This is a wedding I was waiting all year for! Dani and I met during our State Farm days. During the slow days we’d sit at her desk and drink coffee, chat about all the things, and walk down to the local farmer’s market. Dani also does hair on the side so we’d chat even more when she’d cut my hair after work. These days, neither of us are at State Farm anymore but I absolutely cherish our friendship and where we met. After a long holiday weekend, we both came back to the office and she announced she was engaged. We were ecstatic to dive into planning together.
Because Dani is such a close friend to me, I opted to hire an associate to run lead on this day. I operated more as a second photographer & coordinator to be able to take moments to absorb what was happening and be there for my friend. I’m glad I decided to do it this way, and she knew ahead of time what the plan was. Callie Alexandria Photography is who my associate was and I work with her often for all my weddings- she’s usually my second photographer on wedding days! The photos featured in this blog post are images I took during the day, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Callie.
Getting Ready for the Wedding
Dani and Travis used Sweet Wedding Chapel their entire wedding weekend. Our getting ready portion of the day actually started the night before their wedding day. I attended their rehearsal dinner to help set up and walk through the ceremony with the wedding party. We ate the best pizza I’ve ever had and finished set up pretty quickly.
The next morning we arrived at Sweet Wedding Chapel to start getting ready for the ceremony. Dani and her girls used the spacious bridal suite while Travis and his guys used the groom’s suite for getting ready. During this portion of the day, my second photographer and I are usually bouncing between taking photos of the wedding party having fun while getting ready and taking photos of the ceremony and reception details while it’s empty. I love capturing these details and including them in galleries. It’s so important to set the tone of your day by including even the smallest of details.
My favorite part of this getting ready period was when Dani saw her nephew for the first time. He loves running and hates sitting still, so the photos of him running around during the wedding day are so cute. He kept running right to Dani, pausing for hugs and a quick snuggle, and then he was off running again all throughout the day.
Ceremony at the Chapel
Dani and Travis held their ceremony outside the chapel and in front of the gazebo. Callie was positioned in the front to capture the wedding party walking down the aisle. She got the cutest picture of their nephew running down the aisle! While she was prepped and ready to capture the wedding party walking, I was helping them all line up and releasing them as the music played. I was able to take some photos of Dani walking down the aisle with her dad from behind. I love the way her dress laid while walking. It was a beautiful A-Line dress with pockets! The pockets were so important to Dani.
Wedding Reception in Columbiaville
After the ceremony, Dani and Travis were ready to kick off their reception. After the cocktail hour, everyone sat down to listen to speeches right before dinner. In the middle of speeches, the power suddenly cut off and we were without lights or working microphones. Then we heard sirens zooming by the venue. We quickly pivoted and made it work- we finished all the speeches without microphones and started dismissing for dinner since the food was ready. We made sure to utilize flashlights, and guests also had them on their phones so it wasn’t too difficult to navigate the buffet line. Candles were on the tables and lit so it wasn’t completely dark. We set up a Bluetooth speaker to play from a pre-made playlist until the power could come back on, and we sent someone out to get a generator. For some, the thought of losing power at your wedding reception probably sounds like a terrible thing but we were able to make it work and had no complaints. We were able to get the generator up and working by the time dances were supposed to start. We also used this time for some guest portraits. Guests could walk up to Dani and Travis and take photos with them- we had fun!
We eventually were able to get the power in the reception room on from the generator and we started dances and cake cutting. Dani and Travis had their first dance, and then each of them danced with their parents. I captured the sweetest moment of Dani’s sister tearing up watching Dani and their dad dancing. The dance floor opened up after that, and the guests were so ready to dance. The dance floor was packed with guests doing the Cha Cha Slide and Cupid Shuffle.
Dani and I had met up prior to their wedding day for a boudoir session. She wanted to hop on that polaroid boudoir trend where you have your bridesmaids pass a steamy polaroid to your new husband throughout the wedding day. I didn’t stay the entire night, but I did manage to see it happen once. Travis’s face got a little red, and he went to Dani’s side and gave her a forehead kiss when he received it.
The Vendors
Just like other wedding days, there were a lot of hands involved in making this day work. I loved working with these vendors and would be happy to work alongside them again in the future!
Wedding Venue: Sweet Wedding Chapel located just outside of Lapeer Michigan; Wedding Gown: Hannan House Bridal located in Imlay City Michigan; Florals: The Flower Basket located in Columbiaville Michigan.
Fun fact: the photos you’ll see on the Hannan House website are mine! I did a branding session for them awhile back when I worked there. It’s always so nice to see my work featured on other websites!
