This is my last blog post for a 2016 session – can’t wait to show you all the springtime goodness on the blog in the upcoming weeks. But let’s flashback now to the beautiful fall! Donna and Tim used to live down by the Scioto Mile, so we decided it would be the perfect place to do photos. The foliage around the area is perfection in the late fall. These two were so relaxed and naturally just laughed with each-other in front of the camera. Thank you so much to Donna and Tim for having me with you on this perfect day! XO Jess
So I would consider Crystal and Greg’s wedding my wild card wedding of 2016. I think Crystal contacted me maybe only a month out from their big day. She was somewhat stressed out because the photographer she had been talking to didn’t work out, and wanted someone dependable that could take the reigns. I’m not going to lie- when someone shows up at your doorstep, literally, and starts telling you about the wedding she was describing, it’s hard to imagine it’s real. In fact, on my way there, I still wasn’t even sure if I was on my way to a real wedding. Low and behold, it was real, and everything she had envisioned turned out so perfectly. Why was it so hard to believe? Mostly because it was so fabulously unique and inventive. It’s hard to surprise a wedding photographer with something “new”, but they did it!
Crystal told me on the day we met that they were going to get married in the middle of the river on pontoon boats. I thought that meant the traditional kind with walls and seats. When I got there, I saw that it meant two of them without walls and seats were tethered to one traditional pontoon. To get the best angle, I was going to need to position myself of the ones without support, which I’m not going to lie, had me shaking at certain points. I could literally see myself along with my cameras falling into the river and making a huge mess of the wedding. This never happened, but boy did I feel the heat the whole time we were out there. That’s kind-of saying something, too, because I grew up boating and on the water. After the ceremony on the water, I had really never been happier to be on dry land. Their reception was held in a party house that they had finished construction on their estate literally two weeks before the wedding. The whole property was stunning and I still can’t believe what a wonderful experience I was asked to document. I’m also super happy my cameras made it water-free as well! Enjoy! XO Jess
Obviously a lot of photography is based on lighting conditions, but consider yourself lucky if you have a grey overcast day on the day of your shoot the way Brianna and Jake did. The pillowy (is that a word?) clouds created the softest, most even light- it was a pastel wonderland in my camera. These two were so cute together and I can’t wait for their quickly approaching May wedding this year. Brianna will be such a stunning bride, don’t you think?
We did their engagement shoot around the Scioto Mile, which inadvertently became one of my shooting hot-spots over the last year. It’s one of those places that looks good in any season. In the next couple of weeks, I’ll post a night blizzard session I did there in January.
Brianna and Jake had a really cute way of interacting with each-other and making each-other laugh. They would rag on the other one, much in the same way my husband and I interact. I just posted about Kara and Steve last week- and how Steve was in The Ohio State University Marching Band. Fun fact, Jake was too! That makes a TBDBITL double header (google it if you don’t know it) for my blog! I’m so honored and excited to be a part of their upcoming wedding. Until then, enjoy these photos of these two love birds! XO Jess
There’s no other way to say it- Kelly and Jason are Cute with a capital C. Kelly said she would like their engagement shoot to be in the Short North because that is where her and Jason met and spend a lot of time together. Little did we know that her vibrant green dress was going to match perfectly with the lush Short North nooks and crannies we photographed in. This part of the city is so alive…artisinal (I can’t believe I used that word in a sentence) shops, boutique hotels, small and large parks, bright murals, and mouthwatering food are all what make the Short North a destination in Columbus. This day was so hot, a far cry from today’s below freezing temps. Why do I always talk about the weather? Because I live in Columbus. It’s also the way my brain works- I remember weather from events years ago like it was yesterday.
Ok so something that struck me when I was putting together Kelly and Jason’s blog, is one of the reasons I love engagement photos so much- look at their eyes. Look at the way they look at each other. They are smiling, yes, but their eyes do just as much of the talking. Engagement shoots are so great for pulling out that connection. It’s also one of the reasons I try to photograph couples looking at each-other instead of the camera….and if I do have them look at the camera, I have them look at each-other first so I can get some residual feels come through the lens.
Kelly and Jason’s wedding will be at one of my favorite venues, Via Vecchia, next June. To say I’m excited would be a serious understatement. It will be here before we know it, but until then- I hope you love looking at these sweet photos! XO Jess
Jenne and Paul are so totally cute with each other! They are Columbus transplants by way of Nashville. Their wedding was in Nashville in the fall (last month to be exact), so they only had me shoot the session here in town. We met up at the Whetstone Park of Roses in Clintonville for their engagement session earlier this past summer. The roses were in full bloom, and you couldn’t really have asked for a more perfect day. Having been born and raised in Columbus, and I don’t want to sound like Lebron James is with Cleveland, but Columbus is such a vibrant beautiful city with SO MUCH going on. The park of roses is just one of those magical places that when you visit, you look around, and say to yourself- I can’t really believe this is just open to the public. The grounds are meticulously manicured (I have a new appreciation for this being a new home owner). Being a photographer I often visit beautiful spots in the city, so it’s no wonder my love affair with C-bus gets more serious each year.
And I just have to mention this- I’m really glad Westworld wasn’t out yet at the time of this shoot, because I would have been fan geeking about the fact that Jenne looks like the stunning Thandie Newton who plays Maeve in the show. Nerd alert!
Anyways, congratulations go out to Jenne and Paul on their recent wedding! And I hope the rest of you love these photos! XO Jess
THESE TWO! I don’t even think I’ve ever laughed so much on a shoot before. Earlier this month we ventured around downtown Columbus for Colleen and Andy’s engagement shoot. Their doggie Nala was also in on the party, getting her closeup and some pics with her mom and dad snuggling all over her.
One of the things I love most about engagement shoots is getting to see how couples interact with each other. These two are not only down to earth, but also have the worlds best sense of humor. Having been with Scott for almost ten years now, I can say an awesome sense of humor will get you through just about anything your relationship might encounter. Take for example, one person being a Michigan fan and the other an Ohio State fan. In Andy’s defense, he’s from Michigan so I guess his dedication is understandable and definitely admirable considering the past few years they’ve had ;).
Having fun is at the core of life, right? There’s no shortage here. Spending the afternoon with these two made me giddy for their wedding later this year. Gahh! I’ll have to wait four more months to see them again, but at least I have these pictures to get me by.
We are so lucky in Columbus to have such a huge Major League Soccer presence. Our fans are some of the best in the country, and every year soccer is becoming less of a foreign sport, and more of an American one. When Tori and Jason told me about their mutual love for soccer, each other, and the Columbus Crew, I was so excited! On a VERY windy and sunny day, we ventured to the epicenter of all things Crew and photographed an amazing e-session in the MAPFRE stadium. A huge thank you to the Crew events manager for being so fun and awesome. As you can tell through these photographs, these two have killer personalities and they just exude life. Tori is definitely an extrovert and Jason seems to have more of a quiet demeanor, but he just radiates love when he looks at her. It’s SOOO cute, electric and fun to be around.
They are such big fans that they even have engraved seats in the stadium really close to the field. Both of them coach their own soccer teams so needless to say, it’s understandable why they love the Crew so much.
They are getting married next month and literally planned their wedding around a Crew game. In the morning they will be getting hitched, then they’ll be off to a tailgate and a Crew game. I mean seriously…how badass IS that?! Keep an eye out for the blog I’ll be posting on their wedding, but until then, enjoy these totes adorbs pics of these two love birds!
I’m so excited to share this engagement session from February. You know that feeling of stepping out into the most beautiful spring evening after a long dark winter? The sun is warm on your face, you can smell the dirt in the air, and everyone is outside playing, running and jumping. This was a day like that, only it wasn’t spring. It was mid- February… but that’s the magic of Ohio. Jon, Kasia, their dog Michi and I went around German Village, stopping at random nooks and crannies along the way. I call these paparazzi-style shoots, and they’re actually my favorite way of shooting an engagement session. We are all in it for the fun, we can all share our ideas openly, and we all work together to get some creative, fun and unique artistic portraits.
Having your photos taken is stressful. I know this because we just had our family portraits taken. It freaks me out each time I have to get in front of the camera. But like I always tell those that hire and work with me, after about 15 minutes of feeling awkward, it gets really fun. This shoot was no exception to that rule. These two are so caring and genuine with each other. And they are TALL! I now know what it must be like to be Tom Cruise. Anyways, I’m starting to ramble. I’ll just get on with the photos, because often my photographic voice is a lot more engaging than my written one. I hope you love this visual preamble to Spring. XO Jess
Kristen and Scott’s late January Esession earlier this year was brisk and cold, but their love for each other kept them warm inside! With their wedding quickly approaching, I just wanted to take a few minutes and blog about the ridiculous cuteness that is these two, because, well, they deserve to be in the spotlight!
It’s kind of funny saying we did this shoot at the Whetstone Park of Roses, because there weren’t any roses in sight at this time of year. The air was crisp, and it was that tail part of winter where you could almost will spring into existence. We took a stroll around the park, and then went to a few other spots in Clintonville that I adored when I lived there (at the time of the shoot). It feels so strange posting this now, as winter quickly approaches. Blogging more regularly is something I look forward to in the coming months as wedding season wraps up. Next weekend these two get hitched and I couldn’t be more excited! Their venue will be at Via Vecchia, which is one of my all-time favs!
These two were just married earlier this month! In honor of their big celebration I thought I would share a few frames from their downtown engagement shoot. This was a color session that we did from evening-night. As you can see, the light was heavenly. Everything was draped in a warm glow as the sun set. Later in the session as night fell, I added some extra pops of color to the water and smoke at the Scioto Mile for a little more dramatic look. In total, we hit up around 4 locations for this shoot, which added awesome variety to their photo collection.
Out in front of one of the court house buildings in downtown Columbus, there’s a part of the building that looks a little Gothic, like it should be out of Ghostbusters or something. Luckily Emine and Bob let me geek out in front of them and if you’re a super nerd like me, you’ll get a kick out of the photo we were able to take in front of it.
Fast forward to this month, June has been crazy rainy, but we dodged the rain on their wedding and I’ll have some of those pics on here shortly to share what an amazing day it was!
