I was so excited for another Lake Katherine in Palos Park wedding photography opportunity. We still had some late fall color and after some getting ready at the Doubletree by Hilton Chicago – Alsip, were the wedding festivities would be held later that evening. I am so surprised with how the weather is not that this was just two weeks ago. We were able to do some afternoon wedding portraits at Lake Katherine, now there would be snow!! After some outdoor picture fun it was time to head back to the hotel for some formal family portraits and the ceremony. Followed by a party with everyone dancing the night away and lots of laughing and celebrating by everyone. It was great to see Laura and Pete kick back, relax and have fun at the end of the evening since the first part of the day was so busy for both of them.
I asked Laura and Pete what their favorite moments from the wedding day, and they both agreed that the first look was a mutual favorite! Laura told me “My favorite moment was definitely the first look. It was such a perfect moment to take each other in and just have a special moment together. I really think my favorite PART of the day was seeing everyone get along so well. There were a few groomsmen I only got to meet the night before, and they treated me like they had known me as long as they had known Pete. Everyone meshed so well, and it warmed my heart so much to see our friends and family all having such a great time together. The fact that there were still people on the dance floor after the lights came in made my night!” Pete agreed, “The first look. It was special having those few minutes with no interruptions to talk about what was about to happen. A close second was seeing everyone have so much fun together!”
I always recommend doing a first look for weddings that are held at the same venue since an hour long cocktail hour is NOT enough time to get great portraits of the couple, and with the family and wedding party. I also highly recommend first looks for fall and winter weddings since the light fades so fast that time of year. Laura and Pete told me that they honestly can’t imagine what it would have been like if they hadn’t done a first look. “Even though we were apprehensive at first, we are so beyond happy that we did it. That was both of our favorite moments of the day. It was so special to have that moment for just the two of us to enjoy privately before the night continued. We are so excited to see the pictures and video of it. It also took so much pressure off of walking down the aisle as well. It took some of those nerves away so we could soak that in a little bit more. It was great to have all of the pictures done beforehand and get to just enjoy the rest of the time with our guests.” Such great advice!!
ADVICE FROM THE HAPPY COUPLE
“Definitely try to keep everyone on schedule! Even though you think you have plenty of time for everything, you don’t, and end up spending half the time wrangling everyone. Haha. Thank goodness we had added an extra hour of photo coverage! I wish I wouldn’t have had to worry as much during the getting dressed/ picture process about trying to catch up time wise! That way I could have enjoyed those moments a little bit more.”
A very Special THANK YOU to all the amazing vendors who came together to help make Laura and Pete’s wedding day perfect!!
Thanks so much to the friendly and professional staff at the Doubletree by Hilton Chicago-Alsip. The flowers were absolutely breathtaking, shout out to Hearts & Flowers for doing such a great job! The DJ Answer Back Entertainment kept the dance floor full All.Night.Long. It is always a pleasure to work with one of my FAVORITE videographers, Joel from Wedding Films. Of course, last but certainly not least the Hair and Makeup team from Contempo Salon, some who were also in the wedding party. The gals were flawless and perfectly styled all night long :)
This is my first look at the wedDing PHOTOS of my son and Laura. I’m blown away with all that you have done to capture their precious day. Thank you.
Thank you sooo much, it was a pleasure to be a part of their day!