An Intimate and Rainy Wedding at Allerton Park | Emily + Moses
I will never be sad if there is rain on a wedding day, especially at such a gorgeous place as Allerton Park and Retreat Center in Monticello, Illinois.
I will never be sad if there is rain on a wedding day, especially at such a gorgeous place as Allerton Park and Retreat Center in Monticello, Illinois. Emily and Moses’ ceremony was at the Fu Dog Garden portion of the park, and the rain made the colors and textures of the beautiful space just POP. For the reception, we hopped on over to Decatur with a send-off at their family’s home. All in all, I couldn’t have asked for a better couple to have in front of my camera! Maybe next wedding, I’ll bring a couple of changes of socks….
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A Summer Wedding at The Cannery | Elizabeth + Nathan
There isn’t much better than an early summer wedding at The Cannery in Eureka, Illinois. This wedding was supposed to be a rainy one, but after getting pelted with heavy rainfall on my drive up there, we were blessed with a dry wedding day at a gorgeous venue with some stunning folks!
There isn’t much better than an early summer wedding at The Cannery in Eureka, Illinois. This wedding was supposed to be a rainy one, but after getting pelted with heavy rainfall on my drive up there, we were blessed with a dry wedding day at a gorgeous venue with some stunning folks! Congrats to Liz and Nathan and a huge thank you to The Cannery! I couldn’t be more honored to have been given this opportunity to be a small part of this day.
Angie + Chuck - Wedding Photography in Pocahontas, Illinois
This story begins on Facebook marketplace, happened at Loveland Estates, and continues with Angie and Chuck! Read more to see what the heck I mean by that.
I had so much fun shooting this wedding in Pocahontas, Illinois! This venue is a gorgeous, private venue with all the features and special details you could want! I’ll do a full write-up of it soon, but for now, let’s chat about Angie and Chuck!
This story began as so many classic tales do… On Facebook marketplace with a slab of walnut lumber. I was looking to build a coffee table for my living room and stumbled upon this guy, CS Log Rescue, selling beautiful lumber not too far from where I live. So, I messaged him and went out to his shop to pick a new piece for my future table! As we were chatting, it came up that I was a photographer, and Chuck asks, “You do any weddings?”
Long story short, two months later was their wedding date, and we made it happen! Angie and Chuck are so sweet, full of joy, and were a pleasure to work with and have in front of my camera. I could not have dreamed of a better group of folks with which to spend my day photographing a wedding! See below for some of my favorites from that day at Loveland Estates!
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Josie + Cole - Highland, Illinois Wedding Photography
Make sure to do your finger stretches, because this one’s a scroller! A huge congrats to Josie and Cole, your wedding day was beautiful!
After their engagement session back in July, there was no way I couldn’t be stoked for this wedding. They are such a fun couple, and they’re family to a few of my past couples as well, so the wedding was chock full of familiar faces.
Make sure to do your finger stretches, because this one’s a scroller! A huge congrats to Josie and Cole, your wedding day was beautiful!
After their engagement session back in July, there was no way I couldn’t be stoked for this wedding. They are such a fun couple, and they’re family to a few of my past couples as well, so the wedding was chock full of familiar faces.
We started the day off by getting ready at The Sanctuary on Main in Troy, Illinois, which is also where the ceremony was held. The Sanctuary is a sweet ceremony venue, perfect for small to mid-sized weddings where aesthetic and comfort are key. Downstairs offers a secluded area in which to get ready, with ample seating and beautiful, natural light. The chapel upstairs boasts wonderfully tall ceilings, stained glass, and plenty of room for your guests.
After they did the whole “getting married” thing, we headed over to Highland Silver Lake Park for photos, and The Lindendale Park Ballroom for the reception (after saying hi to Grandma, of course). Legitimately, I can’t recall if I’ve ever laughed harder at the speeches than I did at the ones given at this reception. The room was full of so much love, laughter, and joy throughout the night, and it shows. Thanks so much for the honor of being a small part of your wedding day, Cole and Josie!
Also, while you’re at it, go ahead and check out and support them at their dance studio, Dance Network!
Scroll on down to see some of my favorites from the day.
Dress: White Traditions
Videography: Double Take Media
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Chelsea + Mason - Peoria, Illinois Wedding Photography
It was so much fun shooting wedding photography for Chelsea and Mason’s Peoria, Illinois wedding! Well, we also did some stuff in Pekin, too. Chelsea and Mason are highly special people and, as evidenced by their engagement session, hanging out with them is always an adventure.
It was so much fun shooting Chelsea and Mason’s Peoria, Illinois wedding! Well, we also did some stuff in Pekin, too. Chelsea and Mason are highly special people and, as evidenced by their engagement session, hanging out with them is always an adventure. If you need a refresher, we spent half our time wandering around a trailer park playground at sunrise trying to find the entrance to a trail we saw online, only to realize it was a quarter mile up the road. We also learned the story of a man named “Bad Chad.”
Anyways, regarding their wedding, this was one of those classic COVID-weddings that we’ve all grown so accustomed to and that I have grown to totally adore. The small size, the subdued tension, and the joyous, intimate celebration at the end of the day make for a really special wedding. Chelsea and Mason had all that and more!
We began the day getting ready in separate locations, Mason at his family's home, and Chelsea at Grace United Methodist Church in Pekin. Fortunately, this is also where the ceremony was to be held, so we were able to get a lot done in a short amount of time. We met up with Mason and the gang at Mineral Springs Park (commonly called the Pekin Lagoon) for their first look and some quick portraits before they had to jet back to the church to GET MARRIED!
After the beautiful ceremony with some super-sweet vows, we skipped on over to the Peoria Riverfront for a few more shots before sunset. Oh, by the way, Nikki Erin Films was with us every step of the way doing video. She’s a rockstar and produces amazing work.
The reception was at Alexander’s Steakhouse in Peoria and, on top of some amazing food, the party was so special and alive! I can’t thank Chelsea and Mason enough for trusting us with their wedding day, and if a full-blown event is soon to come with tons of lovely folks, know that we’ll be there to capture that, too.
Be warned, there are a lot of smiles below… 👇
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Megan + Matt - St. Peters, Missouri Wedding Photography
As summer’s last hurrah, it gave us Megan and Matt’s gorgeous October wedding with warm sunshine, clear skies, and juuuust the right amount of heat! Megan and Matt are some of the nicest folks around. They were totally down for anything, smiled through every moment of the day, and were just so much fun to hang out with and take photos of! I couldn’t ask for a better duo to have in front of my lens.
Wedding Photography at 370 Lakeside Park
As summer’s last hurrah, it gave us Megan and Matt’s gorgeous October wedding with warm sunshine, clear skies, and juuuust the right amount of heat! Megan and Matt are some of the nicest folks around. They were totally down for anything, smiled through every moment of the day, and were just so much fun to hang out with and take photos of! I couldn’t ask for a better duo to have in front of my lens.
We started the day getting ready in separate hotel rooms, Megan at the Ameristar Hotel, and Matt at Tru by Hilton. After that, we hopped on over to 370 Lakeside Park for the rest of the festivities. Their ceremony and reception setups were so gorgeous! Beautiful, simple floral arrangements lined the aisle and dotted each table, which perfectly complemented the wood tones of the massive pavilion where everything took place.
One of the best parts of the day was realizing that the venerable DJ Thurman was covering the reception. He’s awesome. He was the DJ at a wedding I shot back in July of this year, and I cannot say enough great things about how he runs the party!
As always, I love when couples ask me to do some night portraits, and we did just that to close out the night. All in all, I had so much fun documenting this wedding and I hope you enjoy these photos as much as I do! Congrats, Megan and Matt!
Kyle + Brooke - Hidden Lake Winery Wedding Photography in Aviston, Illinois
I can’t say enough good things about Kyle, Brooke, and their wedding at Hidden Lake Winery in Aviston, Illinois! Throughout this entire year, at every step of the planning process, they’ve been totally stoked and excited about their wedding! Click through to see some faves from this party of a day.
I can’t say enough good things about Kyle, Brooke, and their wedding at Hidden Lake Winery in Aviston, Illinois! Throughout this entire year, at every step of the planning process, they’ve been totally stoked and excited about their wedding. Being a WAC (Wedding in the Age of COVID [I just made that up]), paired with the occasional rain showers on the day of, a less-chill couple would have had a difficult time matching Kyle and Brooke’s energy and smile-content. Needless to say, this one was one for the books (or a blog, in this case).
Hidden Lake Winery really is the perfect solution for a compact, single-location wedding day. The wedding party got ready in the cabins, which offered a private and quiet place that still kept the bride and groom out of sight of each other. The ceremony and reception were held at the Majestic Falls section of the venue, characterized by a tranquil pond, awesome water features, and massive trees lending depth and scale to the ceremony.
This wedding featured:
Custom sunglasses for each member of the party (totally rad)
SAND! (you had to be there)
A plant tube (official scientific name)
Scroll down to see some of my favorites from the wedding day! Congrats Kyle and Brooke!
{Nerd stuff for photographers}: This was my first wedding shooting DUAL Nikon Z5s, the latest (at the time of writing) mirrorless offering from Nikon. These little guys are fast, agile, have GREAT battery life, and really fantastic sensor performance. In almost every way, I believe they’re a welcome upgrade over my previous D750 cameras. The in-body stabilization (IBIS), the electronic viewfinder, and the live-view autofocus are those simple, next-generation features that mirrorless shooters have been enjoying for years now. And since the cameras are mirrorless I can now scoff at DSLR shooters for no other reason, so I have that going for me…
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Stone House of St. Charles Wedding Photography | Alysa + Kyle
It feels like just yesterday that Alysa contacted me to shoot her wedding! Well, it wasn’t yesterday, but it WAS just two months before the wedding. Dang, 2020 is weird, right? Anyways, here’s a beautiful wedding at Stone House of St. Charles that I had the privilege of photographing. Check it out!
Wedding Photography at Stone House of St. Charles
It feels like just yesterday that Alysa contacted me to shoot her wedding! Well, it wasn’t yesterday, but it WAS just two months ago. Dang, 2020 is weird, right? I’m gonna let you in on a little wedding photographer’s secret. There are lots of ways to attract super cool couples and convince them to shoot your wedding day. Some photographers attend wedding shows. Some photographers beg and plead while crying. I’ve done both. However, for this specific couple, I used good ol’ nepotism because Alysa is my cousin! So, of course, when Alysa and Kyle reached out to me, I was absolutely ecstatic.
This one was a fun one, and I think it’s super apparent in the sum total amount of smiles that permeated every part of the day. Also, their babies are beyond beautiful. Also, nobody dances like my family. I’ll write a full review of wedding photography at Stone House of St. Charles in the next few weeks but, as far as my initial thoughts, it’s a gorgeous venue with fantastic potential no matter the weather! It’s important that a venue be able to “work” at any point in the itinerary, during any season, and at any time during the day. During the getting ready time, you’re met with huge, soft window light and simply decorated rooms so as to not distract from the humans in the photos. The courtyard is spacious enough for family photos and totally well-lit, and the reception hall is more than equipped for anything you can throw at it.
Cassidy Eckman killed it on makeup!
Sisters Flowers knocked it out of the park on the florals!
Scroll to see some of my faves from their day…. If you dare.
See more venues like Stone House on our full St. Louis wedding venue page!
Meg + Mark - Greenville, Illinois Wedding Photography
I had the honor of photographing Meg and Mark’s beautiful southern Illinois wedding. The whole event, from ceremony to reception, all took place on their gorgeous property in Greenville, Illinois, which made it extra special!
I had the honor of photographing Meg and Mark’s beautiful southern Illinois wedding. The whole event, from ceremony to reception, all took place on their gorgeous property in Greenville, Illinois, which made it extra special!
Some highlights of this wedding include:
Old friends that made for some hilarious moments
Massive smiles
A jaw-dropping watermelon cake made with actual watermelon
A sparkler send-off where the sparklers were so big we decided to do it twice
A little bit of good-old-fashioned light painting
Obviously, I’m a big fan of this day and these folks. Check out some of my favorite moments below!
Kristen + Andrew - St. Louis, Missouri Wedding Photography
I’m so excited to share some of my favorites from Kristen and Andrew’s wedding day! From their engagement session back in February, I knew they were going to be such fun to photograph. The ceremony was at this really gorgeous private property, and the beautiful reception took place at Andre’s West. They surrounded themselves with such good friends throughout the day, and it shows.
I’m so excited to share some of my favorites from Kristen and Andrew’s St. Louis, Missouri wedding day! From their engagement session back in February, I knew they were going to be such fun to photograph on their wedding day (it helps that they were already dear friends of mine). The ceremony was at this really gorgeous private property, and the beautiful reception took place at Andre’s West. They surrounded themselves with such good friends and family throughout the day, and it shows.
This wedding had it all:
A cool tub
Ted Drewes (cuz we’re in St. Louis)
Quick Trip (in case you doubted that we were in St. Louis)
Radical dance moves
See below for photo proof that this unfathomably awesome day happened!
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Derek and Linsey - St. Louis, Missouri Wedding Photography
Derek and Linsey’s lovely small wedding at Haue Valley.
‘Twas a sunny, warm day in June when this wedding took place! It’s an honor to have been able to document this wedding at Haue Valley in Pacific, MO. Derek and Linsey are two really wonderful people, and it really shows in their relationship. Around the venue, they had photos of their travels across the world, they brought their dogs (which I’m a huge fan of), and they’re both really talented creators. Needless to say…. these are my people!
Weddings are always special, but their importance in our lives is becoming more and more apparent. Sure, maybe 2020 has forced us to pare down the guest lists and stock a few buckets of hand sanitizer, but the reality is all the more impactful. Two people choosing one another is always something worth capturing.
So hey! Check out a few of my favorites from the day, if you’d like.
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Haley + Nathan - Alton, Illinois Wedding Photography
Haley and Nathan threw a fantastic COVID-19 wedding at WOW on Broadway in Alton, Illinois. Check out some of my favorite pictures!
There’s not much that hasn’t been said about COVID-19. In this blog, I’m not going to focus on the masks, the distancing, or the hand sanitizer. I think to focus on the obstacles that Haley and Nathan had to face to make their dream wedding happen does disservice to the true joy that was on everyone’s faces throughout the entire day.
Haley and Nathan’s beautiful wedding day started and ended at WOW on Broadway in Alton, Illinois. As far as venues go, it was replete with beautiful light, sprawling bookcases, exposed brick, and deep wood tones throughout. These made for a visually wonderful day, from getting ready all the way to the small reception.
Haley and I actually grew up in the same hometown and went to high school together, so it was such a blast so see some old friends there and to have a small part in this special day. It was also a huge honor to meet Nathan and his gorgeous family! Scroll down to see a few of my favorite moments from the day.
Makeup by Ashley Boren Makeup and Hair
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Michalah + Zach - Peoria, Illinois Wedding Photography
The best of the best from Michalah and Zach’s Peoria, IL wedding photos!
Weddings from my hometown are consistently just straight-up magic, so it was fitting that Michalah and Zach’s wedding day was, well, magical! We started the day off getting ready at Cornerstone Baptist Church, hopped on over to Luthy Botanical Gardens in Peoria for some chilly photos, and went back to Cornerstone where the ceremony took place. Then, we scooted on over to Tremont High School for the reception. It was surreal shooting in the building where we all attended Jr. High and High school, but such a blast and the photos turned out great!
I’m honored to have been a small part of Michalah and Zach’s big day, and honored to share some of my favorite moments of their wedding with you. Take a look!
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Heather + Coleman - Springfield, Illinois Creative Wedding Photography
Coleman and Heather’s Springfield, IL wedding at The Inn 835 was fantastic! Here are some of my favorite moments.
Heather and Coleman are just amazing humans, and I am so blessed to have been given the opportunity to document their wedding day! What’s that? You need proof that they’re a couple after my own heart? Here’s what Heather texted me when we first spoke:
“We are nerds at heart (DnD, gaming, LOTR, Harry Potter, etc.)”
That’s it! That’s all I needed to know that they’d be rad. Their ceremony and reception were at The Inn 835 in Springfield, Illinois - an absolutely beautiful venue that just popped under the warm light and budding fall colors that we caught that day.
I’m so happy for Coleman and Heather. Check out some of my favorites from their day below!
Annie + Russell - Highland, Illinois Creative Wedding Photography
This is the blog about Annie and Russell’s Highland, Illinois wedding jamboree!
Annie and Russell’s Highland, Illinois wedding was nothing short of a blast! It was so much fun to see a lot of the same people that I took pictures of last year at Alexa’s wedding!
From the lovely ceremony at St. Paul Catholic Church to the rip-roarin’ reception at Lindendale Ballroom, it was a day filled with so much jubilant love and laughs. Also, the toasts had me cackling behind my camera. Go, team! See some of my favorites below.
Elizabeth + Scott - St. Louis, MO Wedding Photography
Elizabeth and Scott’s lovely and intimate wedding day at SIlver Oaks Chateau.
Liz and Scott’s wedding day was one for the books. They did such a stellar job with all of the details, and making everyone there feel so welcome and loved. I’m so gosh dang happy for them, and I’m so gosh darn happy with the photos we made.
Ceremony and Reception held at Silver Oaks Chateau in Pacific, MO.
If you’re curious, here’s their engagement session!
There are some late 2019 and 2020 dates still available. If you need photos, hit me up!
Rachel + Holden - Taylorville, Illinois Wedding
Holden and Rachel’s Taylorville, Illinois wedding photography!
Joined my good friends Rachel and Holden in Taylorville, Illinois at The Landing Barn to photograph their wedding a few months ago. The rain gave way to sunshine later on in the day and it was just so much fun!
Video by: Jesse James Ayers
Jesse is a cool, cool guy. Here’s a fun vlog he did from the wedding day!
Thanks for tagging along! If you need photos of your own, hit me up!
Joe + Kailey - Defiance, Missouri Wedding
Kailey and Joe’s Defiance, MO wedding at the Daniel Boone Home. Love love love!
I have so much love and joy for Kailey and Joe. What an honor it was to document their day, make really cool photos with them, and party into the wee hours with their family.
Amen.
Ceremony/Reception: Daniel Boone Home
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Rebekah + David - Springfield, Illinois Wedding
A few of the highlights from Rebekah and David’s Springfield, Illinois Wedding!
This was such a joyful wedding day! Hopping around Springfield with these two was so much fun, and their wedding was so special.
The ceremony was at Edwards Place, one of the most unique spaces I’ve had the pleasure of shooting in. We moved over to the reception at the Springfield Motor Boat Club, which is a space I know is so important to Rebekah and David. In fact, each location was meaningful to them in some way, and it was so special to be brought along in the story that day!
Also, the dancing got REAL goofy near the end. Take a peek at some of the highlights!
Thanks for checking this wedding day out! If you need images of your own, let’s chat!
Emma + Kurt - Marion, Illinois Wedding
Some pics from Emma and Kurt’s lovely Moline, Illinois wedding!
After Emma and Kurt’s engagement session, I knew I was in for a treat with these two.
The loving family, friends and gorgeous weather framed their wedding day so perfectly.
And they even let me steal them for night portraits. How neat is that??
Pretty neat, I’d say! See some of my favorites below.
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