Kaylan & Trent are my favorite kind of people.  The kind who don’t take themselves too seriously.  So when she proposed a State Fair engagement session I was all in.  When she said, she wanted to make sure and get some gross things like old corn dogs in the photos I knew we would be best friends.  AND.  When she told me she is going to have a carnival themed wedding I was like… let’s hurry up and get to the wedding.  :)  Consider this a practice session for the “real photos” to come next month.  You guys were a blast.

If I had to sum up Shelby & Logan’s wedding day in one word, I would choose “relationships” as their word.  Every time I turned around, it seemed as if these two were deep in conversation or a moment with another person from their story.  Weddings are often a time when the bride and groom are surrounded by their friends and family, but they rush and events of the day make it easy to overlook the people they love the most.  Shelby & Logan spent their day fully present and soaking up every moment.

They were married at the historic and gorgeous Astin Mansion in downtown Bryan.  This place is amazing.  They are also home to Carriage House Floral who brought their A game.  Take a look.

The ladies spent the morning like all good Aggie bridesmaids… Watching football.

Right before she started getting ready Shelby’s mom gave her a few small gifts from herself and other friends.  Then they sorta broke down.  Just for a minute. :)

Shelby’s maid of honor loved me getting this shot of her brushing her teeth.

I love toasts.  They are super great.  I also enjoy finding the creation of the toast.  So many times I come across that moment, when a mother or father sit down to try and put into a few sentences, what a lifetime of raising and loving a child has meant to them.  It’s rarely an “amazing” or “stunning” image, but so many times they end up being my favorites from the day.

Shelby’s dad was super sweet when he saw her for the first time that day.

I love how Shelby went all creepy on Logan during their First Look.

So, somewhere along the day, we got news that the cake had been dropped on it’s way to the venue.  Not cool right?  Of course Shelby responded how every bride should.  She was like, “No big deal, I’m sure it will all work out.” :)

And just like that Shelby earned 387 Cool Bride points.

Can I tell you a little secret?

Everyone knows you are supposed to look at the bride when she comes down the aisle.  (It’s her day BLAH BLAH BLAH.)

And… all you professional wedding go-ers also know that looking at the grooms reaction is also a golden moment.

The thing is, and due to the angle and location, this is so hard for most of you to see: the mother of the groom is sometimes where it’s at.  :)

All mothers ever want is for their kids to have a fulfilling life.  It’s never about them being successful, rich, or even giving them grandkids.  They just want them to be full.  To know they have a teammate.  So when a mother can see her son, looking at the woman who will be his partner in life, his biggest fan, the one who will hold him, give him comfort, joy, and the security that she has given for all these years, it’s a special moment.  I love that moment.

Right after the ceremony I heard Logan say, we should take a selfie.  Then Shelby said, I don’t have a phone.  Then Logan said, I don’t have a phone.  Then I said, I have a phone.  Then they selfied on my phone while i photographed them selfieing.

You’ll be surprised to know that Logan’s grandmother is a fan of watching her grandson dance with her daughter. :)

Sometimes I think the only reasons Aggies get married is so someone will photograph their rings.

Hey, hey.  Guess what showed up?

Not only was Shelby cool about the whole thing, she went over and gave the cake lady a hug and thanked her for making her another cake.

274 Cool Bride points earned.

So many people shared so many great stories about growing up and raising these two.  I would love for you to hear them, but guess what?  I was only there to take photos.  Good news though!

Matt Johnson of FilmStrong was there.  He is a killer videographer based out of Dallas.  You should book him.

Towards the end of the night, Logan surprised Shelby by playing and singing a song for her.  He also made all us other guys look like chumps.  :)

These two ended the night how I believe every couple should end their night: with the dance floor all to themselves.  It’s totally a thing that feels right out of a movie.  I love it every time.

Thank you guys for an amazing day full of laughter, friendships, and all around Aggie coolness. ;)

P.S.  You know what else was at their wedding?  The Mug Machine.

Check out my 10 favorites from the night.

When I got home from this wedding, I Instagramed a photo of these two and said this: “I have photographed hundreds of weddings. I have never seen a groom be more tender towards his bride than Tim was towards Beth.”

As I edited and looked over every image I captured that day, I still feel that to be an absolute truth.

The depth and richness of their relationship seeped through every aspect of their day.  I felt so honored to be there.  I felt like I should be paying them.  Then I was all like… wait.  My kids need to eat.  Nevermind.

Beth and Tim were married at Stone Oak Ranch in Athens.  It’s a Top 10 venue and I love shooting there.  Also Moss made the whole day explode with floral goodness.

Beth knew exactly what she wanted in a dress.  But, unlike her groom, she could not find it in one place.  So she had one commissioned, that combined 3 different dresses on Etsy. :)

Every time I turned around, these ladies were laughing.  About everything and nothing, all at once.

Tim wrote in a little journal for her and as she was reading it she was tearing up, and then chuckled a bit.  I later asked her and she said that he had misspelled a word. :)

Beth and her mom shared a super sweet prayer before the day really got rolling.

I told you Moss killed it with the flowers!  Call and book them! 903.787.8821

This is when I started noticing Tim’s attention to detail.  When he opened the gift Beth had for him, he looked over every part so carefully.  The card, the box, the small stuff we tend to glance over.  He even flipped through and read every page in a photo book she had made for him.  I was standing there photographing him, waiting for him to go to the next gift, but he just kept looking at the photo book.  Page by page.  After a minute or so, I began to worry because I saw that there was another book.  A longer thicker book.

Sure enough, he opened this one to the table of contents and started looking over it.
(At this point I kinda freaked out in my head.  We are on a schedule bro.  I only allotted 5 minutes for “gift exchange” and you are making me nervous.)

Then he went to this pose.  He settled in.  He got comfortable.  I think he forgot I was there, and we were there, and he was getting married.  He was so engulfed with the perfect gift that Beth had selected that it was threatening to ruin my day!!!

He finally put the book down and we moved onto the business of this ever important “formal photos.”  This is Tim and his brother being “formal”.

Tim also picked out bow ties for each of his guys.  (I’m scared to know how long that process took.)

Boom!  Tim’s brother strikes with a perfect photo bomb.

Beth’s sister made these.  Because she is awesome.

Wedding time rolled around and I was waiting for it to start, when all of the sudden preacher man started talking.  I figured it was the usual, silence your cell phones, no flash photography announcement.

Wrong again, Alex.

Beth and Tim asked him to speak for about 5-10 minutes on what marriage is.  What it means.  What we strive for and commit to when we enter into this covenant.  And they asked him to do it BEFORE they came out because they didn’t want any of his words to be missed by the distraction of them, and their closest friends being up there.

They just wanted a not so subtle reminder for them and their guests that marriage is legit.

You don’t jack with marriage. (My words, not his.)

Beth finally came out.  Tim cried.

When she got to the front, they spent some time just hugging and holding each other.  Because why not. :)

While at the back, I saw this.  It has nothing to do with covenants, or marriage, or the sacredness of the moment.  But you can’t NOT photograph dinosaurs.  Right?

This is Tim’s “I CAN’T BELIVE WE ARE FLIPPING MARRIED YOU ARE SO GORGEOUS” face.

After I finished their photos, I encouraged them to just take some time alone before heading back towards the wedding party and reception.  I looked over and found this.

Hello perfect moment.

I love it so much.  It totally captured their day and relationship.  It wasn’t a kiss.  In fact, I would not even call it a “hug.”  It was more of a “hold.”

As in, I’m here for you.  I’m supporting you.  I’m committed to you.  I’m in this moment with you and will be in so many more moments for years and years to come.

Marriage is hard.

Mortgages
Kids
Budgets
School
Work
In-laws
Holidays
Bills

All of these things are a part of it.

None of them are inherently bad.  But boy, do they sometimes feel like they are pulling you apart.

Knowing your spouse is committed.  Knowing they are there to lean on.  Knowing that you can always walk into a room and hold each other, regardless of whatever is spiraling out of control around you, is what keeps marriages together.

I loved getting to capture their first “hold” as a married couple.

I always like when this happens during a First Dance.

And just when I thought I had seen it all…..  They go and give me a Marriage Monday quote on the side of their car.

“It is not your love that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that sustains your love.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Thank you two for an amazing day.  I love you.

Tyson and Bree are those people you love to hate. The super gorgeous, hipster-looking, amazingly haired, coffee snobbish, perfect together couple. The trouble is… If you ever meet them in real life, you’ll fall in love with them in about 10 seconds. Bree is so approachable and sweet and Tyson is like a throwback to the gentlemen of yesteryear. I love them so much that all I want is for their wedding to hurry up and get here so I can photograph them some more.

I mean, they can do anything. Tyson is all like dorky-flirty with Bree in this image.

Then 4 seconds later I say, look this direction and it’s like I’m suddenly shooting for Abercrombie. (or whereever the beautiful people buy clothes nowadays.)

And I LOVE their story….

Tyson and Bree met while attending UNT. Bree was walking around campus with a giant black portfolio art book thing and Tyson took notice of her pretty soon. Well, technically he noticed Luca first. Luca was Bree’s cocker spaniel. True story: Tyson said he may have liked her dog more than Bree at first.

Bree, noticing what an amazing dude Tyson was, soon made a super cool flip book to ask him out. Tyson told me that he was “always crazy intrigued by her” and once he found out she was interested in him, he took the lead. That was back in 2010 so today I think he may like Bree MORE than Luca, but I don’t know. Luca didn’t join us for the shoot.

After stomping around the Bishop Arts District, Bree mentioned she wanted to go take some with “the big white bridge.” So we Googled that bad boy, went over, and took a few. But honestly, I knew we could do better.

So we risked life and limb, and played chicken with a few cars, and ended up with a better view.  :)

PS. The pretty white bridge is dirty if you look real close.

Thanks you guys for being that super gorgeous, hipster-looking, amazingly haired, coffee snobbish, perfect together couple that I love to love.

Amanda & Steve had a killer wedding.  It was what every wedding should be.  (A party.)  What better way to party than with The Mug Machine?

Here are a few of my favorites.

Hey there bride who has already booked me for her wedding. You totally want to add this to your wedding coverage right?  Call me and we’ll make it happen. :)