Palazzo Grande Wedding
Heather was a tour guide showing potential students the campus. Eric was a track and field/javelin thrower with the nickname of Thor. It wouldn’t take much, nor would it be long, before they caught each other’s eyes and became inseparable. Hearing them tell their story during their engagement session was insightful: they took turns telling the story, finished each other’s sentences, and looked at each other with admiration. It was obvious that they were not only in love, but infatuated and committed. It wasn’t long after their engagement session that their wedding would take place. Even though we had to make a game day audible and change the locations due to the rain, it turned out to be a beautiful, memorable, and perfect day for their Palazzo Grande Wedding.
Heather and her girlfriends had a relaxin morning and got ready at her parents’ house.
One of the challenges of the day was making Heather’s wedding different and unique. A few months earlier, I photographed her sister Nicole’s wedding at all of the same locations. We did this by using off camera flash to create photos with a little bit more mood to them.
The soft and diffused light outside was gorgeous! I was so lucky to have Heather trust me when I said the photos would be better if she got ready outside, despite the mid 50s temps.
One of the things I LOVE doing is capturing the various relationships, tender moments, and anticipation throughout the wedding day. Here, Heather’s mom got a little choked up as he daughter was getting ready to be married. It made for the perfect image.
I recently took a workshop with Jerry Ghionis, who is widely recognized as being in the top 5 wedding photographers in the world. He said something that resonated with me: “Shoot details that heave a pulse.” I love this new approach of shooting the details on the bride. It gives them so much more context and helps tell Heather’s story.
Heather was full of reveals, first starting with her dad…
…and next with her bridesmaids.
Finally, before we went to the church, Eric had a “reveal” for Heather.
Moments before the ceremony, Heather’s bridesmaids prayed over her.
Is it wrong that I have 10 favorite images from this wedding? Eric crying as he saw his bride will remain one of my favorites for a long time.
Before we kicked off their Palazzo Grande Wedding, we first stopped by Detroit to take some bridal party photos. The rain was sporadic, so we decided to find some cover at Wayne State University. With a crew like this, it is hard not to look cool.
After WSU, we stopped by the DIA just long enough to snag a few photos before it started raining again.
Following a gorgeous photo session, we headed north to celebrate their Palazzo Grande wedding.
Fun is an understatement.
Congratulations Eric and Heather! Thank you for allowing me to be part of your day. I hope we can celebrate together again soon.
