Edward + Kate :: Wedding Photography, Columbus, Ohio

I've quoted Kate Simon.

I met her a couple of years ago at a wedding I was photographing. I was in fly-on-the-wall photo mode, crouched in the corner of the room getting photos of a bouquet, when I heard a bridesmaid say,

"Lipstick. Lipstick is important.

It is a woman's way of sealing her outfit with kiss."

(You may not remember this, Kate, but it's true :-)

And I've admired her ever since. I've seen her in bridal parties, doing makeup for her friends' weddings and on and off of dance floors at receptions over the past couple of years. So, I was simply giddy to be asked to photograph she and Edward's wedding.

It was a day of sincere joy, and I think it only appropriate to include a Kate quote from her own wedding day:

While I was photographing her at the very beginning of the day, I asked her to relax her face out of her omnipresent smile, and she replied reluctantly, showing some sincere effort: "Okay, I'll try. It's just, I'm so happy." The smile crept to her face again and she continued,

"I knew I was going to marry Eddie since the day time I saw him. I can't stop smiling." 

Cue the music. I looked up from my camera wondering if she was serious, or almost being sarcastic. But no. It was an excellently delivered line from a real-life story tale. 

Kate and Edward, may the story tale continue into many many sequels :-)

Enjoy,

Rachel (+ Tim)

::An Update::

My husband, Tim, teaches and plays music. So, while I'm at home slicing carrots sticks on colored plates for toddler lunches and exploring municipal parks, Tim works as a music teacher by day and plays piano at Columbus's favorite restaurants by night. (Here, especially. Go hear him. He's the best...I think so, anyway.) This summer break is the first of our four adventurous ones since he's been teaching that we've shifted our focus from other summer jobs to the photo business, and we're trying our hand at collaborating in more ways than just changing diapers :-) So far, we're having a blast. We'll see where this winding road, full of adventure, veggie straws, and lots of battery chargers (figurative and literal) leads us.

McKenna + Nathaniel :: Wedding Photography, Columbus, Ohio

I told him to tell her a secret. It must have been a good one.

I don't know if you're the kind of person to scroll all the way through blog posts, so I've made sure to cater to you all who, like me, have a very short attention span. 

The first three photos.

All it takes to get a glimpse of the sacred day that was McKenna and Nathaniel's wedding day is to behold the ineffable contentment and joy on their faces in these photos. Even just in the tiny sliver of it that you see in the first one there.

But the photos, as they never truly do, don't totally do it justice. The day was wonderful in that it was one completely centered on the sacramental. It was centered on what was happening on the altar, not on the dance floor (though they made it hard to tell while they were sweating to the big-band!!)

Three uniquely special tidbits from this day:

1. The flower girls told me early on in the day that they "looove taking pictures!", so I had delightful shadows the whole day, making for excellent photos of these very cute, soon-to-be photogs.
2. The bride asked me if she'd be in the way if she said a prayer in front of the statue of St. Joseph, which happened to be right behind where I was taking a photo of her groom. I told her, no, definitely not.
3. For reasons related entirely to lighting, I hardly ever get excited about posting photos in the church, during the ceremony, and certainly not as the ones that tell the beauty of the day, but alas, I couldn't help myself.

Onward, McKenna and Nathaniel! Onward to a life held in sacred holiness, imitating the day you began it together.

Enjoy,

Rachel

Carol + Ethan :: Wedding Photography, Columbus, Ohio

The snow makes everything still.

It was a phrase that came to us mid-Advent, I think, as we were bustling to tie ribbons and check items off lists. We wanted to slow down, because waiting is what that season of anticipation is, after all. But slowness requires quiet, and quiet, stillness. And stillness in a world of movement and deals and bang-for-your-buck is just hard sometimes. So, we put it in big-lettered boldness on our mantle:

J O Y   I N   T H E   S T I L L N E S S

And we kept finding it, not only tucked away in the fire-lit evenings of cold December, but also on the altar on the day before Christmas Eve.

As the white snow fell down in big, fluffy flakes outside the stained-glass windows, the church where Carol and Ethan were committing their lives to the hardship and bliss of marriage was full of all the joy in the world. And all of the stillness. 

It was a beautiful sight to witness, these two very young ones, surrounded by their friends - souls brimming with courageous faith - who were defying all the hustle and bustle of the world by sitting in silence, waiting for their life to begin together.

It was an honor to witness your day through the lens, Carol and Ethan, and may the joy continue to be tucked in the stillness of your freshly married hearts.

Enjoy,

Rachel