I met Katie and Mitch at last year’s Get Hitched, Give Hope’s Bridal Auction and Gala. Her tricksy buddies bid on and won Katie the Engagement Session and Guestbook Package I had donated! Weeeee! This incredibly adorable couple is getting married this summer; as soon as the leaves got all pretty-like we ventured out into their b-e-a-utiful Queen Anne neighborhood for some supersweet engagement fun all the while raising money to grant wishes for those for whom the cure can’t come soon enough.

Tech Specs: these images were captured at Kerry Park and Discovery Park, using a Nikon D700, Nikon 24-70mm, and Nikon 35mm.

Jen and Ilan’s Spring Seattle wedding was a DIY wonderland that could have been dreamed up by a love child of Dr. Seuss and Anthropologie; The “big day” was a menagerie of color and quirk. We were delighted to hear that famed quirky bridal blog Rock N’ Roll Bride wanted to feature their wedding this week!!!

The couple met working for Adidas and they paid homage to their employer/matchmaker with shoes and track suits for the wedding party. Every detail radiated Jen and Ilan and their history of coupledom, starting when Ilan had his sneakers customized with their red wedding logo “J + I” and Jen’s something blue was their initials and wedding date stitched inside her dress.

Can we just talk for a second about the most epic reaction I’ve EVER had the delight to capture? It was during Jen and Ilan’s first look? Some couples are on the fence about seeing each other before the wedding… but having some private moments to drink each other in before things get c-c-c-razy can result in moments like these. Check out our groom’s face, followed by a high-five. This is so them, and I so love it- every time I see this image in our archives I get all teary and stuff. Yay for Jen and Ilan wearing their fun hearts on their sleeves!!!

How else would I photograph a big ol’ wedding party with a whole lotta colorful shoes???

Note the wedding logo stitched into the side of the groom’s shoes! And her glammy kicks! What a fun and personal nod to their workplace, where they met!

Bottles of wine from their 1st date and engagement and for their 1st and 5th wedding anniversaries acted as the guest book. A deck of cards to play Jen’s family’s favorite card game of Shanghai Rummy were distributed as the wedding favors. Jasper’s BBQ catered their super fun affair while feeding the groom’s love of BBQ. Personal DIY creations were also the name of the game: the bride made necklaces for her maids to coordinate with their shoe & flower colors, she created the menus and programs in their whimsical wedding style, and the paper flower and birch bark centerpieces, the pedestals, and the cake stands were all her parents’ designs. Can you imagine having such crafty folks? They sure did come in handy since Jen and Ilan planned their wedding all the way from Brooklyn!

Jen & Ilan’s wedding team included:

Photography: Laurel McConnell Photography with Amy on second camera

Venue: Georgetown Ballroom

Bride’s Dress: J.Crew

Bride’s Shoes: Adidas

Groom’s Suit: Burberry via Bloomingdales

Groom’s Shoes: Adidas

Groomsmen’s Suits: Calvin Klein via Men’s Warehouse

Bridesmaid’s Dresses: J.Crew

Rings: AR Morris

Vintage Umbrellas: Bella Umbrella

Catering: Jasper’s BBQ

Cupcakes: Trophy Cupcakes

Flowers: Buds and Blooms

DJ: Seattle Parties, DJ Leslie

Invitations: Hello Lucky

Decor, centerpieces, pedestals: Bride’s mother and father

If you’d like to see more, head on over to Kat’s blog post on Rock N’ Roll Bride for more images!!!!!

Tiffany and Jon’s spectacular details started well before their purple and gray winter wonderland wedding, when Jon, a product designer, proposed with a children’s book he created featuring turtles in love!! The personal touches carried on throughout their Victorian-esque nuptials, from wedding bands imprinted with each other’s finger prints, to a wedding dress hanger featuring their names, to coffee favors for their guests (all from Etsy!). Their caffeine love was further embraced with a reception espresso cart from Espresso Elegance. The bride’s breathtaking necklace and veil were found at Anthropologie’s swoon-worthy wedding shop, BHLDN, and the groom and groomsmen’s ties and belts were from the couple’s favorite spot…. can you guess? Costco!

Family and friends were at the forefront of the day with a friend acting as officiant, the groom’s sister singing during the ceremony, all the guests extending hands over their rings in blessing (in an adorable ring bowl by none other than the trend-setting Paloma’s Nest), and a guestbook quilt made up of their loved ones’ signatures. The pair, who met at a swing dance class, started their rockin’ party (quite appropriately) with a waltz. Tiffany and Jon’s whole day exuded their love for each other and the people closest to them, totally the perfect start to their marriage.

Tiffany first found us through the famed style blog, Style Me Pretty, so we were ALL elated when we heard the good news that their wedding was picked up and published on the front page!!!! (click through for more images)

Now, without further ado, some images from their gorgeous day!!!

Congrats to you both… it’s been so fun getting to know you over the past few years!!!!!

And thank you to the wonderful team of artists and beautiful details who completed Tiffany and Jon’s vision for the celebration of their love!

• Wedding Photography: Laurel McConnell Photography, with Rebecca on second camera
• Wedding Venue: Sodo Park in Seattle, Washington
• Floral Design: Bella Signature Design
• Wedding Coordination: Holly-Kate and Company
• Officiant: Stacy Sprando, A Friend of the Bride & Groom
• Wedding Cinematography: Cabfare Productions
• Catering: Herban Feast
• Wedding Cake: The People’s Cake
• Wedding Invitations + Programs: Nicole Mae Paper Design
• DJ: Seattle Parties
• Coffee Favors: Etsy
• Transportation: British Motor Coach
• Espresso Cart: Espresso Elegance
• Ring Bearer Bowl: Paloma’s Nest
• Wedding Dress: Lazaro via Marcella’s La Boutique
• Shoes: Vera Wang Lavender
• Bride’s Necklace: BHLDN
• Hanger: Lila Frances
• Hair + Makeup: Erin Skipley
• Bridesmaids’ Dresses: J.Crew
• Groom’s Suit: Hickey Freeman via Nordstrom
• Men’s Ties + Belts: Costco
• Engagement Ring: Kwiat via Nordstrom
• Wedding Bands: Fabuluster

We were elated to hear that one of our favorite modern weddings from last year was going to be picked up by the one and only Style Me Pretty this week!!!!! We could hardly wait to show you this STUNNING modern yellow and grey affair! Hop on over to their style blog if you want to see it there, otherwise, read on!

We were so excited for Kristen and James’s downtown urban wedding in Seattle this October. They love and live in the city, so they wanted their celebration to feel like a Saturday night out downtown instead of a wedding, and the Palace Ballroom was the perfect choice. The affair was peppered with their love of art, music, and fashion: Kristen couldn’t wait to wear her fashionable Chie Miharas under her dress (they were a secret just for her and those who shared her affinity for amazing footwear, then she donned TOMS for the reception), the cake topper was a sweet touch of handmade whimsy found on Etsy, and their save-the-dates resembled concert tickets, one of the couple’s favorite hobbies.

The celebration was beautiful and fun at the same time, and it was so VERY them! An urban cocktail party set in the heart of their beloved Seattle during the most romantic season of the year… fall! Congrats, you two! It’s been incredible having beers with you, shopping for tacky fridge magnets to swap, and being inspired by your art and concert poster collections! Can’t wait to show you my latest- I hope to pick up a good one at the Black Keys show next month

Kristen and Jame’s wedding was made up of talent from the following event peeps and designers:

Wedding Photography: Laurel McConnell Photography assisted by the lovely Rebecca Ellison

Wedding Planning + Design: Married & More with Michelle

Floral Design + Decor: Bella Rugosa

Getting Ready Hotel: Hotel 1000

Officiant: Rich Sclafani

Wedding Venue: Palace Ballroom

Catering: Tom Douglas

Wedding Cake: Divine Confections

Wedding Invitations: Brittany Troxler

Save-the-Dates: MaeMae Paperie

DJ: Injoy Entertainment

Ghost Chairs + Linens: Pedersens Rentals

Accommodations: Hotel 1000

Wedding Dress: Enzoani via Luly Yang

Hair, Makeup, and Lashes: Erin Skipley

Groom’s Suit: Nordstrom

Custom Rings: Green Lake Jewelry Works + Fremont Jewelry Design

It’s been so hard waiting, but it’s finally here!!!! A few months ago I schemed with some super talented people to produce a simple and fun promo video during Catherine and Michael’s anniversary shoot in the Queen Anne neighborhood of  Seattle.

The recipe that yielded this delicious marketing muffin:

• Get Hitched Give Hope- I won the video through their silent auction. It raises money to grant wishes to those whom the cure can’t come soon enough
• Edit 1 Media- the cinematographers. They split their time between Seattle and Hawaii. Lucky ducks!
• Floressence- Anne Bradfield is an amazing florist and her quirky happy designs were perfect for this shoot.
• Jenny Bowker- How can you not love her style? One of Seattle’s best hair and makeup stylists, for sure.
• Catherine and Michael- thank you thank you thank you for allowing me to photograph you for your anniversary, and letting me plaster your faces all over the interwebs and beyond!!
• Triple Scoop Music- music licensing for photographers

I hope it conveys to you a clear message of what we love to do: HAVE FUN while making great images. And now, without further ado…..

I know, pretty crazy, right??? I’m beyond excited, and have been pretty speechless about it- I mean, it’s a huge honor to be chosen by your own industry for something that you love to do and work so hard at. They’re Nikon, they KNOW photography. Our studio has had such an amazing shooting season this past spring/summer/fall that it’s been so hard to find the time to blog about this! I didn’t mean to NOT tell you… I just… got sidetracked! (oh, that Photographer’s A.D.D….)

The short of it: the camera company that I chose 11 years ago, to make my images with, knows who I am (Eeeee!). Better yet, they like my work enough to feature it in their breathtakingly printed industry magazine, Nikon World, as well as on their photography equipment website, NikonUSA.com (“I die,” a la Rachel Zoe). You can read about how some of my images came to be in the article, and on their website you can even hear me dissect how the images came to be, touching on alternative cropping, inspiration behind a few shadow images, reflections, and using the scene to anchor the shot.

Go check it out, but mostly, keep reaching for your dreams!!

(special thanks to my clients for being so rad as to trust me to shoot they way that makes me feel happy, and for my bestie Babs McGee for shooting my mug!)

We love getting cards in the mail for the holidays and special occasions. What a fun way to give your friends and family a little update on you and yours! We have two stunning lines of cards to offer our clients this year: press photo cards and our new letterpress photo cards!!

Text and colors are completely customizable, so any of these cards are perfect for birth announcements, save the dates, holiday cards, thanks you’s and more! Please allow up to 2 weeks for design and delivery to our studio (one extra week if we need to ship to you)- we suggest swinging by to pick them up to give you more time for sending!

PREMIUM LETTERPRESS PHOTO CARDS

Yes. You heard us. We couldn’t believe it either: photography and letterpress have finally come together! We’re delighted to present to you these luxurious cards for when you want to send the best. You can order your letterpress cards in our online storefront here, and we’ll begin on your design consultation either over the phone, in person, or via email. Click below to take a peek at some of these ideas….

HOLIDAY, THANK YOU, AND ANNOUNCEMENT PHOTO CARDS

All flat and folded cards are customizable with text and colors, and you can order your cards in our online storefront here. These are simply a springboard to jump off with your design- we’ll customize the design around the image and format you choose, and we can help you with the message if you’re stumped on what to say! Click below to browse our current designs.

Don’t wait to order yours until it’s too late (well, that would be mid-December….. ), click on through to get the ball rolling by placing your order and then we’ll begin working on the custom goodies- don’t fret, we have lots of ideas and are here to to do it alllll for you.  Except address ‘em and send ‘em. That’s your job.

If you want to get in touch with us to schedule a shoot STAT, fill out our inquiry form here and we’ll get you some info instantly!

(note, not all images are by Laurel McConnell Photography. Many are on loan from the other awesome contributing photographers at Miller’s Design Lab and Design Aglow)