both choking back tears in the ceremony. We attend so many ceremonies but we are both mushy on the inside and will never be immune to the incredible, big deal that getting married is.

Maisha and Nick weren’t even going to hire a photographer at first. They were doing a really low key wedding in a backyard with food trucks, very DIY and just nice and easy. She didn’t even having a wedding dress when we first talked to them. They are just super laid back and were just going to be happy with whatever. We got to meet with them both and in the end, thankfully, they decided to have us and honestly, my life will be different because of that choice.

I get caught up. I get worried. I get overwhelmed. I care about the details of EVERYTHING. I overthink. I am so many of the things I think are dumb but I can’t stop being them. But this wedding just took me by surprise. It wasn’t just about Maisha and Nick. It was about EVERYBODY. It was about their village of people. It was about their families coming together.

In a culture where we are so independent and we all pride ourselves on how awesome we are all on our own, this felt like everyone there was better because of everyone else. The energy in this place was magical. I have what I describe as “vibes” which is just a feeling about people and, I don’t know, it’s always just been a feeling. Often I think my “vibes” are how God speaks to me and I was so overwhelmed by them at this wedding. Butterflies were born that morning and kept thinking everyone there was their mother and climbing all over them. I mean, for crying out loud, doesn’t that seem like some kind of a sign?! It was so incredible!

During the ceremony, one of their friends read this book, I like you. We have never heard it before and it’s what really brought us close to tears. It’s so simple and cute but shouldn’t life be more simple? Shouldn’t it be this easy to choose to love each other? Unfortunately life is complicated and we don’t always do the right things and adulthood can sometimes change us in ways we never expected or wanted…but thats the real beauty of marriage, it keeps you together in the hard times because you choose to keep choosing each other.

We are so honored to have been a part of such an incredible day. It’s honestly one that will always stick out in our my minds. Oh, and we purchased this book on the drive home and it will be our #1 book we read to Grace a million times over. :)

“I Like You” by Sandol Stoddard Warburg

I like you and I know why
I like you because you are a good person to like
I like you because when I tell you something special, you know it’s special
And you remember it a long, long time
You say, “Remember when you told me something special?”
And both of us remember

When I think something is important
You think it’s important too
We have good ideas
When I say something funny, you laugh
I think I’m funny and you think I’m funny too
You know how to be silly
That’s why I like you

If I am getting ready to pop a paper bag,
then you are getting ready to jump

I like you because when I am feeling sad
You don’t always cheer me up right away
Sometimes it is better to be sad

You want to think about things
It takes time
I like you because if I am mad at you
Then you are mad at me too
It’s awful when the other person isn’t

I can’t remember when I didn’t like you
It must have been lonesome then
Even if it was the 999th of July
Even if it was August
Even if it was way down at the bottom of November
I would go on choosing you
And you would go on choosing me
Over and over again
And that’s how it would happen every time