30 seconds into our session, Haley & Devin were my new favorite, young people.  They were both super nervous about being photographed. But honestly, I have no idea why.  They pulled it off like the rockstars they are.

Their very first date was a coffee date, so it seemed fitting that we would start at Sugar Bean Coffee and Cream in Galveston.

Is it ok if I hurry up and get to their story because it’s the BEST.

Haley had finished undergrad at Texas A&M and started medical school at UTMB in Galveston.  She started attending a church there and discovered a pretty great guy named Devin.  Devin had grown up in Galveston and was attending the Texas A&M Maritime Academy.  (So they totally have a Maroon & Orange thing going.) Anyway…

They had been friends for a while. As they started to like each other more, they decided to not start a relationship because they didn’t feel they were ready.  Eventually, Devin asked Haley to be his girlfriend.  She said yes.  And, even though the timing might have been a bit off, 2 months later he asked her to be his fiancé.  She said yes to that one, too.

These two love to just set up their Eno and watch the waves.  Not a bad life.

Remember how I mentioned earlier the timing on Devin’s proposal was a bit off?  The reason was because right after he proposed, Haley left for the Philippines to deliver babies for 4 months. (Like you do.)  And don’t worry. Before you get all like, “Haley is such a great person. How could anyone be better than her?” Devin headed to Greece for a month to serve in refugee camps.
So yeah.  Best. Humans. Ever.

Haley told me that the thing that she loves most about Devin is how vulnerable he is when talking to people.  I experienced that first hand. I saw just how real and honest he is right after first meeting him.  That is so comforting to hear because the thing that Danielle and I have found in 14 and 5/12th months of marriage, is that the more open and honest you are, and the more you communicate, the better off your relationships will be.

Devin went on and on about how great Haley is at listening.  “She’s so easy to talk to,” he said.

But then… then it turned to gold because he added that, “She is full of wisdom and gives great advice.”

Too many times one parter will be the talker and the other one the listener.  (Guess which one I am.)

Again, over time, I have learned that my wife is FULL of wisdom and advice. But I need to give her the space and time to share it.  Devin has already figured this out about his bride, and I know their marriage will be stronger for it.

Thank you guys for an amazing afternoon at the beach.  Devin, thanks for opening up.  Haley, thanks for listening to me and giving me great advice on where to park. ;)

I shot Lauren & Brent’s wedding a little over 3 years ago.  They are one of my favorite past couples but it’s not because of their great style or awesome taste. (Although this things don’t hurt.)  The reason I love them so much is because they were and are still totally into each other.  Every time I’m around them I leave ready to go home and love my wife better.  They are killing it at being married.

Back in August Lauren E-mailed to say they wanted an themed anniversary session every 3 years and that this one would be a “vintage style shoot with a 50’s-60’s style dress and hair, bowtie and suspenders for brent, old fashioned bicycle, etc etc..”

This was my response: “you + brent + galveston + vintage = i’m in.”

6 months later here are the results.

If you think this shoot is great wait till you see what we come up with in 2015. ;)

Disclaimer: INSANELY LONG POST AHEAD.  PROCEED WITH CAUTION.

So Jennifer first contacted me about getting married on October 8th, 2011.  I was already booked but since she was having a small family wedding, she was gracious enough to bump her day to October 9th, 2011 so that I could be there.  (Super Awesome)

The minute I arrived, I felt like family.  Jennifer has 2 kids and Brian has 3 of his own.  Coming from a houseful of kids myself, I loved the noise and sound of a room full of chaos.  When Jennifer shared her story of how she met Brian and the years leading up to it, I fell in love with all of them even more.  (In fact… her story is so good I asked her to share it with you all in a few days; so stay tuned!!!)

Here they are giving instructions on how to walk down the aisle.  (The kids executed flawlessly.)  Here is the best compliment I can give Jennifer and Brian: their kids are ALMOST as well behaved as mine. :)

Jennifer & her sister prep for the wedding while rocking out to Ace of Base.

First Look magic.

So…. minutes after they had their First Look, the rain that had been looming, started pouring down.

We had a few choices.

1: Wait 30 minutes and see if it passes. (It didn’t.)

2. Get married INSIDE a small beach house.

3. Get married in the morning even though a few of the 20 or so guests would not be able to attend.

Jennifer & Brian went off and started talking through their options.  I let them know that they could do whatever they wanted, but if they were going to get married in the morning, there was absolutely ZERO chance that I would miss it. :)

This next shot is one of my favorites from their wedding.  It’s the moment they came together and decided to fight for what they wanted regardless of the cost.

Mini-Rant:  You see somehow, no matter how big or small, weddings have a way of growing or gaining a life of their own.  There are dozens of people who will tell you how and when or why to get married.  And even though they mean well, they really have little or no business giving input.  Because…. IT’S YOUR WEDDING!!!!  Jennifer & Brian’s family were super cool and let them decide what to do; but yours may not be so super cool.  You may have to fight for your wedding at some point.  It may be in the first month of planning.  It may happen 6 months BEFORE you get engaged.  Heck, it may even ambush you after a bridal shower one day, but be ready.  Know what you guys want and stick to it.  Jennifer and Brian knew they wanted to get married ON THE BEACH.  So they did.  The next day. :)

But before we went to bed, we all piled into the condo and had a pre-wedding reception full of goodies, cakes, and matchbooks with the wrong wedding date.

Rise and shine Jennifer.  You wanted to get married on the 8th, moved it to the 9th, and here it is October 10th and you are finally getting married!

She was giddy when she saw her wedding really happening.

The kids and the cousins.

Pretty perfect.

I love smaller weddings because everyone who is important gets a front row seat and they almost are more happy than the couple.
How great are these next few shots.  I was a wet mess.  (I think it was the salt water or wind messing with my eyes.  Yeah, that’s it.)

Obviously, since I just set a blog record for most images posted, I had a great time.  Everyone was super super super nice and I kinda hated to leave them all.  Thanks again for welcoming me with open arms.  You were all wonderful.  I can’t wait for Jennifer to share her whole story with all of you.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE smaller weddings so when Molly 1st E-mailed me about her wedding that would be for immediate family only I was giddy!  It was such a relaxing day and I really felt honored being “included” in the day.

So even though the wedding was just family.  Molly still managed to fill a giant binder full of wedding planning.  Win-win.

Not a bad wedding venue.  If you are a bride looking to get married near millions of gallons of water and billions of grains of sand you should totally consider this place.

They ended their “normal” first dance and then went into an evolution of dance type mix.
Thanks again for a great day.  Many many more images coming your way soon!

Note to brides:  If you are considering doing a super super small wedding you totally should do it.  I have never heard a bride regret or complain that their wedding was “too small”. :)