Category Archives: wedding photographer

Downtown Columbus Westin Wedding

OK so this wedding was nothing short of spectacular. Jen was simply glamorous on her wedding day, and Drew beamed from ear-to-ear all day.

Before I dive into their details, I want to talk a little bit about their venue. I love history, so if you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate a venue with an interesting past. The Downtown Columbus Westin used to be called the Great Southern Hotel and was opened in 1897. It was touted as being “fireproof”, as a lot of hotels in Columbus at the time fell victim to great fires. The hotel has been host to President William McKinley, President William Howard Taft, President Teddy Roosevelt, President Woodrow Wilson, and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The Grand Ballroom, where Drew and Jen’s reception was, was originally the hotel’s dining room, spanning vertically the third and fourth floors of the hotel. The original stained glass in the ballroom depicts different kinds of food, a subtle nod to what the room was originally used for. The original hotel didn’t have air conditioning, obviously, and not every room had its own toilet. When you walk into the rooms today, you can tell there is a rich history, however thankfully modern amenities have been added.

The reason I share the brief history is to give you a feel for how grand of a place the Westin is. The building’s Victorian elegance was only the background, however, for such a beautiful couple. Jen wore a dress from Elegant Bride that was accented with a cathedral length veil and stunning florals by Bloomtastic. Her Badgley Mischka shoes were adorned with gorgeous blinged-out crystal embellishments. Drew was on-point in his Men’s Warehouse Tux and his Brutus the Buckeye cuff-links.

As Jen walked down the aisle towards Drew, I swear I thought his heart skipped a beat. They were both so happy and in love, surrounded by their best friends and family. After some fantastic speeches, an elegant dinner and some cake cutting (Short North Piece of Cake), this group literally might have won my dance party of the year award. It’s hard to tell because there is still a lot more of the year to go, but boy did this group know how to shake it! I think Tommy Nutter behind the helm had a little something to do with it! I am so excited to share their photographic story today on the blog…I hope you love it! XO Jess

Wedgewood Country Club Wedding

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The day of Julie and Patrick’s wedding had every season’s weather all wrapped up into one day. They were such good sports through some really strange temperature swings, and we were able to get inside before it started to snow sideways. Ah, spring in Ohio!

I’ve gotten to know these two well over the past year. They are two of the most genuine, caring and loving people you can meet. Julie has a smile that can light up a room. She looked so beautiful in her wedding dress and the wind added just the right touch of whimsy to some of her bridal veil photos. Her bridesmaids wore long bright red dresses which added the perfect pop of color for the day. Pink, Red and Cream roses tied it all together.

Julie and Patrick were married at the beautiful St. Peter Catholic Church in Columbus. The sanctuary almost had an outdoorsy feel with its vaulted ceiling, natural light that poured through vibrant stained glass and palm fronds that adorned the altar. Their reception took place at Wedgewood Country Club where the trees were flowering in all their white spring glory.

So, as you can imagine I attend a lot of weddings and hear a lot of wedding speeches. Some of these are obviously better than others, but the speeches at this wedding were such a good window into who these two are. Julie and Patrick share a mutual devotion to their family and religion. They go out of their way as a regular practice to show other people how important they are. I think when people are naturally that selfless, it’s so much fun to sit and watch people put them in the spotlight.

I am so excited to share these photos from my first wedding of this season! I hope you love them. XO Jess

Best of 2015 Details

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Here’s the details post I promised. While I pride my business on being more about the couple, the day and not the “stuff”, I can’t deny that I love some eye candy. I decided to make the details its own post this year, because I thought it was really cool to see the variety and diversity of each wedding I shot. It really gives you a good feel for how different each wedding truly is. It’s also pretty clear how I could have kept a few pounds off, because I totally had a piece of every cake, every cupcake, and every doughnut. Don’t judge.

Best of 2015 Weddings

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Fair warning- photo wise, this is going to be a serious over-post. I have so many favorites from last year that it was hard to narrow them down. I’m going to do wedding details in their own “best-of” post later this month because there were simply too many to even begin to include them in this post.

2015 was a year that we’ll never forget! Scott and I moved into our first home and we welcomed the world’s cutest little boy to our family. Most of the year I was pregnant, however I consider myself lucky because it never really slowed me down as far as mobility when photographing. I was just a little more rolly-polly towards the end. Because of our little bundle of joy, my wedding season ended a little early at the beginning of October. Our year ended with the announcement that Jessica Miller Photography won The Knot’s Best of Weddings 2016, which is the fifth year I’ve won the award in a row!

As you will see, my couples this year were really really good looking. Each was super fun to work with and I feel so lucky that the couples that hire me tend to be laid back and genuine in spirit. All of my weddings this year were in the Columbus area, which is the first time ever I believe I haven’t traveled for a wedding. From the engagement shoot through the wedding and book design process, my couples really start to feel like great friends. I think that’s probably one of the best parts of this job.

This summer came with a lot of rain and a lot of outdoor weddings were pushed inside as a result. This of course isn’t ideal on a wedding day, but the wind that comes with rain can make for some fun and unexpected moments.

Thank you to everyone for your love and support this year! It’s been our best year yet and 2016 is gearing up to be even busier and better! XO Jess

Amelita Mirolo Barn Wedding

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In Upper Arlington, there’s a little known secret barn called Amelita Mirolo Barn, and it’s just the perfect backdrop for anyone looking for a barn wedding that’s close to the city. It has tall ceilings with wooden rafters, great for decorating or leaving bare. It’s located right near a beautiful park that has tall wooded pine trees, ideal for varying up photo looks in one convenient location.

Carrie and Dave accentuated this raw space perfectly with overflowing Spring flowers, hanging lights and chandeliers, and personalized details, like a hand-written love note on display from Dave to his new wife. From the moment you walked in, there was eye candy at every turn, but it still felt very intimate and authentic.

Dave is a pilot and Carrie is a flight attendant. They had met each other around 10 years ago, but from what I can remember, neither made the first move. I’m glad someone finally did, because the rest is history. Carrie glowed all day in her white lace gown. I have to say, hands down, that her dress had the prettiest back to a dress I have ever seen. The two were married with the accompaniment of a string quartet surrounded by their family and closest friends, and then they all danced the night away under the illuminated ceiling with a live bluegrass band.

Later in the evening, we snuck outside for some really quick night portraits that were the proverbial icing on the cake for this collection!

Carrie and Dave

Elegant Columbus Creekside Wedding

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You might recognize these two from a blog post I wrote earlier last year about their engagement shoot. I knew their wedding was going to be amazing the moment I met the two of them, but it truly was such an elegant and fun evening! First of all, Chris and Casey are just beyond cute together. The way they look, smile and interact is so endearing. One of my favorite parts of a wedding day is when the couple sees each other for the first time, dressed to the nines and blissfully on cloud nine. I was especially excited for them to see each other. There were nothing but smiles from ear to ear.

Casey has an impeccable sense of detail and style, as you’ll be able to see from these photos. Everything was so beautifully coordinated, yet retained a fun, laid back and intimate environment. I think my favorite detail was the illuminated C&C signs. They helped some of the other detail shots look so editorial and magical.

The summer ceremony was held outside with the musical styling (lol i love that phrase) of our good friends the Shaw Brothers. If you’re looking for some awesome ceremony or even reception music, they’re where it’s at! They play from the heart, and for wedding music, I think that’s hard to find.

Creekside in Gahanna is a great ballroom where during the day, lots of natural light beams through the windows that line the perimeter, and after nightfall, the room is illuminated with colorful LEDs. The footprint of the room is in the shape of an “L”, which I wasn’t sure about at first, but it really worked nicely, and gave center focus to the dance floor. The dance floor is topped with a curved ceiling, which makes for a grand and unique setting for the first dance photos!

Enjoy all this magical eye candy! I hope you love it! XO Jess

Downtown Columbus Wedding Photography

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Kelly and JD were married at St. Paul Catholic Church. This church was so vibrant and airy. Huge vaulted ceilings accented colorful stained glass windows. Of note was a stained glass representation of Pope St. John Paul II, which was very cool to see, as his Sainthood happened in my lifetime. The wedding colors were classic black and white, which believe it or not, I don’t think in the eight years of shooting weddings, I’ve had yet, although I could be wrong. What’s special about that combination is it’s so elegant against everything you put it in front of.

Out of all the weddings I photographed in 2014, JD’s face when he saw Kelly walking towards him down the isle was my favorite. Pure joy and some tears were met with her bright smile as she approached. The moment was so special and one I know they’ll never forget.

I’ve always been a city girl at heart so I get especially excited when my couples love to utilize amazing city backdrops for their wedding photos. We drove around to three different downtown locations before the reception. There was no doubt about it, it was going to rain on this day. However, everything worked out so magically, that we ended up under a bridge overhang the moment it started to downpour. Wind and rain as well as the rich building textures make all of these photos come to life.

The reception was held at the magnificent Westin ballroom in downtown Columbus. Natural light morphed into elegant ceiling lights as the sun set. Kelly and JD’s reception had the most amazing looking cookie display I’ve ever seen. It’s hard for me to even look at the photos without my mouth watering. Some very good and unexpected musical entertainment throughout the night was provided by Steve Fazini (amazing!) who sang to guests as they dined, and the band Brother’s Monk from Big Bang Piano Bar who got the crowd moving with their dueling pianos.

Nashville Wedding Photographers

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Each of the past few years, we’ve been lucky enough to travel to different states for weddings and engagement shoots. It might seem counter-intuitive to some, but I think it’s a creative advantage to shoot a wedding in a place you’ve never been before. I always take the time to scout the area before a wedding, but it’s fun to look at a new place with completely fresh eyes.

This year my husband Scott and I traveled to Nashville for Geoff and Julie’s wedding. We had always wanted to go there anyways, so we made a mini-vacation out of it. We went a day early and enjoyed the amazing music along the Broadway strip. I truly couldn’t believe how many bands are all playing on the same night. I’ve never experienced so much good music in such a close proximity.

The rehearsal dinner fell on the 4th of July, so the evening sky was filled with fireworks and cheers. The next day was a perfectly sunny and warm Nashville summer day. The church,Christ the King, was so beautifully modern and traditional at the same time. Between the light flooded in through the stunning stained glass windows, the beautiful blue bridesmaids dresses, and the colorful flowers, the whole ceremony was vibrant.

Geoff’s mother Janet is one of the best florists I’ve ever met in my life. (She also happened to do the flowers for our own wedding). Janet (with the help of family) did all of the floral and decor for Geoff and Julie’s rehearsal dinner and the entire wedding. It was a true labor of love. She had every corner of the reception hall dripping with beautiful roses. It was truly something to see.

I think this wedding also wins, hands down, the best dance party award for 2014. I am going to post more dancing pictures on this post than I usually do, because it was just that good. EVERYONE was dancing until they were sweating. It was spectacular.

Wedding Photographers Columbus Ohio

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On wedding days, I get to become immersed in other people’s families for a short window of time. I’ve gotten pretty good over the years at picking up on subtle interactions that speak a lot louder than words. One thing that struck me about this wedding was the love that was so prevalent from Catherine’s mother for her daughter. I would sometimes catch her admiring in awe as Catherine was getting ready or laughing with her friends. You could tell she was soaking it all in. Her mother had a constant ear-to-ear smile as she simply exuded pride and love. There is definitely a special bond between the two of them. So much so, we even photographed their wedding dresses side by side.

Catherine and Jonathan had a romantic summer wedding at the beautiful Clintonville Woman’s Club in the heart my favorite Columbus sub-city, Clintonville. This facility was simple and elegant all at once. The outdoor ceremony space is nestled amongst tall towering pines, and beautiful lanterns hung from a pergola that created the perfect wedding backdrop. It was supposed to rain all day, and about five minutes before their outdoor ceremony was supposed to start, I pulled out my cell phone and watched the radar which was tracking a huge storm set to roll in right during the middle of their vow exchange. Up until this date, my radar had never been wrong. It showed a massive storm right OVER us. And yet…no rain. During the ceremony this continued. The radar said we were in the middle of a massive storm, but still, no rain. It wasn’t until every last person was inside for the reception that the storm finally unloaded. It was nothing short of miraculous. The rest of the night was filled with great speeches, and even greater dancing! Enjoy! XO Jess

Wedding Photography Columbus- Best of Weddings 2014

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Happy 2015! I would like to dust off this blog and give a special thank you to all of the amazing people I was lucky enough to meet, work with, and photograph this year. It has truly felt like two years all rolled into one and to call the experience rewarding would be an understatement. I will be blogging the remaining weddings I photographed in 2014 in the coming weeks, but this blog is reserved for my most favorite wedding photos from last year. Thank you so much to the other fantastic photographers who shot as my second shooters this year- Kim, Carmen, Zak, Steve, Jared, Melissa, and my husband Scott.

In 2014, Scott graduated graduate school in Occupational Therapy and now works during the day at his dream job helping others live a more active, pain-free life. To celebrate his graduation and our life together, we took off most of the month of September and went on a grand tour of California together. I will also blog about this trip in the coming weeks. We saw some amazing things that I can’t wait to share.

Last year I did a lot of soul searching about what direction I wanted to take my company. I overhauled my website with a fresh, new design that’s easier to navigate. I found a lot of clarity in 2014 about what I think is most important about the field of photography, which can be read about here. I attended workshops and seminars on how to enhance my practice and there wasn’t a complacent bone in my body. I’m so excited to enter into 2015 with a full schedule, a new camera body added to my arsenal, and the most wonderful, fun couples I could ever ask for!

So on to the good stuff! The photos below all pulled at my heart strings in one way or another. All of the couples I was lucky enough to photograph last year were so amazingly creative. The details were simply breathtaking, and this post would be 5,000 photos long if I included all the ones I wanted to. I hope you enjoy these and cheers to a happy, healthy, fantastical new year! XO Jess

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