I’m so excited to share this wedding with you! Christine and Brian are both outgoing, fun, and … from Wisconsin. Although they’ve lived all over the country these past few years, they really wanted to celebrate their marriage in a very Wisco fashion. Beer, brats, cheese curds, a barn and tons of cows — they couldn’t have done any better. As if the WI theme weren’t enough, Christine and Brian incorporated several traditional Persian and Jewish traditions all throughout the day — the Ketubah, glass breaking, honey finger dipping, sugar rubbing, a knife dance, and the hora. There is way too much to mention in one little blog post, but let me just say it was a whirlwind and fascinating event to witness/capture as a photographer … and I imagine even more amazing to witness as a guest.

I’m no stranger to shooting at O’Brien Barn, but I love how each couple makes the place uniquely their own. Christine and Brian definitely did an amazing job with this. In addition to tons of DIY and Etsy details, some local vendors who helped make everything possible include: Cherry Blossom Events (Sarah is so awesome. Great to work with, good energy, and highly recommended!), State Street Brats, Carl’s Cakes, Jukebox Bandstand (always awesome), Event Essentials, and Beauty Blossoms.

Thank you so much, Christine and Brian! Such an amazing and gorgeous wedding to capture.

PS — A special thank you to my husband and second shooter, Troy. He did a great job capturing some unique elements with hardly any training at all :)

Once upon a time I earned a Masters degree in Library & Information Sciences.  During those grueling (ahem, boring) two years I made a friend (whom I had met previously as an undergrad, working at the same library) named Kathy.  A couple years later Kathy saw my photography work on Facebook and left a comment predicting that I’d soon be shooting weddings all the time and simply moonlighting as a librarian.  Fast forward another few months and I’m a fulltime photographer not even working as an academic librarian at all anymore.  Kathy’s friend, Liz, gets engaged and Kathy tells Liz about me.  Less than a year after that I am in Austin, TX shooting Liz’s wedding.  Kathy is a bridesmaid and so is Meagan.  Meagan is the assistant editor at BRAVA magazine.  We all have a great time on the wedding day.

Months later, I get an email from Meagan asking if I’d like to submit some weddings for consideration in BRAVA’s wedding guide.  I submitted Ryann and Tim’s rustic country-vintage wedding and it was chosen to be featured as one of three weddings in the guide!  I was extra-extra excited when my image of Ryann and her vintage bike was chosen for the cover!!  Yay!  Ryann and Tim had an amazing wedding — simply beautiful, creative and so reflective of who they were.  I felt so honored to be chosen to capture it; it will forever be one of my favorites.

To top it all off, BRAVA’s art director, Kristin, has asked me to start shooting fashion and cover stories for them — which is awesome!

And it all goes back to Library School…there is a reason I got that degree after all :)

This wedding was THE BOMB.  Yes.  The rain scared me a bit, but it was not a problem at all.  The day, as Ryann described on her Facebook page yesterday, was PERFECT.  What made this day amazing?  Ryann & Tim, and their friends and family for sure.  But also location, location, location!  O’Brien Barn is simply phenomenal.  The fashion and details were completely thought-out and fabulous, to say the least.  Ryann is a talented graphic designer and illustrator, so she designed all the cool signage and paper things for the wedding.  The ceremony was emotional; the reception was laid-back and a blast (pig roasts are always a hit).  The rain was just another detail to tie it all together and make it the bomb :)

Ryann and Tim, I’m so glad we’ve met because of your wedding.  Thank you for letting me be there to capture it.  Congratulations!!!!

A quick shout-out to the vendors:  Dilemma Studio (invites/programs/signs/pint glass design & illustration), Exceptional Catering (pig roast!), O’Brien Barn, Carl’s Cakes, additional desserts by friends of the couple, Mueller DJ Service (music/deejeying), J.Crew (wedding party attire), make-up by Jaclyn Tyler Poeschl — a friend of the couple, hair by Aveda Institute.