Brooke & Jason are some of the nicest, kindest people you could ever meet. She's a special ed/art teacher, and he's an EMT- so they both spend their lives helping others in need. The world definitely needs more people like them. ;-)
They decided to start the day off together in the same house. I walked in to find the guys relaxing in the living room while the girls were in a screened porch on the back of the house getting their hair and makeup done. What a great place for hair & makeup with all of that beautiful natural light! So often the makeup and hair people have to cram into a tiny bathroom, or take over the kitchen, with artificial light and just hope that they're not putting the makeup on too dark or too light! So there's a tip for you girls - find a place with great natural light for your hair & makeup people!
When Jason & I first saw Brooke, we couldn't help but stare at the rows of curls pinned to her head. Jason was afraid... very afraid... that this is how his future wife had decided to do her hair for the wedding day!! Afterall, the hair people did such a fabulous job of hiding the pins, that it really did look like a finished head of hair! Finally Brooke reassured Jason that her hair wasn't done and that it would be coming out of the curls in due time. He laughed with a huge sigh of relief- thankful that he wasn't going to be walking down the aisle with a totally different bride. ;-)
You're going to see a lot of the little boy below- Brooke's nephew. He was such a character, even when he wasn't trying! He reeeeeeally didn't want to wear a baby tux! It took 1, 2, 3... 4 people to get his tux on! The poor kid thought he was undergoing surgery with everyone trying to get him into that thing!
After all of that crying and fussing, he was just exhausted...
The ceremony and reception were held at
Oak Hill Mansion, in Carmel, IN. With its grand entrance staircase, beautiful landscaping, and great layout, it's a popular spot for many Indianapolis brides and grooms!
Even though Brooke & Jason had already seen each other at the house, they decided to get into their wedding attire at the mansion and arranged for all of their formal pictures to be taken before the ceremony so that they could simply move on to enjoying their guests and dinner immediately after the ceremony. I always leave it up to the bride & groom to decide what they'd like to do, but I can say without hesitation that there are many great reasons to get the posed pictures done before the ceremony.
They also arranged a special first look with Brooke making an elegant entrance on the stairs and Jason waiting at the bottom to see her for the first time in her wedding gown. I just love being able to capture that first moment with so much more intimacy than is possible during the ceremony! I captured a few straight on shots, but when I noticed the mirror and Brooke's huge smile, I decided to take a different angle...
Isn't he just adorable? And the flowers were incredible... and HUGE!
Not my idea... but I sure did crack up when they did it! Hey, watch those feet Jason!
The guys were so kind to give me front row tickets to the gun show... ha!
One thing I've noticed about brides who see grooms before the ceremony is that they are sooo much happier and more relaxed when they walk down the aisle. Ironically, grooms are still just as nervous as usual! HA!
Such a gorgeous voice!
Even though not all guests could make it down the stairs to get close for the ceremony, they still had a great view from the rear balcony, which I also took advantage of for the large group picture.
One guest shouted, "Are you sure that lens is wide enough!?" Apparently he didn't believe me when I said yes because he asked again, so- here's the proof! That's right folks, this is not your standard point & shoot camera I'm working with here. ;-)
Being the crafty person that Brooke is, everything went together so well and she did most of it on her own! Her bright and bold pink details and flowers were set off with accents of black and silver..
She had this really interesting idea of having her guests sign bottles of wine that would be saved and opened on each of their anniversaries!
I have to show you a close up of this cake, because it was just so much fun with it's asymmetrical tipsy-topsy design!
Everyone gave a great toast, especially Jason's brother who talked about life growing up as Jason's identical twin... and watching his brother fall in love with Brooke... it was really touching. Jason's father even played the piano! What a great family!
One of the things I love watching out for are the reactions to the main action in the room, it often tells a much deeper story than the action alone. ;-)
Remember when I told you what a character this kid was?! Check him out staring at that cash! Love it!
This just cracks me up! This was actually the SECOND time that he tossed the garter because the first time it landed on the floor. Crazy enough, the same guy who picked it off the floor the first time, was the one who caught it the second time. Some things are just meant to be. ;-)
Name this tune!
This just makes me smile...
Brooke & Jason - thank you so much for allowing me to capture your wedding day!! You are surrounded by so many loving and caring people and I'm so honored that I was able to capture those feelings for you!
