Wedding Ceremony in Grant Park at Cancer Survivors Garden

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Brittany and Shaun had a wonderful wedding ceremony surrounded by friends and family at the Cancer survivors Garden inside of Grant Park in Chicago.  It was a VERY sunny day that took the Fall chill out of the October air.  I will detail our entire day in chicago in subsequent posts, but today we will concentrate on the ceremony in a serene are of the city with the skyscrapers hovering over.  Click on the image above for a Windy City style collage of their wedding day.

I rode along with the girls in the limousine so I could catch the arrival of the bride and her entourage...

It was a bit of a walk to get to the Cancer Survivors Garden within Grant Park where the outdoor ceremony would be held.  My assistant and I are excellent at walking in reverse, so we were able to capture the long entrance into the park.  :)

You can see the cars traveling on Lake Shore Drive along with the museum campuses in the background as the bride enters with her father for a walk down the aisle as Shaun eagerly awaits....

It was a beautiful scene as Brittany and Shaun did a traditional pouring of sand with the Chicago skyscapers towering over them...

As they awaited to be pronounced man and wife, the happy couple exchanged rings as captured here in this close up photo...

The parents of the bride held hands tightly as their daughter became Mrs. Shaun Moran.

With the sun beating down upon them, friends and family looking on, Brittany and Shaun became man and wife in this quiet garden nestled within the Windy City.....

One of my favorite ceremony photos is this one of Brittany jumping for joy with a little help from her new husband just after being married...

The guests were armed with bubbles as the couple kissed during the recessional...

We immediately began taking family formals at the ceremony site in Grant Park.  We would soon be off via bus to tour the city and take many more shots with the bride and groom and the wedding party...

After family was photographed, I quickly took the couple off to a wooded area for this sun drenched kissing shot...

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The newly married couple take a stroll toward the "party bus" where their friends awaited...

Brittany says goodbye for now to family as she gets ready to take a tour around Chicago...

Our next posts will feature shots like the one below of the newlyweds in various spots around Chicago like Millennium Park and Osaka Garden.  Subscribe here to the Journal for an update.

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Brittany and Shaun's Windy City Wedding Sneak Peek

It appears as though Brittany our bride and her girls had a wedding movie marathon the night before her wedding to Shaun in Chicago.  I found this evidence upon arriving at her Getting Ready session in Schererville, Indiana.

I spent most of the morning taking candids of the girls getting their hair and make up done.  Just before the limo was to wisk us off to Grant Park for the ceremony, I photographed Brittany looking beautiful by the light of the hotel window in her wedding dress.

The ride to chicago was a fun one with me taking shots the entire way...

The girls were either very relaxed or just bracing themselves for sudden stops in Chicago traffic....

Soon we arrived at Grant Park and it was time for the bride to enter with her Father.  With cars weaving their way down Lake Shore Drive in the background, Brittany and her Dad made their way through the tent to the other side where Shaun awaited.

The bright Autumn sun shone down upon the bride and groom as they exchanged rings...

The first kiss was a joyous one with the newlyweds becoming one with friends and family looking on.

Pure happiness as Shaun give his bride a lift as she laughs - a great moment!!

We immediately started family photos at the ceremony site in Grant Park and eventually made our way through Millennium Park for some couple's shots...

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Having the Chicago skyline as a backdrop was a goal of the couple as they planned their windy city wedding.

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The wedding party eventually ended up back in Indiana for the reception at Villa Cesare.

These set of images are merely a sneak peek with many more to come from our whirlwind trip around the city of Chicago.  Subscribe here to the Journal or the Facebook Page to get an update when all of Brittany and Shaun's images are available for viewing.

White Hawk Country Club Wedding: Linda and Tom's Sneak Peek.

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As you will be able to see from this sneak peek of Linda and Tom's wedding at White Hawk Country Club, the sky was looking ominous and threatening rain.  I believe we had a few sprinkles during the ceremony, but that was about it.

Taking a look at the above image of the golf course and of the girls below, the early part of the day was a sunny and warm Fall day.  Linda and Tom are clearly in love so even if we had had hit some cold temps, they would have warmed the place up.  No doubt they are a great couple and I had a blast photographing their big day.

Linda has to be the quickest dressing bride I have ever met!!  We didn't do the traditional Getting Ready shots and within minutes of arriving she already had her dress on and was going over her decorations at White Hawk's clubhouse for the reception later that night.

As a fan of weeping willow trees, it didn't take much to get her to pose beneath the gorgeous one that sits upon the White Hawk golf course...

Tom, the groom was on the other side of the building practicing his fake getaway....

Linda's son and Tom's son both stood up in the wedding.  Here they are with their congratulatory cigars...

Linda's daughter and Tom's daughter were also part of the wedding party.  Here they are posing in front of the creek that runs through the White Hawk grounds...

White Hawk Country Club provides great scenery for an outdoor wedding.  Here the bride gives her son a kiss as they walk down the aisle together....

The gazebo has the golf course greenery as it's backdrop.  Here the wedding party listens to the officiator's words of wisdom...

Linda's deceased mom holds a special place in her heart and she played an important role in the ceremony proceedings with the couple paying their respects.

We rode a limousine style golf cart deeper into White Hawk for some wedding party photos on the greenery. The skies were quite dramatic at this point, but still no rain.

The White Hawk clubhouse is a wonderful spot for a reception with the built in steakhouse providing delicious food.  Here the newlyweds take their first dance together...

Many more images to come from Linda and Tom's gorgeous Fall wedding at White Hawk country club in Crown Point.  Subscribe to this Journal and "like" the Facebook page to receive updates and a link to the full galleries when all the images are ready for viewing.

Tara and Ken: Deep River Park Wedding Sneak Peek

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Earlier this year, Tara and Ken went to Chicago with me for their engagement session.  As we walked the streets of the windy city, I learned they are fun loving sports fans and are made to be together.  I knew their wedding would be a fun one and it was!!

This is just a sneak peek at their ceremony at Deep River Park and the reception at Our Lady of Consolation in Crown Point, Indiana.  The wedding took place just last week with many more images to follow at a later date.

The day started at the house of Tara's parents.  Just before I helped her Dad with the frustrating task of tying his tie (it's a miracle I got it right), we got this casual shot of the bride and her daughter Zoe.

The dress hung in waiting beneath the family creed in their lovely home...

This is a family that shows their love for each other all the time.  Here Tara's Dad gives her a kiss just before driving out to the ceremony.  Soon it would be time for mother and daughter to arrive for the ceremony at Deep River as well.

Sisters of the bride were all in a great mood as they arrived to the ceremony site in a stretch limousine with Tara's bouquet of flowers along for the ride as well...

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When the bride and her Father walked down the aisle, the heat index had risen dramatically.  Judge Judy Cantrell conducted a very brief, but poignant ceremony and soon guests were able to find some shade.

Underneath the Deep River gazebo, our groom Ken reads his vows to his soon to be wife....

One of the nice things about Deep River Park are the many great spots for formal shots all within walking distance....

The morning wedding left time for pictures in the park and a chance for the bride and groom to head home and take in a couple of innings of the Cubs game.  Soon it was reception time at Our Lady of Consolation in Crown Point, Indiana.

Here the groom is beaming during the first dance with the starlights of the hall in full glow...

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The reception hall was decorated throughout with many balloons.  It appears as though our bride Tara is trying to snatch this set of ballons from one of her guest...

The daughter of the bride certainly had fun as she spun away on the dance floor....

Look for many more images coming soon from Tara and Ken's summer wedding.  Subscribe to this Journal page via the RSS feed or follow on Facebook for more updates.