Brittany and Scott's Wedding in New Castle, PA

Brittany and Scott were married last July in New Castle, PA. The day started off a little rainy but, just as I pulled into the driveway of Brittany's parents' home, the sun came out and promised a beautiful day. And a beautiful day it was, indeed. Brittany and Scott were married at First Baptist Church and their reception was held at New Castle Country Club. Every aspect of the day seemed to go flawlessly due to Brittany's planning and great eye for detail. After the ceremony we went straight to the country club for portraits and had plenty of time to take advantage of the location and get a ton of beautiful images. The reception hall was decorated with candles and stunning floral arrangements spilling out of various stone urns and silver candelabras. It presented a beautiful backdrop for the toasts, dinner and fun dancing that celebrated the beginning of Brittany and Scott's new life together.

Kristi and Andrew's Engagement Session in Akron

I'm in the midst of a flurry of album designs, including Kristi and Andy's wedding album. So I decided to pull up their engagement session and share a few with you on the blog. We stopped at a few locations for their session this past summer including Lock 3 in Akron, a park in Fairlawn and Hale Farm and Village in Bath. We had fun and a lot of laughs at each location getting a variety of images. I can't wait to share their wedding portraits with you as well.

Kristyn and Joe's Engagement Session at Stan Hywet

It's yet another insanely snowy day in Ohio. And today's snow storm makes it even more fun to revisit some of the engagement sessions and weddings that we didn't get a chance to blog over this past summer. Engagement sessions, for me, are a time for me to get to know the couple. I get a brief glimpse into their personalities and their relationship and I get an idea of how comfortable they are with having their picture taken. One of the things I tell most couples during the session, particularly when they may need a little extra direction or encouragement, is that I might ask them to kiss each other. And when they do, its not necessarily about the kiss but about the moment just before or just after they kiss. Sometimes there is a moment of sweet tenderness, an outburst of barely contained laughter or even a mischievous grin exchanged between the couple. It's in that moment where so much magic lies. Not in the directed moment, but in the raw, real and emotional moment that happens without direction. Those moments are precious. In Kristyn and Joe's session there were a lot of those tender and romantic moments. Just absolutely pure and magical.

Erika and Lee's Wedding in Youngstown, OH

I can hardly believe its already 2010. 2009 was such a busy year for us, it seems like it just flew by. With New Year's Day being so cold and snowy, it was nice to revisit one of our June weddings from 2009 and to start the New Year off with TONS of pictures. Erika and Lee were married at St. Dominic's Church in Youngstown. The day started off pretty rainy, but the sun came out in time for a wonderful bubble exit after the ceremony concluded. Their reception was held at Youngstown Country Club where there was tons of dancing, singing and laughter. One of the things I remember about their wedding was that the joy and emotion was so palpable. I also remember the delicious cupcake tower featuring cupcakes made by Main Street Cupcakes located in Hudson, OH. I have to say I've visited their bakery quite a few times since then.