And the results are in…. I photographed 11 Chicago area weddings in September. Wedding photography locations included Chicago’s Millenium Park, Navy Pier, Olive Park, Swissotel, Michigan Avenue, OakBrook Hyatt Lodge at McDonalds, Wheaton’s Cantigny Park, St. Charles Pheasant Run Resort, Rolling Meadows’ Meadows Club, the Westin Lombard Yorktown Center, Morton Arboretum among others. 17,469 images later, here’s a quick slideshow of some of my favorites……
I love taking bridal parties to the Morton Arboretum for their wedding pictures. Last year I went there with Carrie & Brian for their wedding, as well as with Erin & Chris for their engagement pictures…..and this past weekend I was back there with Amber & Shaun. Every bride wants to know what’s going to happen to their wedding pictures if it rains. Well Friday it rains, and while every bride wants brilliant sunshine for their photographs, you have to play the cards you’re dealt and figure out a way to make cool pictures regardless of the weather……..
Amber’s a dentist, and I thought this was a really cool idea for a wedding reception favor for her guests……
On Saturday night I posted THIS to my twitter feed to see if anyone knew what it is and/or does. Well since nobody guessed correctly….the image below is what comes out of this goofy looking camera rig. It’s a 360 degree image from Mike & Stacie’s wedding reception. Click your mouse on the image, then move the mouse up, down, left and right to pan the image in a 360 circle!
However fast forward a few months and who would’ve thought that sending a drink to a young lady across the bar at Shenanigan’s House of Beer on Division St. would lead to a wedding at Chicago’s Navy Pier Crystal Gardens. Here’s a few pictures from their big day!
It happens at every wedding at Navy Pier’s Crystal Gardens…the kids just can’t resist the jumping water display!
This was a bit different, but very cool…..Rob didn’t want to see Katie until the very last minute, so during the procession, he stood with his back to the aisle, only turning around just as Katy and her Mom finished walking up.
They wanted a photograph with the ferris wheel in the background….luckly Olive Park provided this angle!
Rob’s best man absolutely skewered the groom with his toast/speech. Rob, his family and his groomsmen are all from London, so “Whitey” felt the need to “translate” a lot of his speech for the American Yanks in attendance. For those of you who weren’t there, here’s a quick re-cap:
Yanks = Americans
Gents = Mens Bathroom
Cupboard = Closet
Arse = Ass
Pissed = Drunk
“Did a Maths” = “Majored in Mathematics”
This was definitely one of the more unique wedding reception entrances I’ve seen. Luckily the Westin Lombard has an enormous ballroom which can accomodate a backdrop like this one for a grand entrance!
The amazing decor which transformed the Westin Hotel Lombard for their wedding reception was provided by Yanni Design Studio of Glenview. Pretty easy to make a good photography with this much effort being put into the overall look of the wedding. Be sure to keep an eye on the WEtv network because Rachel & Constantine’s wedding is soon to be featured on the show Platinum Weddings!
Westin Lombard Yorktown
70 Yorktown Shopping Center
Lombard, Il.60148
(630) 719-8000
Yanni Design Studio
4316 Regency Dr
Glenview, IL. 60025
847-827-8180
So wedding #2 from last weekend found me taking photographs of Charlie & Glenn. The 11am ceremony time at Chicago’s Holy Name Cathedral sounds ridiculously early, however the payoff is having over 4 hours to ride around Chicago with the bridal party taking pictures between the wedding ceremony and their reception at the Swissotel Chicago. Makes for a long day, but more than worth it when it comes to the pictures!
Charlie couldn’t have been more excited to hop in the cab and head over to Holy Name for their wedding ceremony!
Some of the locations we used for their wedding pictures were (in no particular order)…Navy Pier, Olive Park, Chicago’s Millenium Park, the Chicago Museum Campus, and of course, the Swissotel Chicago.
Swissotel Chicago
323 E. Wacker Drive
Chicago, Il. 60601
312-565-0565
Holy Name Cathedral
730 N. Wabash Ave
Chicago, IL. 60611
312-787-8040
This was the first wedding I took pictures at the Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but this cool re-creation of New Orleans’ Bourbon Street offered some pretty sweet opportunities for portrait images…..(check out the next to last one below…..)
I find it odd that people always say stuff like “here comes the paparazzi photographer” when they see me walk in to the ceremony area…..but then you see stuff like this. Excuse me…..Mr. Pot…this is Mr. Kettle…..guess what…you’re black!
Brides always worry about crying when they first see their fiance on their wedding day….but it’s always the speech by the maid-of-honor that turns on the waterworks. I don’t know exactly what Grace’s MOH said, but it made for a pretty emotional picture.
Pheasant Run Resort
4051 East Main St.
St. Charles, Il. 60174
800-474-3272
I shot Sarah & Arrick’s wedding engagement images back in June at Millenium Park in Chicago. Well this past weekend they celebrated their wedding and wedding reception at Wheaton’s Cantigny Park. Here’s a few photographs from their day…….
I’ll admit that I didn’t plan this picture at all. It just worked out that the image of their reflection showed up in the fireplace glass during their first dance! I love this picture of Sarah watching her Dad signing their Ketubah during their wedding ceremony. After Sarah and Arrick signed, and just as her Dad began to sign his name, she reached over and grabbed onto Arrick. Holding on to her new husband while watching her father provide his approval with his signature on a traditional marriage document.
Cantigny Park
1s151 Winfield Road
Wheaton, Il. 60189
So here’s the REAL wedding pictures from Amy & Steve’s wedding at The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s Rather than post a long line of images…I went the slideshow route on this one….Take a look below the two “normal” pictures…..
Jack came home from his late summer vacation last night, so in order to give Mom a break for a bit, we went out for ice cream! MMMMMMMMMmmmmmm, Thin Mint Blizzard from Dairy Queen
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