stasia & andrew are married!

last weekend matt and i had the pleasure of hanging out with an amazing couple- stasia & andrew! it was our first wedding of 2009 and we showed up more than ready to get back into creating images! when i arrived at stasia’s house to start shooting, the day was already in full swing- no groggy morning coffee drinkers here! LOTS of energy was flowing as the ladies poured over fashion mags looking for hairstyle ideas- exclaiming as they found ones they loved for themselves and pointing out perfect style ideas for other bridesmaids. everyone seemed constantly on the edge of being overtaken by excitement and sudden outbursts of song, laughter, and dance were abundant. what an amazing environment for stasia as she entered one of the most exciting days of her life! i found myself laughing along with the girls as they recounted their favorite stories of stasia and andrew and shared contagious smiles that were so intense they became slight grimaces, haha! there was no slowing down the momentum of this day and it continued on like this until the reception ended! but now that i’ve talked forever about the amazing ladies let’s get started with a picture of the gentlemen of the day:

and a few of the lovely ladies trying to walk while talking and laughing and huddling close for warmth!

so as i mentioned in my last post, stasia was wonderful enough to make some time for a few casual bridal portraits. i love the timeless beauty in these shots- stasia’s expressions and natural poses were just so elegant:

just as we were finishing up these images, matt was starting to shoot the beginning of the ceremony! our friend from college, barrett, plays beautifully and i love how this images seems to capture his love for music:

just before it was time to line up, all of the ladies gathered around and prayed over stasia and the new life she was about to start. it was a very sweet and emotional time- everyone was grateful for their waterproof mascara!

and they did it! i love the excitement in this shot, stasia is such an animated person!

after the ceremony the tears were not quite over. here, stasia comforts her mother as her joyful tears catch stasia off guard, what a sweet moment:

stasia and andrew had built in time for couple portraits after the ceremony before the reception but the rain clouds had caused night to fall about 30 minutes before we expected sunset! so instead of exploring outdoors we took a few shots in the sanctuary and then, with the help of a few lovely bridesmaids, we grabbed a few nighttime portraits before they jumped in their car to head to the reception. i love the creativity unforeseen circumstances can bring. these actually ended up being some of my favorite portraits we’ve made in a while!

when we showed up to the reception, cocktail hour was in full swing and we could already tell that this was going to be a serious party! their amazing (and beautiful and talented and organized) wedding planner, snuck us into the reception to set up our lights and the guests poured in shortly thereafter. the cheers as andrew and stasia were announced were deafening and after that everyone crowded the dance floor for the rest of the evening. like i said earlier, there was NEVER a dull moment the whole day!

andrew & stasia, being part of your wedding day was such a blessing. your love and energy and excitement for life and for one another makes you such a perfect couple. no doubt you two will never be burdened with taking life too seriously and you’ll dwell on the best that life has to offer. best wishes to you both and thank you so much for including us!