A romantic, fairy tale wedding with so many unique twists– a dress designed for Meghan Markle, s’mores, a birthday surprise, a sweet food truck and how about this incredible sunset!?!?
Jen shared, “Hiring you to be our wedding photographer was the first and easiest decision we made when beginning to plan our wedding.”
Tyler explained, “Jen’s jaw literally dropped when she first started looking at your work. She was impressed by the high quality images, all the candid moments and emotion. It was at that point that we both knew we needed to make you our wedding photographer.”
Jen continued, “You really took the time to get to know us and are caring, incredibly talented and personable. Tyler and I are not the most photogenic people but you really made us feel comfortable, so our personalities really came out on camera. Kris was also fantastic. He made all the guys feel so comfortable. Watching you capture *every moment* throughout the night, made me appreciate your talents even more. These photos will allow us to relive our wedding day for years to come, and we are excited for that!”
Wow– her dress and the grounds of Historic Acres— I found a bird’s eye view and used a tilt shift technique for this shot– I love the vibrant blues and greens in this shot:
I love to play with perspective– lunch is served, guys!
Jen shared, “One thing that was really important to me was to have all my best friends standing by me on my wedding day. For me that meant including two brides men. We had such a great time together and they brought a lot of fun into the mix!”
Jen shared, “My family has always been super close. It sounds silly but they really are my best friends. Having my mom help dress me was so important to me because she is the most loving and caring person. She has been there for me through it all and this is no different. I have always looked up to her and she will never truly know how amazing she is as a mother.”
Tyler shared, “I knew Jen was the one from the very beginning. She is beautiful, loving and always has a crazy idea that I end up supporting her with. Jen is ‘My Person’– she gets me, she picks me up when I’m down and gives me a reason to live life fully each and every day. I am so happy to call her my WIFE!”
Yes, this was a dress designed for real-life princess, Meghan Markle!
Jen explained, “My dress was one of my favorite parts of the wedding! I knew I wanted a white dress, but we didn’t want a cookie cutter wedding so I needed a dress that was a little different. After putting on my dress for the first time I knew this was the dress for me. Later I found out the dress I chose was Hayley Paige and was designed for Meghan Markle! While Meghan ultimately chose a different dress, I’m so glad this was designed, because it was the most perfect dress for me!”
Jen shared, “I have always been a daddy’s girl and been super close with my dad, even when he gives tough love. I knew I wanted this special moment with him. I did not realize how emotional it was going to be, but my love for my dad will always be special.”
Aww happy tears…
She continued, “My dad taught me to value myself and he set the standards high, but he taught me to never settle for less. I will forever be his little girl and he will forever be my greatest hero.”
I loved at Jen’s mom was in the room too soaking up the moment. I captured several photos of Jen and her dad, but for this one, I turned my focus to Jen’s mom, teary eyed and beaming.”
First look with the bridal party… I love her brother’s reaction (left bottom corner)
Jen smiled, “Growing up my brother and I were very different– we still are, but somehow we just click. I’m so happy he was by my side all day. He has always been my biggest cheerleader. We don’t say it often, but he is the best big brother and I couldn’t ask for a better brother to love.”
Strike a pose, Vogue…
TK’s turn in the spotlight. While I was photographing Jen, my husband, and fellow photographer, Kris, was photographing the groom and groomsmen.
Jen shared, “Tyler is the most kind, loving, and patient person I know. From the day I met TK we just clicked. Conversation flowed and sparks flew. He has every quality I could have ever dreamed or wished for in a man. He is truthful, understanding, compassionate, selflessness, and supportive. He shows me his love for me every day and is truly my best friend.”
GQ called, they want their models back 😉
Tyler is wild! He was like, hey you guys wanna lift me up? He called me over so Kris and I would both be there to catch whatever transpired, haha!
Tyler laughed, “Being able to trust your friends is important in any friendship and I was thankful to have these guys there to support me!”
Everyone was dying to see Jen and Tk’s first look. Jen and Tyler wanted them to be there, but also to have a private moment.
I positioned them so both could happen. Tyler waited behind the weeping willows, as Jen processed down the long staircase…
Tyler smiled, “When I first saw Jen in her elegant dress my jaw dropped, I tried to keep it together for the photos, haha, but wow, she was absolutely stunning!”
I have so many photos of their first look, but their expressions in this shot are so precious…
He continued, “I couldn’t have imagined a more beautiful bride! She brought tears to my eyes and gave me the biggest smile that I couldn’t wipe off for the rest of the night. She looked like she stepped right out of a magazine. That on top of who she is as a person! I’m a lucky man.”
Jen shared, “Getting to see Tyler for the first time on my wedding day brought back the same giddy feeling I had when I first met Tyler. Once Tyler turned around all my nerves and excitement disappeared and I just had a sense of comfort knowing this was happening and I will be marrying the man of my dreams.”
Jen shared, “Hershey will now forever be a special place to us we loved the idea of getting our bridal party together for a Hershey trolley ride.”
Tyler added “The trolley was a fun way for our bridal party to all get together and connect.”
Tyler smiled, “My favorite part of the wedding day was seeing how happy Jen was. Even with the giant monsoon that rolled through just hours before the ceremony, Jen never let it phase her. She enjoyed every moment!”
Jen added, “Everything worked out so perfectly! The storm passed and we were still able to have the ceremony outside!”
I have to add that Historic Acres of Hershey was great with this… there are so many venues that make you decide indoors or out way ahead of time even if there is rain on the radar let alone a deluge that drenches everything. I need to mention I was impressed with their flexibility. 🙂
I love capturing truly candid moment like this…
Jen shared, “For our décor we were really going for that beautiful, romantic look many of the signs were handmade. Jen still can’t get over the flowers and how beautiful they all were.”
Jen laughed, “When my dad told me he would meet me at the bottom of the stairs, I was not so sure about the grand entrance, I could imagine myself falling down the steps, haha!”
She continued, “But in reality but being able to see all our friends and family standing below is a view I will never forget.”
Tyler shared, “As Jen began her journey down the steps my heart was so happy. Jen looked absolutely stunning and I couldn’t have imagined a grander entrance!”
While I love to capture a stunning scene, there are times when getting close and filling the frame with the closest family members is key… here you can see Jen & Tyler along with Jen’s dad, and 4 key members of Tyler’s family!
The scene was beautiful, blue skies, white puffy clouds, I’m so glad it all came together!
From the entire scene to family members to the details, my goal is to allow couples to re-live their day for years to come…
Jen shared, “I knew from the start 2 and a half years ago I wanted slate blue as our main color, from there we found a color pallet that just fit us. Flowers were a huge part of the wedding. My mom and I are huge flower fans and we knew we wanted lots of flowers!”
What a beautiful setting…
Jen shared, “Tyler and I decided to write our vows. Writing them was actually easier than we anticipated. Once we started writing them, we really realized how much our values and desires were aligned when it came to what we wanted to give each other in our marriage.”
She continued, “Some of the promises we made to each other are to trust and respect each other as your own person and to realize that our interest, desired and needs are no less important than my own. We promised to be each other’s partner and equal in all things, to love in good and bad times completely and forever.”
The ring exchange…
Jen smiled, “The petal toss was a true fairytale moment. I never thought it would have worked out so well!”
Meatball sliders, tiny tacos and specialty drinks… the food at their wedding was amazing!
Jen shared, “We chose Historic Acres of Hershey because I fell in love the reception area. As soon as I walked into the ‘barn’ and saw the chandeliers, I knew it was exactly what I was going for. I wanted a formal wedding, but more relaxed that a ballroom wedding– this gave me exactly what I was looking for.”
She added, “The fireplace display blew us away and was such a focal point of the wedding!”
The exposed wood of the farmhouse tables, heaping with eucalyptus greens, and rustic loaf of freshly baked bread and herb spread hit a perfect note!
As always, a beautiful cake by Jasmine of The Couture Cakery…
Jen shared, “Tyler and I really wanted a fun way for our bridal party to enter the reception. During my bachelorette party, we had a competition to see who could come up with the best dance entrance. After deciding our winner, we sent a video to the Tyler and the groomsman letting them know what they had to learn.
Tyler added, “When Jen told me about this crazy idea, we went with it. The night of the rehearsal dinner we taught all the groomsman and practiced a few times and we were ready to go. It ended up being a great idea and a lot of fun to do as a bridal party”
Jen continued, ” The whole dance was so much fun and I cant believe we pulled it off! It set a fun tone and party vibe for the night. The ending pose was inspired by my dad always making a gross face when we kiss. Everyone laughed and cheered at the kiss!”
Jen shared, “I am not usually one to be the center of attention so I was very nervous for the first dance, but once I was in the middle of the dance floor in Tyler’s arms it was like the room was empty and it was just to two of us. The first dance was so special and getting to twirl in my dress was a lot of fun!”
Tyler added, “The first dance with Jen was incredible. Showing off my beautiful bride in front of a crowd of close friends and family was a feeling second to none. Jen looked like a princess and I am so glad I am the lucky guy that gets to dance through life with her!”
Jen shared, “Hillary, my maid of honor, has been like a sister to me. We have been friends for over 20 years and I couldn’t be more thankful to have her in my life. She has been there through it all and hearing her speech and everything we been through brought back so many different emotions and I couldn’t be more excited that I had her to stand by my side on my wedding day, but also for the past 20 plus years.”
I was playing with several things in this photo.. the string lights wrapped around the barn posts, the sparkling chandelier and my radio triggered flash that I used to illuminate Hillary and her speech…
Jen explained, “David has been a lifesaver to us. We would have never been able to pull of this wedding without him. Having 230 guest and a list of vendors that feels like it never ends, our wedding day would have been a hot mess without him.”
She went on, “Since it was his birthday we really wanted to do something special to thank him for all he did for us. The cake was just a little surprise to show him our appreciation for all he did. He became part of the Balbi gang over the past 2 and a half years of planning. He really was able to take our vision and make it into the most magical night of our lives.”
Mother-son dance…
Jennifer shared, “As I was dancing with my dad and saw my mom and brother eyes filled with tears I knew we needed a few moments as a family. Having them join my dad and I made me the happiest girl in the world.”
Jen explained, Tyler and I really just wanted all our guest to have a great time. In order to do that we made sure there was many different little surprises as the night went on from cornhole, to the s’mores and cigar bar, dancing, and food truck, to dance floor props– there was something for everyone.”
I love to play around with different photography techniques and combined my radio triggered flash with a slow shutter to capture all the excitement and energy in this frame…
Dance floor shenanigans…
lol, more…
Tyler explained, “The Cigar and Bourbon bar was a great escape from the craziness of the night. It gave me some time to catch up with some old friends as we enjoyed hand cut cigars.”
Again, I love to play with light and here I illuminated the smoke in blue– so fun, it almost reminds me of a movie effect…
Tk shared, “ I am a big foodie so we made sure to incorporate a lot of our favorite food items throughout the day.”
He continued, “I really enjoyed sharing the s’mores with my wife. Nothing like a good s’more and my love.”
Tyler continued, “So, I was very excited for the food truck. The food truck was a great way for me to bring in all my favorite foods!”
Mac and cheese in a bread cone– talk about comfort food! Yummmmmm…
Jen shared, “The sparkler sendoff was another one of my favorite part of the nights. There was so many guest still there we ran out of sparklers, but that is just a sign of a great wedding. Bring surrounded by all our friends and family one last time for the night was an unbelievable feeling.”
Jen shared, “The sunset was one thing I was really looking forward to. I wasn’t sure if we would get it or not because of the storm, but it ended up being amazing and having that few minutes of alone time with Tyler made it even more amazing.”
Jennifer shared, “It gave us a time to step back and really soak in that we were officially married! The whole night felt like a wedding out of a movie and was truly a dream come true! I cannot even describe how perfect the entire day was and how fantastic we felt at the end of the night.”
Jen and Tyler, thank you for entrusting us to capture your precious wedding day memories!
If you’d like to see more photos of Jen & Tyler, check out their ice skating engagement blog post here.
Here is their amazing team of vendors:
Historic Acres of Hershey
Rettew’s Catering
Treasured Events (Fiffer)
Splints & Daisies (Tara)
Elegance String Quartet (Ray)
Grand Central (Martin)
Complete Weddings Videography
Shining Star Photo Booth (Mark)
Lauren’s Makeup Designs (Lauren)
Luxe Salon (Allison)
The Couture Cakery (Jasmine)
Mx2 Design (David)
The Traveling Tap (Amber)
The Cigar Guys (Drew)
Cone Appetit Food Truck (Susan)