More coming soon!

We’ve ordered their wedding album now, it should be in soon – a gorgeous 12″x16″ album with metallic pages and metal cover. They added a few of their favorite images from their engagement session up front too. Here’s the web-sized version of the album, please forgive the watermark, they aren’t in the final draft

Fun day

I met Christina and her bridesmaids at Total FX in Vidor as they were in the middle of manicures, pedicures, hair did’s, and hair done’s – wedding mornings are always buzzing with activity as the ladies prep for a big day. Christina is checking out some of the handiwork here:

Meanwhile, Marius was with Eric and his men as they go through the usual guy routine in getting ready for weddings – video games, a little shaving, more video games, sometimes pizza and sometimes, when the going gets rough, they break out the video games Eric is bracing for the first of 2 shaves that day:

Rings! One of my favorite photos of rings ever

By now we made it to the Lighthouse Worship Center church to apply finishing touches, relax a bit and take a few portraits before the ceremony begins. Christina waits as her sister Angela readies her artist’s brush:

Christina and Eric have chosen to do a “Salt Covenant Ceremony” instead of lighting a candle. Patterned after customs dating back to the Old Testament, the pastor explained it like this: “During ancient times, agreements and promises were sealed by a salt covenant. Each person would take a pinch of salt from their pouch and place it in the pouch of the other. This agreement could not be broken unless an individual could retrieve their own grains of salt.” In this occasion, they will pour the salt from the individual bottles into the center one; a beautiful alternative unity celebration, for sure

The guys are ready, as you can tell by their matching Chuck Taylor’s – Eric is the one with the rose boutonniere, naturally

Christina is just about ready herself, as her ladies assist with the lacing of her wedding dress.

While activity is going on all around her, the flower girl has decided the best way to deal with stress is to dance!

Above it seems like the salt was being a little obstinate, but Eric and Christina took it in stride – nothing was going to deter them from their intended path:

Yay!

From there it was on to the waiting reception hall at Rockin A’s, the place really looked nice:

Here, Mr. and Mrs. Monroe steal one more kiss before heading in to be announced.

Awwww! It was a beautiful day, thank you for allowing me to be a part of it!

Lauree begins the process of getting even prettier, assisted by her sister:











Meanwhile, the men begin infiltrating the church:

Bond, James Bond… Bond, James Bond… Bond, James Bond…








Back upstairs, Lauree is putting on the finishing touches while her girls look on:








I’ll have what they’re having.





It’s time, everyone lines up and the piano begins playing as the moment arrives:




















We did it!





The music is playing as everyone arrives to the reception and Mr. and Mrs. Chapman dance:











During a break in the activities, we took a stroll in the park for some beautiful portraits and a little somethin somethin









Afterwards, there were toasts, cake cutting, garter and bouquet tossing and dancing all night.





Too soon, the fun was over and the fun was about to begin:






A few more of my favorites below, thank you Lauree and Shane for our time together over the last few months

(Please read the previous entries below to catch up on all that has gone on today – part one – getting ready , and part two – the first look )





Krystal greets her dad as they prepare to walk down the aisle:














St. Jude’s has a beautiful sanctuary:








Ross and Krystal repeat their vows and exchange rings:





Success!





We did it!

I love the walk of determination Krystal has here:





One of Krystal’s gifts to Ross this day was a nice little Caddy – in which they make their way to the reception at the MCM Elegante Ballroom





Beautiful first dance… that extra practice helped





Part of the bridal party looks on as Krystal dances with her dad:








Cake!





The toasts were heart-felt and funny, including a song by by Co-Maid of Honor Melanie








I went to a wedding reception and a rubgy match broke out!











One of the bridesmaids (*cough*Laura!*cough*) is having what looks like too much fun





Much more dancing and partying later, Krystal and Ross head to their car surrounded by friends and relatives and showered by rose petals:





Beautiful day, thank you for allowing me to enjoy it with you

Venue: St. Jude Catholic Church
Reception: MCM Elegante Grand Ballroom
Second Photographer: Marius Lardizabal

We last left our two lovebirds as they were on their way to meeting the one they’ve waited for all their lives – this “first glimpse” was truly magical, watch how the tension builds:

… and dissipates

I was there and I still love to watch the slideshow – it starts slowly and builds speed as she moves across the floor until Krystal is in Ross’s arms, then it slows down again – a kiss, a hug, they step back to admire each other, then more embracing.

Ah… this is how wedding days should be. Experienced. We as a culture race from beginning to end, to the point of throwing bouquets, garters and rice – and most of us look back and the whole day was just a blur. For most cultures, the wedding traditions and celebrations can last an entire day and even extend across multiple days. Why in our culture is the wedding day so fast-paced, hectic, and centered around not seeing each other prior to the wedding?

I understand tradition, embrace it in most respects and honor it in all, but there are times when another way just may be better.



The just-opened tavern provided the perfect intimate backdrop for the afternoon:



We moved from the first look into a time of photographing fun relaxed portraits of the two in their finest. Then, after a few more relaxed and personal moments, the rest of the bridal party began trickling in:









Krystal and Ross practice their first dance just one more time:



Then the ladies begin their entrance:



Since we’ve added a couple of hours on the front-end of the day we use the time to get some great portraits with the bridesmaids, groomsmen and couple. This particular portrait is Lacy’s, Laura’s, Krystal’s, Melanie’s and Britt’s version of a portrait the ladies from “The Hills” are famous for:



Meanwhile, Marius takes the guys in a different direction using a more “lifestyle” approach as Ross and his men relax playing chess and a little poker:







A little more fun than standing at the altar and smiling for all of the formal portraits







We also photographed more formal portraits, and were able to get most of the images usually reserved for the end of the ceremony with the bridal party. It was a time of taking a break in the middle of a rushed day and spending some quality time with old friends.

Too soon, it was time to head to St Jude’s for the ceremony.



We’ll be back!

Here is their story:

The day began with getting ready in the bridal suites of the MCM Elegante` here in Beaumont:





Krystal’s ring and pearls lay waiting their duties, I love pearls





We begin the official ‘getting ready’ with Krystal in the salon chair, having her curls and flower coifed together:





Shoes! Red shoes!






Grace Mathis in the house!





Grace is one of the best in the business – the results speak for themselves





Here Ross is opening one of his presents Krystal gifted him for the day – personalized Converses!





Shoe!





Krystal’s ladies in waiting assist her with getting her netted veil just right:





It always amazes me in the difference in preparation that goes into the day for the groom and the bride. Here Ross slipped his tux and shirt on and is now checking out his accoutrements in the mirror:





Meanwhile, Krystal has been getting ready all morning and into the afternoon – finally comes the time where she can step into her dress:





… and at the same time, Ross is now ready and filling his extra time with video games:

A little more finishing touches:





Ross is ready to go, one last touchup himself:





Both are just about ready to go, the difference this time is that they’re not automatically heading to the ceremony site.

This time Ross and Krystal have decided to see each other before the ceremony – a “first look”. A “First Look” is a chance for you and your fiance to see each other in a beautiful, private setting before the ceremony. This not only gives you the opportunity to “reveal” yourselves without the stress of a thousand eyes watching you and a hundred camera flashes, but it also gives us more time to create romantic portraits (as well as the fun, artistic wedding party photos) before the ceremony so that you can get to the reception more quickly afterwards. It helps the day go much more smoothly as far as nerves go.





Ross headed down the elevator and is now heading to the tavern to wait for his bride.





Krystal makes one last check of her dress:





Now she’s headed to meet her groom…





Our next installment will have the two lovers meeting each other, beautiful romantic portraits afterwards and the party that followed. See you then!

Onto the reception! We arrive at the Beaumont Botanical Gardens where Kyra and Ian are announced and glide across the floor.





There wasn’t a dry eye in the house by the end of Kyra’s dance with her dad.

One of the Groomsmen toast the new couple:





The Beaumont Catering Company performed masterfully – from the great food and spirits, to the hot chocolate bar with monogrammed cups at the end, everything was perfect… and very tasty!





mmm… Cake!





There’s a lot of trust built in this moment, I have no idea why





One of my favorite scenes of the night – something about a long-time married couple dancing in each other’s arms at your reception, it kind of puts a nice stamp on the event.





Wow, the entertainment at the reception was outstanding! Jimi Jams always does an excellent job with DJ’ing/Emcee’ing an event, but the band “Stereo”, well-known on the local blues and jazz scene tore it up:





They both had the crowd dancing until their shoes just had to take a break:





After a quick pick-me-up with the hot chocolate bar, it’s time for their great escape – many bird seeds died to make this possible:





Beautiful day

Ceremony Venue: St. Michael’s Orthodox Church
Reception Venue: Beaumont Botanical Gardens
Caterers: Beaumont Catering Company
DJ: Jimi Jams
Band: Stereo
Second Photographer: Marius

When we last left Morgin and Patrick’s wedding, they were getting ready for the big moment and now it’s arrived! You can view the first part of their wedding day here. Morgin and her girls make the sprint to the finish line:





The time is here:





I love here how people are just kind of looking around, but Patrick has “laser” vision for his bride:








Lighting the unity candle:





We have lift off!





May I present Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Gonzales:





From there it was on over to the Neches Room in Beaumont – a great venue for a wedding reception and where we photographed Morgin’s bridal portraits. Catered by Holly and Christi with the Beaumont Catering Company, the food was very tasty





Speaking of tasty… mmmm… cake





Is that not the most beautiful wedding cake you’ve ever seen? It tasted even better

Patrick and Morgin in their first dance and cutting the cake:








Then it was Patrick’s brother Matthew and Morgin’s sister Meegan’s turn for toasts and speeches:





The many faces of Morgin during the toasts:





Then we come to what is probably the funniest thing I’ve ever seen at a reception. Patrick was all up for the garter retrieval and toss, but right as he was about to go in for the kill, Meegan stops him and said he had to use a blindfold so the chase wasn’t too easy. The crowd is chanting “teeth!” “teeth!” “teeth!”. While he was being blindfolded, one of the groomsmen had donned some pantyhose and shorts and flopped down on Matthew’s lap and laid Morgin’s skirts over his leg so everything would seem kosher. And… well, you get the idea!








Wow! Both his old and new family can be so cruel.. who’d a thunk it? Needless to say, he kept both eyes open and uncovered for the second chance. A couple photos below of the garter and bouquet tosses. You can’t really tell, but there were a few girls who really wanted that bouquet (unless, you notice the dilated puplis, Dana hiking her skirts up, elbows being thrown, everyone ready to pounce! )





No-one was injured badly, but it was intense for a few moments. Then it was everyone to the dance floor!





Then it was time to leave for the honeymoon in a flurry of bubbles:





Thank you for allowing me to be a part of such a beautiful day!

In looking back at how I processed the following images, almost every one April is in is black and white – I guess it’s her classic beauty look that draws me to a classic black and white wedding photography style. Whatever my method, these really turned out well





Oh, Michael is all about music – playing it, singing, etc. I’ve seen him playing at Logon Cafe before in one of a few different bands, playing several instruments like a virtuoso. It only stands to reason they’d have strings playing in the ceremony:





April and her dad Ted getting ready to walk down the aisle. I love this moment when the doors are flung open and the bride is standing there backlit with sunlight pouring through:





I really think Michael appreciates the moment too:





April’s dad lifts her veil as he gives her a kiss:





Ah, mission accomplished! You can’t see him too well, but the pastor is April’s grand dad.








… and the crowd roars as they throw rose petals to the leaving newlywed couple





At the reception, the music gets cranked up, cake gets eaten, bouquets get thrown… but this little girls wants nothing more than to play the drums:





A few pretty details from the lovely reception:





April and Michael share a few moments in their first dance:





Then it’s time to dress down, put on your dancing shoes and crank it up with the several live bands that performed at the outdoor reception! I know April enjoyed singing:





Michael playing the guitar like he stole it:





A great day! A few more below, thank you for letting me be a part!