Photo Blog

Jamie + Grant | St. Louis Wedding Photography

Happy Friday!

So this is the time of year that I start to lag a little in my blog posts. I know, boo! We have about a month of weekends off between our spring and fall wedding season, so the next few weeks will give me some time to play catch up and better yet – allow me the ability to get out and enjoy the summer (patio + pool time) we have left! (I’m still continuing to work on my life/work balance – but who isn’t really?!) 😉

Thought I would kick off the weekend with these two! I absolutely adore Jamie + Grant! Jamie introduced me to the idea of having a “signature scent” for the wedding day. I can’t believe I’m knee-deep in everything wedding, and I never heard of that. ha! We both wear the same perfume (Chance by Chanel) so she gave me a little spritz and we started the day!

Ask and you shall receive. We always do our best for any special requests that are in tune with our style. An ivy wall was a must for these two! Guess what we found?! An ivy wall!

Congratulations to the happy couple!

Enjoy the photos!

xox

HSR

Brittney + John Engagement | St. Louis Engagement Photography

I can’t get enough of the new renovation at the public library downtown. And I swear, I didn’t even suggest this location! This was all that pretty Brittney! 😉 But she really can’t help it – she grew up in the Central West End and it’s no wonder she has an eye for detail and beautiful architecture. She also has pretty good taste in men! That John, such a handsome one. They met on a blind date (kind of like Ryan and me!) and at first she didn’t know what to think about him. (Men! ;)) But the more she started talking to him the more she found that she liked his quick wit and kindness. All that chatting led to a couple of years of dating and a special proposal in Austin, TX.

I hope you two got to enjoy some tacos + margaritas after our session. 😉

I can’t wait until November!

Enjoy the photos!

xox

HSR

Nehley + Dustin | St. Louis Wedding Photography

How amazing would it be to get married at your parent’s water-front property? From the moment we started following the hand-crafted wooden arrows along the road, we couldn’t wait to see what was in store! And without a doubt, Simply & Forever (and the other vendors as well), put on one fabulous event. I think it’s so fun to get out of town and have a change of scenery every once in a while. Nehley and Dustin’s spectacular wedding festivities were held just south of St. Louis. Nehley was able to walk right out their front door arm-in-arm with her Daddy, down the aisle to meet Dustin standing smack dab in front of the neatest backdrop. Not just a beautiful lake, but a custom-made birch wood cross with a center floral arrangement. It was one of the neatest and most fitting backdrops for an outdoor ceremony I’ve seen. Just adjacent to the house sat the big-top tent, the perfect spot for dinner & dancing. Wait until you see the photos…

Dustin proposed to Nehley on his 30th birthday. Now, after getting to know these two, I can totally see him telling his parents that he “was ready to settle down and have a wife” as Nehley put it. I love how animated he is with funny expressions (Nehley – I saved a few of these for you to see!) and completely in love with Nehley.

We had such a great time! I even had a little sidekick flower girl who followed me around and took pictures alongside me. I think I may have taught her a thing or two. 😉 Go Macy girl! Thank you so much N + D! Congrats to you both.

Enjoy the photos!

xox

HSR

Vendors:

Planner + Event Designer – Simply & Forever

Event Lighting and Decor – Exclusive Events

Florist – Tina Barrera, The Special Event Florist

Paper Goods – M.Haley

Catering – Ces & Judy’s

Tent – Traube Tent

Runners – Cathy’s Custom Pillows

Ceremony Music – Rosewood Ensemble and Mark Mathes on Piano

Reception Music – J-Rob

Cake – The Cakery

Linens – Connie Duglin Linens

Videographer – Bella Vita

Julie + Greg | Forest Park Engagement

Talk about a couple that is naturally romantic and lovie-dovie. I think I had a well-rounded assortment of imagery in the first 10 minutes of this session. 😉 I’m in love with her skirt, her “waterfall braided” hair (by the talented Miss Annie at Danielle Style), and I’m in love with the fact that Greg carried Julie over a huge water puddle … so needless to say, I’m pretty much in love with everything about this engagement session. Even the dogs.

I’ve been getting asked quite often lately if pets can join. Sure! So we either start or end with them for about 10 minutes or so. I can’t guarantee I can get them to listen, but I have been known to bark, meow, whistle …whatever I need to do to get them to behave! 😉

Enjoy the photos! And congrats to our happy, happy couple.

xox

HSR

Behind-the-scenes Promo Video Shoot

Hi there!

Boy do I have a fun behind-the-scenes today. For quite some time now, I’ve been itching to do a promo-video piece. But I wanted absolutely no speaking parts. ha! I always tell potential clients, you wanna have chemistry with your wedding photographer, so I really wanted to find the same spark in our videographer. I’ve shared my love for LoveBirdStudios countless times here, and I knew they would be the perfect fit for us. So of course I’ve been planning and styling this big ta-da for months! I wanted it to be me and I wanted it to have a beautiful midwest flair. Oh man, where to start – What was I going to wear?! What nail polish color?! Where was it gonna be?! So many decisions in hopes of making it timeless + seasonless, and of course impactful for our viewers! So this past May we did it! …on a very hot day.

Very last minute, like a week before the shoot, we decided to add kids – because hey! they are a big part of our business too. I threw it out on Facebook – “photographer seeking two darling models who would listen and follow direction for 1 – 2 hours.” I was afraid no one would respond, because seriously do kids really listen? 😉 But holy cow, I received such a great response! I got so many cuties interested. I ended up choosing Ryan (the cutest little girl with curls) and Oliver. I actually think I’ve made a love connection with the two, and I’m hoping that since this shoot they have set up a play date. 😉 They wouldn’t kiss for me, but they did hold hands and wrap their arms around each other. 🙂 I’m dying on how well they did and how aaaadorable those two are. Thank you Tina + Katie for letting them be a part.

Long story short, I was awkward, goofy and incredibly nervous. Now you will just have to be as patient as I am to see it – any day now!

I can’t leave this post without giving a BIG special thank you to the crew who helped a girl out!

Our very special models – Kevin + Rachael and Oliver + Ryan

Hair + Make Up – Melissa Murray, Dominic Michael

Wedding Dresses – Fleur De Lis Bridal Boutique

Garland hair piece – KM2 Accessories

Flowers and that amazing flower belt! – Flowers & Weeds

and of course, Jordan and Jered with LoveBirdStudios!

Stay tuned for our big debut, and for now enjoy a little behind the scenes and shots from the day!

xox

HSR