We love when our weddings are featured in magazines that we adore. Ashley and Ari's wedding at the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in Chicago was full of color which makes a beautiful feature for the Fall/Winter 2014 issue of The Knot Chicago. Thank you Rebecca Crumley for selecting our beautiful couple's wedding. We are truly honored to have it featured in The Knot magazine and I know their families are beyond excited too!

You can see Ashley and Ari's blog post featuring many photos from their wedding here.

This is long overdue, I'm not sure where the time goes! Lauren and Stephen's wedding at The Standard Club. Their wedding was simply amazing with the most beautiful details planned by Reva Nathan & Associates.

They are such a fun couple beginning with their engagement session with their Chicago Blackhawks jerseys in the rain! Their wedding was just as much fun with all the love in the room surrounding them. Heffernan Morgan Ronsley did a fabulous job bringing their dream wedding to life!

From the lighting by Frost Chicago to the table linens by BBJ Linens and the entertainment by Rendezvous Music there wasn't a detailed missed. I really loved that Lauren and Stephen had an artist, Diane Bronstein, sketch a scene from their ceremony and display it at the reception. Perfection!

I hope that you enjoy the photos that Bob and our 2nd shooter, Ben Pancoast captured at their wedding! Ben, you did an amazing job helping Bob, thank you!

Lauren and Stephen, thank you for inviting us in to capture your wedding day. It was magical. Bob and I wish you a lifetime of happiness together!

xoxox!

~ Dawn

I knew the minute we met with Sara and Ross that they were a perfect fit for us… they are so incredibly sweet! That is just one of the things we look for when meeting with potential couples. Not only do we need to be a good fit for them but they need to be a good fit for us as well. The photographer is the one vendor, besides the event planner, that is going to be with the couple all day, there needs to be a wonderful connection… and there definitely was!

Truly, Sara and Ross are just an amazing couple with a fantastic love for each other. Sara is gorgeous and she has a heart of gold. You can tell in every single photo that she loves life and is so in love with Ross. It makes me smile…. big time!

Ever since Sara was a little girl, she knew she wanted to get married at The Standard Club. You're always in good hands with Jill Quinn and Steve Thompson. It's one of my favorite venues in Chicago! Every wedding is so different there. The hardwood floors are gorgeous, not to mention the hanging crystal chandeliers make the room so dreamy! When Sara and Ross started getting serious, his parents knew they wanted to get married there, so they became members of the club. How sweet is that?

Sara and Ross wanted their wedding to feel like a secret garden with the color scheme being white, blush, and rose gold. And their event planner, Stacy Saltzman of So Stacy along with Tom Kehoe of Kehoe Designs did an amazing job. They completely transformed the room with 4 huge rose-gold gilded cherry blossom trees flanking the aisle. Many different shaped and sized candles down the aisle. The fabric chuppah was hanging from the ceiling and covered in white and blush flowers… a perfect secret garden feel. I love that Sara's dad came up with the idea of having all the male guests wear a boutonniere. Every place setting adorned a flower. They were laid on top of mirrored tables so the reflection would create a lush, romantic feel. Sara said she LOVED including all the men and making them feel special because they are so often a forgotten guest.

Sara wore a beautiful trumpet style Pnina Tournai gown with Swarovski crystals covering the bodice. She purchased her gown at Kleinfield Bridal boutique in NYC, which is you know anything about Mara Urshel and Ronnie Rothstein who own the store, you would want to shop there too! Sara wore a "Broadway" veil Toni Federici with Swarovski crystals as well. And of course she wore a gorgeous pair of Jimmy Choo shoes!

We hope you enjoy the images from their wedding. You can feel the love Sara and Ross have for each other, it's just beautiful. And of course, having amazing entertainment like the Larry King Orchestra to keep the dance floor packed all night long is a must.

Enjoy!!!

~ Dawn

Vince Hart from Kehoe Designs recalls that Tracy and Chris wanted the inspiration from their wedding to come from Tracy's love of fashion, themed around a winter wonderland and the feeling of being in a beautiful glass atrium with the snow falling outside. And wouldn't you know it? It snowed all day and night creating a true magical winter wonderland in Chicago.

What bride doesn't LOVE Inside Weddings magazine? And if you haven't already, you can subscribe to it here. Thank you Walt and Art at Inside Weddings for featuring another one of our beautiful weddings! For brides looking for inspiration, this is the magazine to buy!

It's always an honor to be featured in one of the BEST wedding magazines in the country! Renee and Kevin's wedding was absolutely and simply wonderful. This was our first time photographing a wedding at the incredible Venue Six10. It is perfect venue for gourmet dining and artful entertaining! It was also our first time working with working with Chrissy Magliano at Big City Bride. She was a so comforting. Chrissy has such a calm presence and made the day flow effortlessly. We look forward to working with them a lot this year and feel so blessed to do so!

Wishing you all a wonderful Spring season!!! Being in Chicago, it's amazing to have a 60 degree day today!

xoxoxo!

~ Dawn

Donte knew after his first official date with Valerie at the Irish pub, Dublins downtown Chicago, but Valerie wanted to make sure he was the real deal. A few months later, he unexpectedly arrived an hour early to a gallery opening where one of her photos was being displayed, and spent the whole evening getting to know her friends and supporting her passion for art, she knew this was a man she could spend the rest of her life with. And six months into their relationship, they went ring shopping! They were engaged 11 months before they wed.

Valerie was excited to use her creative background to plan their wedding right down to the smallest of details. She did an amazing job! We, of course, love that they both have an appreciation for photography! Their super sweet and chic wedding was at Praire Production in the West Loop of Chicago which is a commercial photography space with a modern vibe. The large windows bring is some fantastic light!

The day began with Valerie and her girls getting ready at Waldorf Astoria and Donte and his boys getting ready at Sofitel. Their first look was just beautiful… one of my favorites. They headed to the classic wing of The Art Institue of Chicago for a sweet photo walk. And the bridal party portraits were all taken at Olive Park.

Valerie and Donte jetted off to Paris, France on their honeymoon! What a dream!!!! Bob and I love you both and wish you a lifetime of happiness!!!

xx oo,

~ Dawn

This was our first time photographing a wedding at the incredible Venue Six10. It is perfect venue for gourmet dining and artful entertaining! The day began with Renee and her girls getting ready at the Renaissance Blackstone Hotel Chicago Hotel while Kevin and his boys prepped for the big day at the Chicago Hilton & Towers.

Renee wore a beautiful Amsale strapless trumpet style gown made of silk razmir in diamond which has a modern flare. The back of the gown has a couture bow with a moderate train. The veil and hair piece are both from the Toni Federici line, all purchased at Belle Vie Bridal Couture on Oak Street, in Chicago. Renee's gorgeous cobalt blue glitter shoes areJimmy Choo, of course! She wore a statement necklace and simple earrings from Left Bank Jewelers.

Renee did a first look with her dad and it was incredible, so touching! It's always wonderful to see the love parents have for their children, especially on their wedding day! After Renee and Kevin's first look they went for a walk, along with their bridal party, to Grant Park, and then to the Adler Planetarium and Soldier Field where we photographed them during their engagement session.

Working with Chrissy Magliano at Big City Bride was a so comforting. Chrissy has such a calm presence and made the day flow effortlessly. We look forward to working with them a lot this year and feel so blessed to do so!

Renee and Kevin…. thank you so very much for trusting us with your wedding day! It was an amazing wedding and we are thrilled to have been part of your special day! And thank you to our lovely and dear friend, Jenn Gaudreau for second shooting with Bob. We love you so much!

Big hugs!!!

~ Dawn and Bob

Ashley and Ari are one of our most fun couples! They are just crazy in love and it's so obvious by the way they look at each other. One minute they can be making silly faces and then the next minute they are tearing up… it's just so . dang. adorable!

I can't begin to tell you how blessed we feel to have this family in our lives. Last year we photographed Ashley's sister, Danielle and her husband's wedding. They really are polar opposites, but the one thing they have in common is an incredible mom, Andie. I've never met a mom more involved and more in love with her kids. She is really a wonderful woman and I fell in love with her the first time I met her at Jim Dillbeck's office from Hefferman Morgan Ronsley, who designed both Ashley and Danielle's weddings. Andie is crazy in love with her dogs and that makes me crazy in love with her… well for many more reasons than that!

Ashley and Ari's wedding all took place at the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in Chicago. This venue is so sweet! Working with Jim Dillbeck at Heffernan Morgan Ronsley is always a treat! He is a gentle soul and just a pure gentleman.

And of course, I love that Ashley and Ari included their puppy, Rebbe, into their first look in the serenity rock garden… so cute!!! It had to be one of our most favorite first looks ever, just filled with genuine emotion! I just love that Ari sheds a tear when he gets emotional. They are so cute together. I absolutely love this wedding, the fall colors were amazing! The dance floor was wrapped in a steel gray gloss covering with their monogram in orange. Love it!

And now that they have announced there is a bun in the oven, we can't wait to do a maternity session with them… and then of course, photograph the newest addition to their family! Move over Rebbe, there's a new sheriff coming to town!

Ashley and Ari…. what can I say… Bob and I adore you both. We are so excited for what the future holds for you. And can't wait to meet baby Silver!

A huge "shout out" to our sweet friend and second shooter, Jenn Gaudreau. We love you so much! You are amazing girlie!

Much love!

~ Dawn and Bob

We met our sweet friend, Erin, at one of our workshops a few years ago. She's a photographer too! It's always an honor when another photographer asks you to photograph their wedding. When she called to say that her fiancé, had popped the question, it was a no brainer… YES! We'd love to photograph your wedding. We had a blast at their engagement session as they are huge Chicago Blackhawk fans. And they incorporated their love for their favorite hockey team into their wedding too! Kevin surprised Erin with jerseys! So fun! I'll never forget how excited Erin was when she booked her wedding at Olympia Fields Country Club. It's beautiful and they had an amazing wedding! We can't thank Angie Garbot for shooting with Bob!!! She rocked it right alongside him!

When you open your email and read a love note like this, it's the same feeling when your kids bakes you your favorite cookies just for you!

"OMG, I LOVE them, we LOVE them! Honestly, couldn't have asked for more perfect photos. Of course the ones of me and Kevin I love, that's a given, but the ones with my dad, are priceless. We always dance at weddings, but of course they are never the photos you actually want. The ones of my dad and I dancing (both first dance and fast dance and then our first look), I need to make him a storyboard of that! My dad is not much of a smiler, since he hates his smile, and Bob caught him with so many great ones. The ones with my aunts while I was getting dressed, amazing. My dogs, perfection!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for capturing my wedding so perfectly! It's so hard being a wedding photographer and not being in control at your wedding of knowing who caught what moment, and making sure your vendors catch the right moments, well, I trusted Bob to capture my dad perfectly, and he exceeded that times 100. I'm not just saying thing because I've grown into a friendship & bond with you both, but truthfully, I couldn't love my wedding photos anymore."

Erin & Kevin love you both and wish you both a lifetime of happiness…!!!

xoxox!

~ Dawn & Bob

It's the BIG day, the 2nd part of our Real Wedding Workshop... AND Jenni and Stevn's wedding! They've planned for this day for over a year. I'm sure when Jenni was growing up she never imagined she would have 18 photographers photographing her on this very special day in her life. Talk about crazy! And crazy fun it was! Her and her bridesmaids were amazing together. You could feel the love they all have for each other. They were up for anything and they always had great fun in front of the cameras. And Stevn and his guys were always whooping it up for the cameras as well. Jenni's Amsale gown was stunning! I love the capped sleeves and it fit her tiny shape perfectly! She wore her mother's veil which was very sentimental to her. Everything from the flowers, to the hair and makeup, to the amazing pair of Christian Louboutin shoes that Stevn gave his bride... yes please!!!

The love between Jenni and her daddy is priceless. The moment before he walked her down the aisle, shedding a few tears, and then breaking out in dance with all the bridesmaids after a private prayer. It was just perfect. The love of these two families joining together was such a blessing. Hugs from the grandmothers were something I will never forget. All in all, I would say it was a perfect wedding!

Here's part 1 of 2 of their wedding day! Bob and I hope that you enjoy looking through all their wedding photos!!! Be ready for part 2 and Day 3 of the workshop...

xoxox!

~ Dawn and Bob