As a Midwest wedding photographer shooting in different venues is the normal for me. I shoot all over Missouri all the time from Branson to Hermann, St. Louis and surrounding areas! Actually I don’t just shoot weddings here in Missouri I travel for weddings too. I love being able to visit venues and see their individual styles. I of course have a few favorites that I recommend.
When Ashling reached out to me and said they were getting married at the Jewel Box in Forest Park,St Louis I was more than excited! This venue is one of my top favorites in the St Louis area!
Their wedding day was absolutely perfect. Their wedding was small, intimate, full of laughter, a few tears, and a lot of hugs. Before their wedding she and I discussed pictures during their wedding, she only requested one group shot of everyone attending the wedding and then couples pictures of each couples for thank you cards! What an amazing idea right? When you have an intimate wedding of 30 people or less each person attending your wedding has some sort of impact on your lives. I’m a super sentimental person so this was freaking amazing to me!
Ashling and Zac did not overlook any details for their wedding from the flowers to the gifts they exchanged. Even the vendors! Beer outside was so much fun and the guests loved it! (Okay I did too) it was such a unique option for a bar! Afterwards they jumped in with me and we went to pick up the donuts for the reception which we got from another local shop. The people at Strange Donuts were so fun. This is also a detail not missed for their wedding it was where they had their first date! Then we met everyone for dinner at Reeds American Table.
This restaurant was so accommodating the manager also named Zach made sure every single detail was covered! Dinner was intimate and not to mention the food was amazing!! I attend a lot of weddings and I joke about only being a wedding photographer for the food and the cake because listen food makes me happy and wedding cake makes me even happier!!
We closed out this night with hugs to their entire family and I left super sad, also right before it rained! I was sad because their family and friends live all over the world! Will I ever even see any of them again?! This is the hardest part of being a wedding photographer for me. I help my brides and grooms as well as their family and friends through one of the most emotional and memorable moments of their life. I get to know them. I laugh with them I cry with them, hell I even dance and drink with them. I am not a great dancer so I guess I should say I make and ass out of myself with them! We plan this moment together for months then the day is over. Most of my brides will always continue to use me to capture their growing families which makes my photographer heart so happy!! But what about the family? I leave most weddings sad because I just got to spend the day with some really amazing people and I might not ever see them again. Its such an emotional day for me because I do put my heart and soul into this day. The most important details are of course for the bride and groom, but as a mom I always include special moments for the moms. As a daddies girl, dad always gets his moment too!
My brides and grooms are not just another wedding to me. Their venue isn’t just another venue, just as their vendors aren’t just another vendor I can say I’ve worked with. Each one of us are chosen by our brides and grooms to share to this date usually the biggest day of their lives. That’s not just exciting that’s an honor! Each mom and dad or sister, or even best friend always have their own important story. Ashling’s family was so cultured I just wanted to set and soak it in for hours. To say I made friendships with Ashling and Zac is an understatement. To have the honor to capture their perfect wedding day in St Louis was amazing.
