Christina+Steven’s Engagement Session on the North Shore in Pittsburgh, PA

I like these two a lot. They’re really, really silly and not afraid of their silliness. They’re also really fun and outgoing and not afraid of geese. Christina is Andrew’s striking older sister in a sibling trio who all have fantastic brown eyes (or at least 2 out of 3 since I haven’t met the oldest sister… but I’m assuming she also has awesome eyes). Steven is her partner-in-crime-and-silliness, who ironically warned me that Christina would photobomb all of the pictures, then proceeded to photobomb them all himself. :) They were set up by Christina’s sister who was Steven’s best friend in college. Their first date was bowling, where Christina crushed Steven’s score but not his heart (badum-ching!), and Christina has since moved back to Pittsburgh (from Philadelphia where she went to school) to be with him as they plan for their September wedding in the ‘Burgh. :)

We started off the session at the street corner where their first kiss took place, and ultimately their engagement (cute!). It looked awfully doomy and overcast, but by the time we got to the city it was all blue sky and fluffy clouds! I think these two are just a ray of sunshine on a Pittsburghy day. :)

Elise+Jeff Have a Wedding at Duke Chapel and The Cotton Room

This was a wedding with a lot of firsts for us. The first wedding of 2012. The first wedding at Duke Chapel. The first bridal party who all brushed their teeth for us. The first that ended with us drinking milkshakes from Cookout in a limo. I can’t say that it could have ended any better. Elise and Jeff are very comfortable with each other, and very nice and polite to everyone they meet, putting everyone around them instantly at ease. I’ve never been nervous around either of them. I think it’s impossible to be anything but relaxed and smiling, as I think it’s impossible for Elise and Jeff to be anything but relaxed and smiling. So this was a very happy crew: happy family, happy friends, happy Elise and Jeff. I think this shows in their pictures. Everyone who was happy was also fun and ridiculous, and this also shows in their pictures (in a good way). And we couldn’t ask for anything better than a really good, fun crew who welcomed us with open arms into our first wedding of the year.

I did one bridal show ever which is where I met Elise. She sent me an email afterward saying, “Our wedding is so far away that I really hadn’t even thought of planning anything, but visiting your booth and looking at your pictures made me SO EXCITED!” Two years and some contracts later, we’re photographing her and Jeff brushing their teeth in Duke Gardens using their custom toothbrush favors (Elise is in dental school) and riding around with them in limos, visiting the local Cookout in formal wear and drinking milkshakes. It is a strange world, and I can’t say that I didn’t sit in the back of the limo on the drive back to our car, sipping on my peanut butter milkshake, and wonder how I got here, but I’m so thankful for Elise and Jeff’s love and support of each other and of us. It’s a beautiful thing, and a great way to kick of the year. Congratulations, friends!

Bride’s Occupation: Soon to be Pediatric Dental Resident in Seattle!

Groom’s Occupation: Attorney – soon to be ex-attorney/unemployed because [Elise is] dragging him across the country.

How You Met: [Elise+Jeff] were in the same freshmen dorm at Duke – of the 100 or so kids housed there, 5 couples have gotten married!

Interesting Bride Fact: Bride has a double uvula (the hanging thing in the back of the throat) – this is Jeff’s go to weird fact about [her].

Interesting Groom Fact: Jeff’s own personal holiday is when the new Madden Xbox game comes out. Also has the uncanny ability to make Elise laugh on cue.

Honeymoon Destination: Elise wrote, “Motel 6 – This is what Jeff keeps telling me. In reality he says he won’t tell me until we’re boarding the plane (and he says not the first plane…)”. In actuality, it was the Bahamas. :) Jeff broke the news to Elise during the reception after a good chunk of the family kept nagging him to tell her. :D

Date: March 10, 2012

Ceremony Venue: Duke Chapel // Durham, NC

Reception Venue: The Cotton Room // Durham, NC

Hotel: Millennium Hotel // Durham, NC

Officiant: Reverend Bill Fowler (family friend and Duke alum)

DJ: The Perfect Beat // Apex, NC

Florist: Elise and her mother and aunt made all of the floral arrangements themselves!

Cake: Sugarland // Chapel Hill, NC

Hair/Makeup: Moshi Moshi Means Hello! // Chapel Hill, NC

Videographer: Daniel and Kevin // Heart Stone Films

Elise’s Bridal Portraits in Durham, NC.

The first wedding of the year is officially over, meaning I can now post Elise’s bridal portraits!! :D Ow ow!

Elise and I did these back in the beginning of February (hence the no “Carolyn” watermarks on them because I uploaded these to the blog last month and now am too lazy to go back and put my name on them, but Geoff couldn’t attend the session so I don’t really think they need to be labeled anyway). I asked her whether or not she wanted them to be funky or traditional, and she said she had thought traditional in front of Duke Chapel (where they were married yesterday in a wedding of awesome!) but now that I mentioned it, funky might be fun too. :) Sooo we split ’em up. Half in a crazy amazing antique store, the other half at Duke. Both, apparently, equally treacherous for her gorgeous dress (bridal portraits aren’t for the terribly faint of heart, and your dress will get dirty and need cleaned, and you may trip and rip part of your dress under your high heels, so make sure that you have a good and nice gown person who understands the dangers and can do any cleaning and repairs well before the wedding).

Elise is amazingly beautiful, and Geoff and I both agree that she looks like a young Molly Ringwald. I wasn’t sure whether or not Elise would be offended despite how gorgeous we think Molly Ringwald is (since you know how sometimes people tell you that you look like someone you don’t think you look like and it freaks you out?), but Geoff assured me that “Molly Ringwald was like, the Queen of the 80s!!” I told Elise, and she said, “Anytime anyone compares me to the Queen of anything (especially the 80s) I’m thrilled!”

This is why we love you, Elise. Have a great time in the Bahamas!