The more I learned about what wonderful people Chris and Micaela have in their lives…. the more inspired I was by them. How fortunate they all are….. they have between them, a gift. One that only grew larger and more precious yesterday with the official expansion of the family, to include the newlyweds.

I am honored to have shared in this momentous occasion… and sleep well at night knowing there are so many fabulous people in the world. Thank you!

These are Micaela’s shoes that were as daring as they were darling… what you can’t tell in this photo is that they easily added 4+ inches to her height on wedding day… brave girl! :) She pulled it off flawlessly.

Micaela had the incredible fortune of having much of her family present at the wedding, including grandparents and great grandparents! This photo captures four generations of women.

So… the purple 4+inch heels were just the beginning…. Micaela had lots of fun details that made for a photolicious good time. Here, we catch a glimpse of her pink hair as she and Chris have their wedding day ‘first look.’ :)

The wind was blustering at a speed that can easily be described as ‘uncomfortable,’ but we managed to get this shot…. Chris and Micaela are so cute!

OK wait…we need to talk about her dress! It was knee-length and hand-made from an artist she found on etsy. Why did I not think of this for my own wedding? Genius! Nothing for people to step on and it shows off her cute shoes (the heels and the sandals)! The dress is actually two separate pieces (three if you count the belt). Let those wheels of inspiration turn ladies! (Great choice Micaela…. you were simply gorgeous!)

I snuck into the back room before the ceremony and caught this moment of Micaela with her dad, Mario. Not only are they both adorable, but they also happen to both be runners. Micaela ran Lincoln’s Half-Marathon last weekend too… and completely kicked my butt! Again…. very inspirational…

Their wedding took place at St. Michael’s Parish in what used to be the town of Cheney, Nebraska. It’s now part of Lincoln, but is still charmingly somehow different…. just darling!

I l-o-v-e this…

These two have been together for several years… often mentioning throughout the day and into the evening that they ‘grew up’ together. I love thinking about them continuing on their life journey together… and one day growing old together. :) I picture them huddled around their wedding album looking at these photos and thinking about how beautiful they were, all the love they have in their lives, and what a great day their wedding day was…

Such a handsome groom! Love that soft smile…

Chris had great spiky/curly hair…. love how it looks in this shot…

The vintage lace on Micaela’s wedding veil was a worthy photo subject all its own!

I l-ooooooo-vvvv-eee this too… I think it’s the look on both their faces…..

The reception was full of great surprises like video tributes from Chris and Micaela throughout the evening and Mario’s ‘father-of-the-bride’ toast delivered as a video montage with a speech that left me in tears….. (So glad Emir was shooting with me…. speeches like that make me miss him so much!)

Simply fantastic. Huge big strong hugs to all of you!

To make it easier to digest, I loosely arranged the images based on different parts of the day. This first group represents the ‘portrait hour’ I spend with clients making the iconic images that sum up what their day is all about. I hope they make you smile!

2009 brought with it the opportunity to photograph a number of destination weddings including Annette & Brandon’s 4th of July celebration in Grenada. Here are some of my faves from their ‘Day After’ session. The wedding itself can be seen here.

Of course, ‘portrait hour’ is preceded by ‘getting ready.’ I *love* to photograph all the pretty details that go into transforming a beautiful woman into a beautiful bride.

Of course, the guys have their own version of ‘getting ready.’ In this case, it means listening to the ball game on the radio…. :)

Ceremony time! Whether in a church, at a park or on a golf course, ceremonies are fun and challenging to capture.

Jeff earned a shout-out for most creative ‘entrance’ to a wedding when he arrived to his ceremony on water skis and upon landing ashore, peeled off his ‘dry suit’ to reveal the tuxedo underneath. Bravo!

I’m often asked, “Do you shoot formal group portraits?” The answer, of course, is “Yes!” In addition to a few traditional formals, I love to capture what I think is even more fun…. group shots that showcase personality and spunk. Here are a few quick examples/faves. :)

Another thing I enjoy capturing at the wedding are detail shots of the rings. The possibilities are endless!

When I’m not chasing the star couple or foraging for interesting ring image concepts, I often turn my camera’s attention to grandpas, kids, interesting guests and… the funny moments that are only a click away.

I later found out that the gentleman on the left in the image below passed away not long after the wedding. I’m incredibly honored to have been able to give this image to his family in tribute.

Every time I come home from a wedding, I’m more excited than before… and filled with inspiration from all the genius, creative couples I have the honor of working with. (Poor Emir… I’m constantly suggesting to him that we renew our vows and have a party with all the fab ideas I’ve collected over the years. Such a good sport he is!) If you’re in the market for some wedding reception detail shots (eye candy), here goes!

After months of planning to pull off the whole event, the reception comes and it’s time to dance!

Thank you to all of the incredible couples (and their families!) I’ve had the honor of working with in the past year. You are the reason I do what I do…. Much love and happiness to you all in 2010! :)

Thank you to everyone for your interest and support in helping this insanely sweet and friendly little guy to find a family who loves him! I will miss seeing him around the neighborhood, but I couldn’t be happier about his new family and how excited they are to have him. :)

I’m in love with Katrina’s dress!

Love the inertia in this one!

I love this family shot!!!!!! Sooooooo glad I got to work with you all afterall! Hugs to all three of you!

I’m excited to see how the snow inspires us at Lindsay & Chad’s wedding today.  Can’t wait! :)

Cool stuff! I’ve known Brooke for a few years now and love her work, especially her underwater imagery. Having attempted to shoot underwater myself, I can fully appreciate the enormous amount of set-up, effort and expense involved with capturing such playful and imaginative images (all while wearing a weight belt and trying not to get water up your nose– Ha!). Impressive to say the least!

WAY more to come after the wedding, but here’s a sneak peek of some of what I’ve captured so far with my lil’ purse camera and the corresponding underwater housing.

I shot these just this morning at the beach behind where we’re staying. We were the only ones there this morning…. heaven!

In my earlier days, I was a competitive swimmer (I used to be quite serious about it actually!) I swam competitively from the age of 5 until I was about 15 or 16. Needless to say, it’s been YEARS since I’ve trained in the water…. but Emir dared me to see if I still had the moves…. I’m kind of surprised actually! Not too bad! One of my strongest events was the 100yd butterfly and the 200yd IM. Here I demonstrate the butterfly stroke. :)

Today, we decided to hit the boats for some snorkeling. It was Emir’s first time… too fun!

Grenada is home to the famed Underwater Sculpture Garden. We found our way to some of the pieces….

In Grenada, you drive on the left side of the street. Wednesday, we had the abitious thought that we’d score a car and drive the circumference of the island. So, our first stop was the neighborhood police station to get our official Grenadian driver’s licenses. (The bowl of fruit you see in the corner is filled with wax apples. Delicious! The officers actually shared some with us!)

We paid the required $15 US Dollar fee, and were given change in the local currency, the Eastern Caribbean Dollar. I’d never heard of it before… but it’s beautiful! Look at the coin with the curved floral shape! Amazing!

I’ll spare you the details of our escapade driving the island on the left…. suffice it to say that we decided that we don’t belong behind the wheel here. Ha ha! (Thankfully, the locals are among the nicest and most understanding people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. They rescued us from ourselves countless times yesterday! Ha ha!) More to come upon our return!