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Green Grove Gardens Wedding Photographers: Steph & Will

Sparks ignite a Blaze (hehe) during this colorful wedding uniting two fun-loving soccer coaches!  Be prepared to see: sparks flying, a post-it prank, an entire Blaze soccer team and Steph & Will’s spirits soaring on the clouds:
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Stephanie and Will came to me looking for photos that would be creative, unique and capture their personal story.    They loved the vibrant colors and landscape of Green Grove Gardens and hoped I could capture that as well.
Steph shared, “We loved working with you guys on our wedding day! We had a blast, it was so much fun. We got to experience you unique vision first hand– you see things in such a different way!  We loved it!”
I showed them the back of the camera after taking the shot above and Steph was blown away, she said, “Woah here I was picturing the porch, but this is all about the sky!”  I brought the sky into the shot of the bridesmaids’ dresses as well as the venue:
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Steph’s dress is incredibly special, what a great idea:
She explained, “After searching for the perfect dress at multiple boutiques, I finally found “the one” at FairyTale Brides in Rockville. The awesome part about this shop is the dresses are all donated and the profits are used to support local charity organizations. My hope is that when I donate my dress back to the shop, I can help make an impact.”
I love capturing reflections, it really adds to the mood…
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Will shared, “I love Steph’s sense of humor, it is unique like mine. I love her drive and dedication. She puts 120 percent into everything she does.”
I have several portraits of Steph but this is my favorite, it gives you a feel for her high-energy, driven nature as well as her vibrant blue eyes…
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The day was very windy, stormy actually– we watched a storms passed over us throughout the wedding day.
The wind was so intense that capturing a portrait of the bridesmaids without their hair covering their faces was a real challenge!
I was able to block most of the wind with this tree and have the even light that I wanted here:
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Steph shared, “I put together a special gift for my parents, frames that had pictures of me and each of my parents throughout the years with a hand written note in the middle. I wanted to thank them for all they have done for me and let them know how truly blessed I am to call them Mom and Dad.”
The gift brought Steph’s father to tears– here he wipes away a single tear…
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While the women were busy with hair, make-up and dresses, the men played some soccer outside.  Will was just passed the ball in this shot.
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Will’s friends are just as active an enthusiastic as he and Steph are.
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Haha, the high-energy and enthusiasm continued as Will went to straighten up in his groom’s room and was assaulted by WAM post-it notes!
Steph shared, “WAM started as a prank on my younger sister, Amy. She was in college at the time and we covered her entire dorm room in post-it notes with the word WAM on it. The funniest part was we put some in her printer paper and she actually turned her final college essay in to her professor with a WAM on it. Needless to say, she was super embarrassed and has been trying to get revenge. She WAMMed Will’s truck and it has been going on ever since. We thought we took the crown by getting her and Andy on seats at their wedding last year, but we were in for a surprise.”
If you look closely you might be able to see a “Ginger Snap WAM,” haha…
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Will sat down and began to read a letter that Steph wrote for him to read before the ceremony.  His eyes were filled with tears of joy…
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Steph shared, “We were best friends who do everything together. I fell in love with his easy going and laid back personality. He always knows how to make me smile :). ”
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A classic portrait of the handsome groomsmen…
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Wedding guests arrived and I was pleasantly surprised to see so many children in attendance!
When I mentioned it to Steph she said, “Family is super important to both of us.  We wanted everyone to be a part of our special day!”
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Groomsmen escorted bridesmaids down a long winding path…
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Stephanie’s father escorted her down the same path.  Here she beams at Will.
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Will shared, “When I first saw her on the wedding day, I just couldn’t believe how beautiful she looked and how lucky I am.”
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I love all the layers and framing in this next photo…
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It is my goal to have couples be able to re-live their wedding day for years to come through their wedding photos.  I try to capture different perspectives of the same scene, adding to the overall experience.
Throughout the day, I switch lenses and settings frequently to obtain different vantage points and looks during a ceremony.  Here I am standing in the exact same location but using a different lens, different settings and a different angle:
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As Steph listens to the pastor’s words, the wind lifted a single tendril of her blonde curls.  Sometimes it is the little things…
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Another perspective, this time a close-up view of Will’s wedding band doing on and smiles all around:
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Husband and Wife!
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While I spend most of my day capturing natural, candid moments as they happen, I do make sure to give couples a wide variety of photos– some scenic, others details, others more traditional portraits:
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This was Steph and Will’s favorite part of the day….
Steph shared, “Our favorite time during our wedding day was the downtime we had to spend alone for our wedding photos.  We were able to really enjoy those moments together and take in all of the excitement from the day!  We loved it!”
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Steph shared about why their relationship is so natural, “We work well together because we balance each other out and have so much in common. We love to go hiking, biking, snowboarding, and just about anything outdoors.”
She continued, “We spent our honeymoon in Hawaii for two weeks and did very little relaxing between the 100+ miles of hiking, zip lining, snorkeling with turtles, downhill biking, surfing and even rappelling waterfalls. Despite having to take a vacation from the vacation, we wouldn’t have it any other way.”
The water and vibrant colors in this next shot almost said “Hawaii” to me…
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I love stretching my cameras ability and playing with some different techniques.  Here I focused on the water and allowed Steph and Will to blue in the background…
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Speaking of blurring, I used a motion blue technique here to capture the happy couple as they sped off, but this image makes me laugh out loud, because of my husband (and assistant) Kris’ expression as he drives the golf cart!  He is a man on a mission, face to the wind, haha!
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Steph commented, “Not many people say they went top speed in a golf cart on their wedding day!  He had so much fun :).”
This photo is simple, but so “them” that that I couldn’t help but post…
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On the drive in I noticed a vibrant, golden field and knew that if they were up for it and we had access to a golf cart that I would love to take them there.
It was so beautiful, but Steph shared, “Nothing that I would have noticed or even considered for photos.”
Fields are pretty common in this part of the country, so I think this is a perfect location for their story…
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They shared, “In order to make our day truly reflect us, we chose to wear sambas. Since soccer has been such a big part of our relationship, from meeting through futsal to playing on indoor/tournament teams together to now coaching two teams together, we thought it only seemed appropriate.”
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Steph shared, “Will and I have shared so many of life’s “firsts” from college graduations to buying a house to getting two pups and I know there are still many more to come. I am so looking forward to experiencing life together and seeing what God has in store for us.”
It seemed so fitting with her tattoo…
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Steph said, “We got to experience your unique vision firsthand when we were driving in the golf cart up to the waterfall. Will and I were thinking how we could get some perfect pictures with the water behind us. Meanwhile, you were thinking, “Wow this greenhouse is awesome” and immediately made a sharp turn to take some cool shots that we never would have thought of. It was great! We loved it.  We can’t wait to see how all of your pictures turn out!”
Green Grove Gardens is known for the sheer volume of colorful flowers and when we turned the corner I was able to see the origin of that vibrant landscaping!   For me there is something symbolic going on here.  You can see the stark black and white scene where all of those colorful flowers surrounding their ceremony space began, as they start their own beginning together.  I like the idea of it…
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Another concept that is a little outside of the box…
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When we arrived back at cocktail hour, the guests were playing some games…
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Here are a few of the reception details including a cake topper personalized for Will and Steph.  Main Street Sweets did an excellent job on their cake!
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I love capturing natural moments like this.  You are able to see so many supportive wedding guests in their natural element:
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Their first dance… I have a few different perspectives of this, but this one, showing all of the chandeliers is my favorite:
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Cake smash…
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Steph’s sister, Mandy was the official graphic designer for the wedding.  She created so many beautiful elements!
Steph shared, “My older sister, Mandy, was the graphic designer behind the whole wedding. She created the logo, designed all the save the dates, invites, signage, and made everything look super unique and awesome :)”
Here you can see the logo on the dance floor…
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The children were the first to hit the dance floor…
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Everyone else soon followed thanks to Matt Shew of Shew-sical Entertainment
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At one point the ladies from the soccer team that Steph and Will coach surrounded them on the dance floor and shared a speech, explaining just how much the coaches mean to the team…
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Steph shared, “Since we got engaged, the girls on the team have been begging to come to the wedding. They wanted to know every detail: what the color scheme was, what my dress looked like, who the best man was, if they could be all be bridesmaids, etc!”
She continued, “The previous season, the girls would ask religiously if they could come to the wedding so it was near the end of the season and Will made a bet with them. He put the ball in their court. If they won the game, they could come to their wedding. The game was tied at 1-1 until about the last two minutes. They scored off a header from a corner kick to win the game and you would have thought the girls just won the World Cup. They were ecstatic. They even did a team cheer at the end saying “Blaze to the wedding”.”
“I had no idea that the girls wrote a speech for the wedding so when they gave it at the reception, it did nearly bring a tear to my eye. I have been coaching these girls since the academy days so it has been an amazing experience watching them grow and develop not only as players, but as people. I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
green-grove-gardens-wedding-photographers-creative-best-colorful-fun-unique-greencastle-pa-41The bouquet and garter toss was eventful to say the least.  Here are both items in mid-air!
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Time for those sparks to fly!!!
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I like how the fountain is illuminated in the background:
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After all the guests were gathering their belongings and heading out, Steph and Will took a moment to light a sparkler together…
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Weddings bands, together forever!
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Steph and Will thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your beautiful wedding day!  I hope that these photographs are just the sort or fun, unique, creative images that you were hoping for and that they allow you to cherish this day for many years to come!

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