Wedding at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Michigan City

When I entered St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Michigan City, Indiana to photograph the Catholic wedding of Natalie and Greg, I was immediately struck by the architecture and the unique green tinge in the stone walls.  It is truly a majestic buidling.

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I took my place inside the pews as Natalie and her Dad waited to walk down the aisle together...

The father and the bride were both overjoyed as they walked past family and friends toward the front of the church where Dad would give away his daughter to the groom.

This grand old Catholic church in the heart of downtown Michigan City is a wonder to see.  The balcony was quite a hike, but Catholic ceremonies tend to run at least an hour, giving me plenty of time to get some photographs from above as well as on ground level.

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Something about the tradition of this church led me to convert many photographs into vintage looking, sepia toned wedding photos from the days of old.  Here is one of the bride and groom in prayer..

One of my favorite moments was capturing this future bride peering into the aisle to get a better look...

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I love the groom's "hey, we did it" expression as the newly married couple retreats from the church...

Natalie booked me as her photograph while living in Washington D.C.  I met her and her Father when she was here on a break from school last year.  It was an honor to photograph her wedding and she did an incredible job planning it from such a long distance.

Natalie and Greg received their very own Mobile App with selections of photographs from their wedding day.  Fire up your mobile browser and click to the following link to add the Region Weddings sampler App to your iPhone, iPad or select Android device:

Download the free Region Weddings Mobile App:
http://moblalbum.com/124/gallery/1495  

Wedding at St. Ann's Church in Lansing, Illinois

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The beautiful bride above is Michele whose wedding to Nick took place at St. Ann's Church in Lansing Illinois.  It was quite warm for a June wedding, but a gorgeous day nonetheless.

This sneak peek will take us through the Getting Ready sessions at Vanis Salon and Day Spa in Schererville, Indiana all the way up to the reception at Chetniks Memorial Hall.

I can't say enough about Vanis and the staff there.  It's a great atmosphere to prepare for your wedding day with all of your bridesmaids.  Everything from the artwork on the walls to small details like the soft lighting in the makeup area made for a great experience.

Michele and her daughter Elizabeth got their hair done together.  Her little girl was somewhat scared of me at first, but as the day went on she warmed up and began posing for my camera with ease.  I like taking the little kid candids, but it always helps to gain their trust as you try to photograph them.

Wedding party formals took place before and after the ceremony at Centennial Park in Munster.  It's a popular destination with a few outdoor wedding going on when we arrived to take photographs.  I'm fond of the fun wedding party group photo on the golf carts that are assembled by the clubhouse.

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St. Ann's Church in Lansing, Illinois was the destination for this Catholic wedding ceremony.  It is located right on Ridge Road.

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Chetniks Memorial Hall is located on Route 30 just behind Illiana Speedway in Schererville.  The reception kicked off with the introduction of the twin junior bridesmaids mugging for the camera...

The bride and groom were awash in red light for their first dance of the evening.  Michele's husband Nick proved to be quite the king of the dance floor.  Stay tuned to this blog and the SBV Photography Facebook Page for images from Michele and Nick's June wedding.  Thanks for taking a look at this sneak peek!!

Ceremony at Nativity of Our Savior Catholic Church in Portage

Ryan and Sara are so made for each other!!  I could just feel the warmth while photographing their wedding ceremony at Nativity of Our Savior Catholic Church in Portage, Indiana.  I'm posting this sneak peek of wedding photos on their one week anniversary!!  Hopefully they are still in town to enjoy.

Sara's parents looked extremely proud while walking their daughter down the aisle as the bright sun shown outside behind them...

The sun rays were so powerful that they shined through the roof pillars of the church onto the bride and groom throughout their wedding ceremony.

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The father of the groom was one of the readers during the wedding at the Portage church as were many family and friends.

The sister and maid of honor to the bride was very helpful to my assistant and I throughout the day by tending to her dress as we eventually took outdoor photographs on this windy day.

Our first outdoor photo opportunity was right outside the Nativity of Our Savior Catholic Church next to the Virgin Mary sculpture.

Our next outdoor stop was the beach at Portage River Walk.  We battled with bright sun and wind, but prevailed.  thanks to the bride and groom for toughing it out.  Many more images from our beach session to come!!

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The reception took place at The Chateau Banquet Hall in Merrillville, Indiana.  The wedding party got out of the hot sun underneath the gazebo for an informal wedding photo...

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The mariachi band that kicked things off at the wedding reception was fantastic.  Many of them took turns serenading the bride and groom and entertaining the guests during dinner at The Chateau.

The bride and groom's family decorated the hall with some really unique decorations.  I will have photographs of the ice sculptures soon.  This wedding bell sits alone ready for guests to ring for the bride and groom to kiss.

Here Sara and Ryan toast each other just after the father of the bride gave an emotionally filled speech proclaiming great love and pride for his daughter.  One of the best reception speeches I have heard.  Great job Dad!!

Stay tuned and subscribe to this blog for more updates on Sara and Ryan's wedding at Nativity of Our Savior Catholic Church in Portage.  More updates will also appear on the SBV Photography Facebook Page as well.

The Shrine of Christ's Passion Wedding Photos

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For Stacey and Steve's Spring wedding we took our formal wedding photos at The Shrine of Christ's Passion in St. John, Indiana.  This internationally known tourist attraction sits just in front of the new St. John the Evangelist Church.  It's a unique location for wedding photos and we were able to give the appearance of a mountainous area as seen in the photo of our bride facing the large duplicate of Jesus' cross.

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One of the couple's favorite wedding photos was this casual stroll amongst the greenery of The Shrine of Christ's Passion walkway.

I knew that Stacey was a big fan of selective color shots from their engagement session the previous year.  The groom instinctively helped his bride hold onto the bouquet of flowers while they embraced closely together.

The wedding party patiently waited for our couple's session to end and we gathered them all around the circular drive of the spectacular new church.

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Here is another one of my favorites with the bride and groom at the bottom of the hilltop with the church illuminated in the background.

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Below is one of my designed wedding images.  This is one I call the Love Story Canvas Wrap.  It's 20x24 sized wall print that wraps around wood and comes with a saw tooth hanger for immediate hanging.  All of our packages are digital, but still nothing beats a spectacular looking wall print.

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Finally we have the wonderful couple waving to all of their family and friends in this vintage looking wedding photo.  To see more of Stacey and Steve's Catholic wedding ceremony, visit this post from a couple of weeks ago.