Crown Point Wedding Rehearsal

January 7, 2011 Steve Vansak

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Last night was Anthony and Beth's wedding rehearsal in Crown Point, Indiana at St. Matthias church. I don't always get to attend rehearsals, but I like to if possible, as I get to meet the family and of course, take a few test shots such as the one above.

This also gives me the opportunity to take in the ceremony and plot out my positions for various photos. The example above is a time in their ceremony when I will have to immediately head for the center aisle as they will be pronounced man and wife after this moment. I will want to be able to capture the first kiss and of course the procession out.

If I'm unable to attend because of a scheduling conflict, I will go over things with the officiator beforehand and of course the bride and groom.

When this post is published I will be already covering Beth and Anthony's big day. We will start with Getting Ready shots in Lowell, Indiana with Beth, her bridesmaids and mom. Before the ceremony, my assistant and I will track down the groom for formals at St. Matthias. Then it will be time for some outdoor winter shots in the downtown Square of Crown Point and then the reception at Avalon Manor in Merrillville.

If you see a bride and groom walking down Main St., be sure to honk and yell congratulations to Beth and Anthony!!

Heather and Flo's Autumn Wedding Pt. 1

October 20, 2010 Steve Vansak

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I always say that it's no big deal if it rains because we will just make the wedding images into artsy black and whites or get some great color as wet foliage tends to photograph well after getting wet. That being said, no one is going to argue with an 85 degree day in October in Northwest Indiana!! That is exactly what we got for Heather and Flo's Outdoor Wedding.

This week I will give you highlights with some commentary, starting today with the Getting Ready sessions at Accents on 45th in Highland, Indiana.

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It was quite crowded that Saturday morning with Heather's girls and regular customers. At one point I started to photograph someone getting their hair done when Heather had to stop me as this was not one of her gang. Thanks Heather!!

Heather's daughter was the flower girl who was ready to pose in the morning, but by later afternoon she was about done with me - photographer guy. Great job Mackenzie!!

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Below is a shot of Heather and her little sister getting some reading in before make up...

A bride contemplating the day ahead or hiding from the paparazzi?

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Next stop was her Aunt's house in Hobart, a two minute drive from the ceremony site at the bandshell at Lake George. Here is a quick shot of the dress just before we made our way to the ceremony site.

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To see Heather's complete gallery of Getting Ready shots, please visit her full gallery right here.

Stay tuned for the next segment covering the Ceremony itself.

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Chris & Elise: Wedding At Valparaiso University Pt.2

September 8, 2010 Steve Vansak

Elise just recently thanked me for calming her nerves when we were in her mom's kitchen for the above shot. No problem. Things were getting a little nerve wracking as there was a snafu at the hair salon and the limo snafu was just beginning. Well, none of that is going stop a beautiful bride!!

When I arrived she was still at the hair salon so I got some shots of her bridesmaids while they were getting ready. This was cool as they got to know me a little bit and I'm sure that helped for shots later on in the day.

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Soon, Elise and her mom Nancy arrived and the transformation began...

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Some of my favorite images from this getting ready session are the simple portraits we did in their living room of Elise with each of her bridesmaids and her Mom and Dad. Here's a sampling...

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A proud Father...

Uh oh, shouldn't that limo have arrived by now!!

Almost time to take off to see her future husband who is waiting at the Chapel of the Resurrection at Valparaiso University.

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Chris and Elise wanted me to capture them seeing each other for the first time dressed to become man and wife. We had Chris sequestered on the side of the building while Elise called to let me know she had arrived (via neighbor's cars, hence the "limo snafu").

No posing here at all. These guys are just naturals!!

It's almost ceremony time and Elise's girls whisk her away as Chris escapes back into the church to get mic'd up.

The ushers are in place, it must be time.

Tune in tomorrow for a play by play of the ceremony!!

Heather and Gordon: Hobart, Indiana Wedding

July 13, 2010 Steve Vansak

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Gordon and Heather had a June wedding at Grace Lutheran in Hobart, Indiana. It's the beautiful white church on Route 51 by the hospital. Click on the image below for a large view.

Hanging out with Heather and Holly and Kavita before the ceremony was a lot of fun. Getting to know them at this time made us all more comfortable and we were able to get natural looking shots for the rest of the day.

While Heather and the girls were getting ready doing their thing, I'd occasionally get kicked out of the room. Time to grab some groomsmen for some tough guy shots.

One of my favorites of the guys...

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Right before the ceremony began I took my place in the designated areas as requested by Pastor Frederick. In this case, behind the last pew and in the balcony. Time to break out the "wildlife lens".