Christriana & Patrick happened to be the last wedding we were to photograph in 2014. Wow, did they blow us away! We actually said to each other that we were really going to miss the two of them as we were leaving on their wedding night. Maybe it was because we were able to be there as they celebrated with their closest family & friends from their rehearsal dinner until the crazy leave-it-all on the dance floor finale to their BEAUTIFUL Michigan wedding weekend!
After saying goodnight at their rehearsal dinner, the next morning we arrived at the gorgeous home they rented right on Lake Michigan. Words simply don't do justice to describe the truly majestic views. Water met the shores just steps from where Christiana & Patrick slipped into their wedding attire - you just need to see it to believe it!!
Have we mentioned Christiana’s wedding dress yet!? How are we into paragraph three of this post and we haven’t talked about her AMAZING SPARKLY DRESS?! She looked absolutely fabulous and, after she snuck up behind Patrick for their first look, we could have taken their photographs ALL day long!! We felt so lucky to be able to walk through the tall grass on the bluffs of Lake Michigan with these two - they love each other so much and seeing that through our cameras is exactly why we do what we do! For them :) So they can look back in a month, 5 years, 25 years and see exactly how happy they were in this beautiful moment on their wedding day!
So we probably took a little bit too much time photographing them on the bluffs with their wedding party, but we were all having a blast and we have yet to see a wedding start without the bride & groom, so we figured we’d be okay. ;) We were in for one more barn-sized treat when we arrived to Christiana & Patrick's ceremony & reception site, the Blue Dress Barn in Benton Harbor, Michigan. SO COOL! We absolutely love all things water & barn related, so we were starting to feel like Christiana & Patrick planned their perfect day for us :) Probably not, but we can dream!
They tied the knot with tears, laughs, and the first wedding party selfie during the recessional we’ve ever seen. These two radiate FUN and it was so contagious on this day. The band kicked in right after the ceremony and not a soul was shy about the dance floor. Heartfelt toasts, touching first dances, and the most romantic glowing light warming Chrisiana & Patricks family & friends faces all night long. Their wedding weekend was surely a blur, as it was for us, and we CANNOT wait to share these images with them! It was a magical ending to our 2014 wedding season, and we wish we could do it with the two of them all over again.
Christiana & Patrick. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! You are gracious, loving, FUN, and we miss you both! We know you’re loving life as Mr. and Mrs. Garrity already!
Love, Kelsy & Butch
All images captured with Contax 645, Pentax 67, Hasselblad 500cm and Rolleiflex 3.5c on Fuji 400H, TriX 400 and Delta 3200.
Ceremony & Reception: Blue Dress Barn | Flowers: Teresa Guerriero | Hair Stylist: Ann-Marie Bautista | Makeup Artist: Kiley Cleckner | Band: Second Hand Soul | Catering: White Horse Catering | Paper Products: Rob Brennan, Best Man | Bridal Gown: by Adrianna Papell | Bride’s Shoes: Adrianna Papell | Groom’s Attire: Elevee | Table Setting, Linens: Taylor Rental