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 from our first coffe-date with steph and her equally-beautiful mom, we knew we were hooked on her.  actually, we had those feelings about her even at our beloved john-and-the-other-stephanie ‘s wedding, and were just super awed that she felt it too, and chose US to spend her wedding day with her!  we didn’t get to meet josh until those getting-ready-minutes leading up to their ceremony (he lives in Chicago!), but it was instant “i like you.”  (you picked well, steph!)  and umm, hello, you made our job ridiculously easy!  so many faves, we’re going to have to share in pieces.  first, the “anticipation” moments…

the ladies’ powder room at Palmetto Club is so beautiful, we’d decided with steph before the wedding that we wanted to capture some images there.  i love her expression when i said, “look serious, steph.” 

the girls:

the men:

the gift exchange.  these moments were so precious; bride and groom sent their gifts via their moms.  the tenderness of their thoughts toward each other stole my heart.  josh gave steph STUNNING diamond earrings, but sent that message that he knew she had dangly earrings to wear, and he didn’t expect her to wear them.  which is exactly what she almost did, to honor her groom.    next, she gifted him with a super-awesome watch.  which came with instructions that he didn’t have to wear it.  and he did!

waiting for her groom…

waiting for his bride…

coming soon… “i do” and the party! 

love you guys… {{brian and angela }}

…well, vintage, vintage-modern… just plain wonderful!

alena met us at our fave starbuck’s a while back and we talked wedding plans, and about her beloved thomas, who was away serving our country.  we couldn’t wait to photograph the two of them together when he was here on leave.  he’s as sweet as i knew he would be, and alena’s smile when she’s with him could light the night sky.  alena, you are so beautiful, and thomas, you are going to be a wonderful husband.  we can’t WAIT for your wedding day! 

click on the smaller images to see them larger. 

i came across this image from nicole and joey’s wedding… i remember being on my knees during the prayer and looking up to see a precious friend of the bride and groom pouring out her heart on their behalf.  it’s the heart of what matters – two people becoming one with the support and encouragemant of their friends and family.

hugs!!  -angela

sigh.  it is such joy going back through wedding images, and they’re not even our own.    it’s been a few weeks since jimmy and tiffany said, “I do,” and aside from a few quick teasers, we haven’t shared their day’s story for the rest of the world!  revisiting their gallery reminds me of the importance of what we do; as i go through i am remembering stories from the day that must be told…

it was a stormy day, but that didn’t stop the party when friends and family came together to celebrate a wedding.  the White Chapel in Palm Harbor is such a sweet place to say, “i do.”

you’ll see the “he” of the two of us in quite a few of jimmy and tiffany’s images; we knew these two when brian was pastoring at First Baptist Indian Rocks, and said, “yes,” practically before they asked him to officiate their wedding.  because we’d had some counseling time leading up to this day, we had even more emotional investment in their union.  we knew the two of them were each getting an awesome mate. 

stormy weather gave us just a few short minutes to grab some bridal portraits of tiffany… can i say that this woman can rock a tiny little white bathroom?

“i do…”

now because brian was officiating and we know the couple, brian jr. shot this wedding with us.  in case you don’t know us yet, i’ll tell you he’s thirteen.  he manually exposed and “held down the fort” from the back of the sanctuary in a dark chapel.  the two on the right are his.    (no proud mama here.)

we’re so glad you guys braved the weather to grab a few (oh my, pretty) bridal party and “mush” images. 

this was a seriously fun reception; the family and friends were fabulous, and the hedger family rocks the place… there might be more dancing photos from this reception than any we’ve ever shot.  these guys go and go and go… and dancing with them and laughing with them is not optional.  love…

“the brothers,” the groom’s dad and uncles, stole the show for a bit.  we loved watching all the cousins dance, too.  just a neat picture of FAMILY.  (oh, yeah, and they all pile onto the dance floor to jam to that song!)  check out the bottom couple here – dan and jenn, groom’s brother, super-cute couple whose wedding invitation session we did, and who were featured here.

tiffany’s camera-shy son is adorable, so we worked hard to get a shot or two of him.  but as a momma of four sons, this image steals my heart.  love your love for your boy, tiffany!

what a beautiful day, you two.  thank you so much for inviting us to be a small part.  we love you!!  (and we need a game night SOON…)

hugs!!  –brian and angela

it’s about time we headed back and really covered this wedding… a splash on Facebook will not do.  you must meet our sweet new friends nickie and joey.  we met them and i knew i had to get to know them better when joey showed me the freshly downloaded The Knot  app on his iPhone.  this is a man i wanted to know.  they dreamed of a vintage-inspired engagement session with a nod toward travel in honor of their passion for missions… and they made us melt. 

their wedding day was all they had dreamed; full of adoring friends and family, passion for each other, attention to their guests, and thoughtfulness toward everyone they encountered, this wedding celebration is a reflection of the caring hearts these two are led by.

there is something so intimate and calming about a “first sight…” and it truly is an amazing thing to watch two people come together and share a quiet moment at the height of a lifetime’s worth of planning and dreams before they join with their family and friends to celebrate!

the passion for missions shined again as joey and nicole shared their gifts with each other during their first sight: they actually bought each other the exact same vintage world missions atlas.  it’s a sign from the first that they truly are one in spirit… it’s a beautiful thing.

the flowers were absolutely gorgeous.  i love the refinement of the roses balanced with a carefree fresh-from-the-field-look and the explosion of color.  it was the perfect pop against the chocolate dresses!  (and if you look closely, you’ll notice that the beautiful bouquet we received last week has a LOT of the same color and look to it ).

super fun bridal party… some of whom we got to see at kristen and smitty’s wedding just a short time later!

the ceremony was beautiful and filled with heart-moments.  so many family and friends prayed and served and read and shared their hearts, and it was a blessing to be a quiet observers.

i think the non-portraits are way more fun than the portraits. 

let’s dance!

The people who made the day fabulous:

Sara at Sunken Gardens - such a beautiful and intimate location, with a wonderful and accomodating staff – I’d book my girl’s wedding here!

Mindy at Hilton Bayfront in St. Petersburg – this is a beautiful location and the food was delish!

DJ – we always hit the dance floor with DJ Mikey C of A Different DJ making the music!

Flowers – (oh, those flowers…) – Cookie at Victorian Roses

Video – we “heart” Cara and the crew at Hearts Video!

Yummy Cupcakes – Bonnie at Cakes by Carolynn

and us… haha!

we love you guys… hugs!  brian and angela