{Wedding} Kirsten + Brady: Dayton, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Kirsten + Brady's wedding was my very first wedding 2013. I love Winter weddings! There is just something magical about the snow on the ground and brisk air paired with a beautiful bride and a handsome groom and lots of laughs. Oh and the fact that God made it snowing right when we started couple pictures helped with the magic ;)

They met in 7th grade and have been lovers ever since. kudos to you both, that is really special and something to be proud of. I would've loved to seen you guys together as 7th graders. Eek, I'm sure it was the most adorable thing!! I love happy, fun, love-stuck couples.

Enjoy this peak into their day.

 

{Wedding} Pete + Jamie: Dayton, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

{Engagement} Jenna + Kyle: Dayton, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Jenna and Kyle are my kind of people. When we first met they told me they didn't want a lot of posy, LOOK HERE, fake photos...."Well, you've come to the right person!" I said. They are both super laid back, but they are one of the funnest(yes funnest lol) couples I've photographed. Full of life and energy. 

OOohh and their wedding it going to be amazing. They are having the wedding on their uncles land and the guest get to camp out afterwards--how cool is that?

Matt + Kate: Cincinnati, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Matt + Kate's wedding was one of my favorites from the year. The venue they picked was gorgeous combined with the beautiful weather God gave them-- loved the whole thing. Kate really did a phenomenal job picking out colors, flowers, everything. Props to you, Kate lol.

As you will see below they are so SOOoo cute. Photographing them was waaaay easy! Sometimes I wonder how I can really get paid for having so much fun. :)

It was a grand day. Enjoy the peak into their day.

{Wedding} Josh + Leah: Dayton, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

I'm finally getting around to posting another wedding post from this year's weddings. It's so hard to find the time with the holidays fastly approaching.

Leah + Josh had the perfect day! Perfect weather(especially for August), perfect location for pictures *YIPPE*, perfect dress, perfect decor, and perfect couple. I had photographed Leah's older sister's wedding back in March so it was just like hanging out with friends all day. Just one small perk of being a photographer--you are constantly making new friends. Leah and her family are also Christians. It was beautiful to see the Godly testimony they gave, some during the speech, but mostly just by the way they loved and acted toward one another.

Leah has a very contagious personality. Every time I've been around her she is constantly smiling and laughing. I'm a big fan of smiling and laughing so as you can imagine we bonded :) Josh fits perfect with Leah. Kind of like peanut butter + jelly....yeah, like PB&J(pardon the analogues lol).

Enjoy this small preview of their beautiful August wedding.

{Wedding} Adrian + Elizabeth: Kettering, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Adrian and Elizabeth's wedding was a warm day in July. The church was adored with beautiful stain glass windows. Immaculate church!! Elizabeth was a beautiful bride. She was my only red head bride this year so I'm kinda partial toward her ;) Elizabeth and Adrian are both christian teachers--pretty cool, huh?!

Before the ceremony both families got together and prayed the Lord's blessing on their wedding day and marriage. So important to have the Lord be the center of your marriage. It seems like the Lord continues to send me the best clients. SO thankful!

Their first dance was choreographed by my brother and sister-in-law. They did a great job teaching them and Adrian and Elizabeth did a fantastic job performing it. It was one of the coolest first dances I've ever seen. They also had an antique car for pictures, which I absolutely LOVED. Enjoy this peak into their day.

{Wedding} Collin + Donna : Dayton, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Donna and Collin's special day really was SO special. They are both fun and full of energy. They both share my strong faith in God and it made us kindred spirits. They have been together for 8 years, by each other's side the whole way. They wanted to pray together before the ceremony without actually seeing each other, so when Collin held her hand around the corner he got teared up--it was so precious. They both have a deep respect for each other that I really admire. I pulled this next paragraph off of Donna's Facebook (lol). It just kind of shows you how much she loves her hubby. I thought it was darling:

"2922 days. 70126.5 hours. 4 years of high school. 4 years of college. This is how long I have got to be with Mr. Right : ] haha I am so thankful for a husband who loves me and has loved me for so long! But the thing that I love the most about Collin is that he loves the Lord! He pushes me to be a stronger believer everyday and I am so grateful! And he just keeps lookin' better and better. : ] Here's to 8 years babe! love you!"-Donna Koogler

Aww they are a precious couple. ENJOY!

{Wedding} Denny + Connie: Kentucky Wedding & Portrait Photographer

Yay! I'm posting another wedding to the blog. I've finally had the time to blog some.

Denny and Connie had a beautiful wedding in May, at the Creation Museum in Kentucky. I love shooting at new venues! It was a very warm day, the poor guys were roasting in their tux's, but I didn't hear one complaint. They were real troopers! Connie looked stunning in her lace wedding dress (I love lace...my wedding dress was lace), so I may have been a little bias, none the less she was such a cute bride. She reminded me of a barbie doll all dressed up. I know Denny thought HIS bride looked drop dead gorgeous as well. He simply adores her and she adores him...I adore them both. I love having clients that become friends :) (You guys are awesome!)

I'm pretty sure I lost 3 lbs shooting their wedding--I was a HOT sweaty mess at the end of the day, but it was a awesome adventure. You all know how I love a good adventure ;)

Here's a sneak into their beautiful start to their happily ever after...

{Engagement} Kyle + Kristin: Dayton, Ohio Portrait & Wedding Photographer

This is Kristin + Kyle. They are an adorable, young, madly-in-love, gorgeous, perfect couple. I absolutely love couples like this--young and in love, I guess it reminds me of my husband and I ;) Anyway, I reaallllly fell in love with photographing their love. All the gentle kisses and hugs, little whispers and jokes, it was precious, ohhh SO precious. Seeing real love is overwhelming! Every time I look back through these' images it makes my heart melt a little. Man, I love my job.

Enough with the talking onto the good stuff.

{Wedding/Personal} Josh + Grace: Kettering, Ohio Portrait & Wedding Photographer

It was THE day! It was the day we had been talking about ever since we were little tiny girls. It was Grace's wedding day! She had been waiting for that day for 22 years. Waiting for the day she would say "I do" and marry the man of her dreams.

The weather was warm and the sun was shinning. It was a "perfect" day in June, just like we had pictured it as little girls.

Grace always said she wanted her wedding color to be purple. Ever since I can remember; PURPLE is what she wanted, and as you will see purple is what she got. My mom made all the bridesmaids dress',flowers, and the food (yep, she's pretty amazing!). All the details turned out beautiful. From the table settings to the guest book/scrap book that everyone signed. It was pretty amazing to see it all come together as HER WEDDING DAY. THE ONE DAY she's been waiting for her entire life.

When I walked to where the guys were getting ready Josh was SO excited. He couldn't keep it in. Yes, he's a grown man, but not to grown up not to act like a giddy school boy that was about to talk to the girl of his dreams for the first time. It was pretty cute to watch ;) Made me one happy sister to see a guy so excited to marry my sister. Even though no one would ever be good enough for my sister, Josh comes pretty close ;)

Grace was pretty chilled the whole day. She didn't seem nervous at all. She was glowing though. She was full of joy. She got her hair and make-up done and was ready to get in her dress. I hid it pretty well, but I was very emotional. My big sister, the one who I shared a room with most my life, who I told me all her secrets too, the one who I fought over clothes with and laughed with til 2am in the morning so many times, she was a bride. Her name would change from Robertson to Johnson. She was becoming a wife!

As soon as Dad started to walk her down the aisle the tears came. They were bitter sweet tears. There our Dad was walking her down the aisle to marry the man of her dreams. To promise him her love forever. It was happening, she was becoming Mrs.Johnson and I couldn't have been more excited.

Enough with my rambling...(don't judge me I just love my sissy ;) Here's a little peak into her wedding day.


(Since I was her maid-of-honor I couldn't photograph the whole day. So this blog is a little of what I got to shoot.)

Some of Grace's lovely details























She was one proud Momma!


(picture credit: Sarah Zylka)


She was so beautiful!










A few of us girls.
(picture credit: Melissa Esterline)


(picture credit: Sarah Zylka)


I love these' shots of us..we are pretty cool huh?





(picture credit: Melissa Esterline)






(picture credit: Sarah Zylka)



The whole group!

Pretty head table!
(picture credit: Melissa Esterline)

Grace wanted the cake to be perfect and it was just that. She loved it!
(picture credit: Melissa Esterline)


Haha, the cake was pretty epic to watch. Josh has such a awesome look on his face lol

They had a few little games planned that turned out to be so much fun.




The magic lanterns ;)

























































I loved writing this blog post. Personal post are my favorite. Grace couldn't have been a more beautiful bride (as you can see), Josh you looked pretty handsome too ;) So happy for you two love bird. <3 you guys!

{Wedding} Dustin + Becky: Columbus, Ohio Wedding & Portrait Photographer

I'm trying to caught up with blogging the weddings from this year. I'm getting there slowly.


It was a beautiful day in Columbus. Couldn't have asked for a better day to GET MARRIED. The reception was at the Culture Arts Center in downtown Columbus. It was like a quiet garden in the middle of a busy city. It was wonderful. Becky and Dustin booked me a while back and I remember the first time we met we immediately clicked. I thought she had a cute, bubbly personality, and I love bubbly people ;) He also came and I saw how they interacted together. I could tell they put a lot of team work into all the wedding planning. He was very involved in the planning. Is wasn't just the bride planning, he was planning too. Every decision that was made, they made together.

He is her stronghold. She is his precious treasure. I love how they are always laughing together. They have an intimate connection between each other that I know will last a lifetime.

{Engagement} Timothy + Iuliana: Dayton, Ohio Portrait & Wedding Photography

I did my brother and soon-to-be sis-in-law's engagement session last fall, but never got around to blogging it(bad sister I am lol). Better late then never, right??! Anyway, it's a pretty sweet story of how God brought them together...here read for yourself. ;)

A little background on our relationship with Iuliana and on how we met her: We met her when she was 4 years old. Her family attended our church when they adpoted her. YES, she's adopted from Romania (how cool is that?!)!!! Iuliana and I were around the same age so we instantly became best friends as soon as her family brought her to church. We were best friends the entire time they came to our church, but her family decided to attend a different church (Iuli was about 11). After that we didn't really have much contact(even tho we missed each other a lot). At the time Iuliana only really knew Timothy as my older brother and Timothy only knew Iuliana as my good friend. So that was that. We didn't really see each other much.

Well about 6 years later on a Friday evening we were invited to a volleyball event. Our family is big into volleyball so we all went. We saw a lot of old friends including Iuliana and her family. (FYI: This is the same volleyball event that I met my husband and my best friend, Eastlyn). We ended up coming back the next Friday also and the following week. It was becoming a every-Friday event. We all loved it!











Well shortly after we started coming to Friday-night-volleyball we went to a friends orchestra recital, Iuliana and her family so happened to be there too. That night was when I really noticed something, something between Timothy and Iuliana. Timothy couldn't take his eyes off of her. I had never seen Timothy look at a girl like he looked at Iuliana. I remember walking over and seeing the two of them sheepishly making conversion together. They were talking the entire evening. They didn't leave each other's side. Keep in mind neither of them are conversationalists. I knew something was up!!!! As the weeks went on we saw Iuliana almost every week. Timothy and Iuliana talked every chance they got. By now we ALL knew they were "interested" in being more then "just friends". Timothy wanted this girl, he wanted her attention. He wanted to spend every moment he could being with her and talking to her, same with Iuliana. I could tell she was head over heels for my brother. Since Iuliana and I had been good friends in the past and were quickly catching up with our friendship like before so I was thrilled about them being a couple. I would've never imagined, when we were little kids, that they would eventually be together, but God knew. He had it all planned out.





After a year or so Timothy and Iuliana started courting-- meanwhile Reed and I were courting. Since Reed was like Timothy's best friend and Iuliana was one of my oldest friends the four of us became inseperable. We went on a ton of double dates, and spent most Friday nights together. We were like family already. Iuliana was like my sister and they weren't even engaged yet. We talked about getting married in the same month, going on vacations together, we even tossed around the idea of going on a honeymoon together, I know pretty close huh?

Well about a year or so into the future Timothy and Iuliana got engaged. Yep, he bought her a stunning ring and got down on one knee on her front porch (where most of the best conversations happened between the two of them) and asked for not only her hand, but most important her heart. Iuliana called me as soon as he proposed and told me the exciting news, even though I already knew he was going to propose that evening I was still SO excited. It was official! There was so much joy in her voice as she told me. We were all SO happy for them. They both glowed when the came over and showed off the ring.

Wedding planning quickly started. They needed to pick A DATE. Believe it or not that's harder then you think. I had already booked a lot of weddings for the next year so a lot of dates were taken already. They had to work around my schedule (sorry to be a pain lol). They finally found the perfect date. Septemeber 22nd, 2012, which so happens to be 9 days away. (Wooohooo)!












Timothy is a year and half years older then me so we were pretty close growing up. We'd play cars together in the mulch in the front yard. Race around the cultisack on our bikes. Play "woof woof" around the house with the neighbor kids. Hide in the tree fort and knock the latter down so the little kids couldn't get up. He was my friend, even though I'd never would've admit it at age 13 lol. As we got older we got even closer, especially as we started courting our "significant others". Seems like we were all always together (still are).

Timothy moved in with Reed and I back in June and it's been SO wonderful having him here. I love having him here! Makes me sad that he will be moving out after the wedding. I'll miss seeing him everyday, but I know Timothy is the happiest when he is with his Iuliana. She completes him! She makes him smile like NO one ever could, so I know he is in good hands--I couldn't have picked a better person for Timothy. Iuliana is one of those girls that are so rare to find. She's gorgeous, and everyone knows it, but her. She's always been a good girl. Always did what was right. She's got a contagious smile and laugh. OMGSH, you HAVE to hear her laugh--it's the bomb ;) lol. Anyway, she's an amazing girl and I'm so happy I get to have her as my sister in 9 DAYS.





































I love you both and I couldn't be happeier for you guys. <3