Today was another amazing and perfect day for wedding photography at Starved Rock in Oglesby Illinois. We met with the bride at Grizzly Jacks Grand Bear Resort water park, at the townhouses near Starved Rock Park. Such a great idea to rent out two side by side townhouses and for the bridesmaids and groomsmen to get ready at their respective locations. Our professional photography team split up, with our male photographer with the grooms and our female photographer with the bride.

 

 

While with the bride, we captured images of the bride getting ready, including makeup, hair, and dressed fitting. The balcony was an amazing place for romantic look out photos, as of Juliet looking down to her love Romeo on their wedding night. Lovely! The ladies all gathered in the master sweet for individual photos with the bride overlooking the forest behind their rented home.

While with the bride, we captured images of the groom getting ready, which at times meant pulling up the “how to tie a tie” application on the I-phone. Yeah, there’s an app for learning to tie your tie. Amazing! Those guys were such a fun group, with lots of laughter throughout.

We all traveled to the Starved Rock Lodge, where the wedding was about to commence. We highly recommend outdoor weddings at Starved Rock. If you are looking for “Romance at the Rock” then this is the place to get it. Their trained staff sets up plenty of chairs for everyone to sit comfortably. As the bride walked down the aisle everyone stared in awe. The beautiful bride to be greeted her groom with an excited and wide smile. I’ve never seen anything like it, a pure image of happiness and excitement.

After the ceremony the entire bridal party traveled down to the French Canyon for bridal photos into the heart of the hiking area. Along the way we met some nice hikers, applauding Jason and DeeDee on their wedding day. As the sun was setting behind the cliffs, we captured some beautiful wedding portraits at Starved Rock in French Canyon. We were deep inside surrounding by ancient walls of stone and history. Nothing like it. We captured some of the most amazing and unique wedding photos imaginable! After our hiking excursion through the trails, we headed back to the lodge for a relaxing evening of dancing and laughter.

In the coming months we will be working with the staff at Starved Rock lodge to get on their wedding preferred vendor list for wedding at the lodge. They are having a wedding expo called Love For Every Season-Bridal Expo. We are not yet confirmed to attend, so if you don’t see us there, please contact us directly for an in studio consultation and maybe even engagement photos.

Today we photographed a beautiful wedding at Starved Rock State Park in Utica Illinois. The ceremony and reception were both at The Lodge on the same premises.

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The couple decided that they would see each other before the ceremony. This would allow us to have more time for formal portraits together as a group and with family and to enjoy all of the beauty that Starved Rock National Park had to offer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though seeing each other before the wedding, the Sam and Kevin still wanted the excitement of seeing each other for the first time. To deliver this, Samantha went out with me into the campfire area by the old cottages. There I photographed her individual portraits, both in traditional and unique contemporary styles. The day was perfect for it too, with clouds overhead leading us to constant unbroken shade. Once we final the brides portraits, I went to get the groom alone and bring him to his bride to be. Kevin, upon seeing his gorgeous bride standing out in front of him, shed a few tears of joy. It was clear that he was marrying the women of his dreams. His emotions could not be contained as he stepped towards Samantha and embraced her in a warm and loving hug. I was moved and touched by the moment; it is always an honor and privilege to see such love between two people.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once the couple had spent a few moments together, we captured the bridal parties photos, under the cover of the old camping cottage house and on the long bridge. Finally, we move closer to the main building, and with an overlook onto the big open area, we had the family portraits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ceremony was in Great Hall and in the main conference room. There, surrounded by friends and family, Sam and Kevin were married. Shortly after the wedding we moved into the conference room for cocktail hour, while the staff set up The Great Hall for dinner. The rest of the evening was spent in dance and laughter!