Audrey and Zack's Wedding

Audrey and Zack's wedding was at the Deep Creek Grange which I had never been to before but I fell in love with it!!  The venue is tucked into the mountains in the Paradise Valley and because of the wet spring we've been having everything was so green.  With the green and the thick clouds hugging the peaks, I felt like we were at a wedding in Scotland!

Although Audrey and Zack had planned the wedding ceremony outdoors and the rain kept us in, I really believe it made the ceremony even more intimate and personal.  The rain felt lightly outside and they exchanged their vows in front of family and friends who had come in from all over the country.  Really beautiful and special.

It was fun to use these big striped umbrellas for the portraits.  I was having such a great time!

I am so glad that I had the opportunity to be at this special wedding.  Thanks for having me there to capture your wedding memories Audrey and Zack and have a great time on your honeymoon in Florida.  

LOVE stories (Part Two)

Ahh. . .  there are so many good stories to share.  I feel so honored that these couples gave me a little window into their lives and I think these stories can be an inspiration to us all.

This story came from a couple who will get married next April in England (and I'll be there to document that one too!).  The bride to be told it so well that I'm going to quote from her entry to the Fresh Wedding Contest.  Get the Kleenex ready!: 

"The night we met I asked Jonathan to marry me.  i was an American in love with Europe, he an englishman in love with America, both of us living in Belgium.  A friend in common invited us both to dinner and new acquaintances remarked upon our mutually convenient interests.  With a wink we raised out glasses to toast and I made my proposal.  Jonathan answered with, "Hey! I was going to ask first!" in that beautiful accent of his.

Three months later I introduced my new boyfriend (Jonathan) to my friends, at my 30th birthday party.  In spite of the fact he's super conservative and I'm a quirky liberal, it was all going so smoothly. . .when I received some stunning news.  I had breast cancer and would require at least a year of treatment.  I had a good feeling about Jonathan, but I knew all too well what caring for a sick partner looks like.  A few months was not enough time to ask that kind of sacrifice from anyone.  I didn't even know what country I would take treatment in!  So I went to his pace and suggested that we "talk when this is all over."  He answered my news by blurting out, "You're not going to break up with me, are you?!. . . I want you to move in.  Do your treatment here."

It was a leap of faith, but almost two years later he got his chance to propose "first."  One month after my major reconstruction surgery, I raced him to the center of a hedge maze on the grounds of a stately home.  He won the race, but I still won my prize, a glittery one presented on one knee in the mud."

LOVE Stories

I have been meaning to share some of the incredible stories from the Fresh Wedding Contest since the contest closed last month.  I had dozens of entries from across the country and around the world- it was truly incredible!

It was really hard to chose but the grand prize winner Brianne's story  just really struck as one of those "meant-to-be" type romances.  She and her finance Murat met in the 7th grade when he had just arrived in the U.S. from Turkey.  She says that even then they knew their was something special between them.  They had a middle school romance but he and his family moved away in later years.  They both went to separate colleges and Brianne traveled and worked in London.  And they ran into each other again as adults and knew that the something they felt 15 years before was true love and that they were meant to be together.

They are planning to get married this November in the Florida Keys and I am thrilled that I will be there to capture their wedding celebration that has been a long time in coming!

Michelle and Bry's Wedding

Lots of kisses and laughter, that's how I'll remember Michelle and Bry's wedding.  These two are so in love with each other- it's adorable!!  

When I took their engagement pictures last fall, I knew their wedding would be fun because THEY are so much fun but I didn't know their friends and family would be so great as well.  What a fun group!  They even switched Michelle and Bry's wedding rings with plastic compass rings during the ceremony (even getting the pastor in on the practical jokes!).  

The weather was beautiful too.  After a wet and snowy spring, it was nice to feel the sun shining as we took pictures.  And Michelle and Bry seemed to enjoy the time with just the two of them gazing into each other eyes and walking through the meadows hand in hand.  I even had to ask them to look at me sometimes (it was hard to get their attention!).

Lots of fun dancing at the reception too.  They have some wild and crazy friends!  It was a truly wonderful, fun-filled wedding and Justin and I had a fantastic time.

Thanks Michelle and Bry and have a great honeymoon in Maine (I'm jealous!!).

Azusa and Shuichi's Wedding

What a joy it was to be at Azusa and Shuichi's wedding last Sunday.  Bozeman is so lucky to have these two as part of our community.  Shuichi is the director of the MSU orchestra and his work is praised by many.  Azusa is an incredible pianist who began giving concerts at the age of three!  They met while on the music faculty at a university in Thailand and now have come to settle in Bozeman.

These two talented musicians were married under sunny skies then treated all their guests to a classical music concert during the reception.  Heavenly!!                                                                                                                          They are not only talented musicians they are both truly wonderful people who I am happy to know.  They were surrounded by friends and family including Azusa'a mother who came all the way from Japan with her traditional kimono.  I was somehow recruited to help her tie the obi around the kimono, but it was soon obvious that I wasn't much help and should stick with taking pictures!

These two individuals are set for a long and happy life together (filled with music every step of the way!).

Thank you Azusa san and Shuichi san for giving me the opportunity to capture you love and joy on your wedding day.  I'm looking forward to getting together soon!

Sara and Tim's Wedding

I feel like I just got back from hanging out with two new friends!  Sara and Tim are AWESOME and their small wedding was too.                                                                                                                    Sara called me a couple months back and told me about her and Tim's plans to have a secret wedding in Montana on the banks of the the Gallatin River where they come to fly fish every year.  They have been together for nine years and just wanted a wedding in a beautiful spot that focused on their love for each other without all the traditional wedding trappings.  But they did want great pictures =) .                                                                                                                                      So they were married by Tim's brother and the wedding was witness by their parents.  This group was up for anything as far as the portraits went, I had them all running and jumping in the sunshine of this beautiful May day.  Then we went back to the cabin they had rented in Big Sky to continue the celebration.  Justin and I felt so welcomed by this crew, and we already have plans to get together with Sara and Tim when they come back to Montana in July!

Thanks for letting us share your special day.