Jenna Cole Photography-Chicago, IL » Lifestyle and Wedding Photographer

I’m shooting the wedding of some dear friends in March. These two are beyond fabulous in front of the camera, and I’m a lucky girl to get to spend an entire day following them around taking their picture next spring.

The only sad thing about this session… it was my last one in Deep Ellum. Actually, it was my last one in Dallas for awhile. I’m really going to miss it here!

A Brenizer method shot. These are so fun to create!

More to come. These two babysat for me twice so I could spend some baby-free time with my husband so I think they deserve some extra special treatment.

Typhanie and I go to church together, and I visit her every month through the Visiting Teaching program. She was recently put on bed rest (not confined to a bed luckily, just told to take it easy) and so I brought a meal over to her house to help ease the burden of caring for her husband and two small children. Along with the pasta I packed my camera and we grabbed a few maternity style shots to document her pregnancy.

Typhanie showed me a maternity photo she liked and asked if we could duplicate it. It was fun to try to give it my own little spin!

The reception!

A few of my favorite details…

The bride and groom supplied calling cards next to their guestbook with their new married address, phone numbers, etc. I’d never seen anything like it but I thought it was a brilliant way to spread their contact information to family and friends.

The toasts were sweet, just enough of a roast to get reactions like this from the bride and groom.

Who gave this kid a glass of champagne!?!?!?

No cake-smashing-in-the-face for this couple, but a little bit of encouragement from the crowd caused Jeramy to get a frosting tipped nose.

Natalie was so sweet during her dance with her dad, if you look close you can see the tears in her eyes and running down her cheeks. I had the “Butterfly Kisses” song stuck in my head for days afterward.

I can’t take credit for this shot… it was actually taken by the best man! He begged me to let him take a few pictures, and after interrogating him regarding the number of drinks he’s consumed and making him promise to wear the camera strap around his neck, I let him play for a bit. It was actually a great idea because the sight of his best friend playing wedding photographer really made Jeramy laugh!

Fierce competition for the bridal bouquet. The poor MOH never had a chance.

That tongue! Natalie knew Jeramy was going in with his teeth.

Jeramy removed the garter with his friends and family cheering him on, and stood up to celebrate with his teeth, only to find his new father-in-law staring him down from behind. Very funny moment.

To be honest, I’m really only including this picture because I like her necklace. Gorgeous right?

I took a break to switch lenses and eat some cake, and when I jumped back in the fray Natalie looked completely different!

The getaway car, which belongs to Natalie’s mom. Jeramy oh-so-conveniently sent his keys off with one of his groomsmen (haha, I know it was an accident Jeramy!) and so the couple were forced to take the car with them for the wedding night, when the original plan was just to use the car for the photos at the end of the night.

Happy marriage Natalie and Jeramy! I’m still a bit bummed you didn’t wear your new sunglasses down the aisle Natalie, but your eyes and smile were so radiant as you made your way toward your new husband that I can’t blame you for wanting to have the best view possible. Jeramy you have the best smile and I love watching you watch Natalie. It’s obvious that you adore each other and I loved spending your wedding day with you.

Best,

Jenna

Natalie and Jeramy were married on a sunny, slightly windy, Friday in June. You’ve seen them on Jenna Cole before, as they did an engagement session in Deep Ellum with me and brought their sweet puppy with them. They were married at Paradise Cove in Westlake, Texas, with a wedding day that can be described as wonderfully Texan in so many ways. What a delight it was to spend the day with them!

Venue: Paradise Cove

Officiant: Jim Dunn

Florist: Lakeside Florist

DJ: David Mayo

Cake: Elegant Cakery

When the coordinator delivered a gift wrapped in pink for Natalie from Jeramy I was expecting perfume, jewelry, you know something typical…

I did not expect her to pull these sunglasses out of this box! She said she was going to wear them down the aisle and I got excited (she didn’t though ).

This sweet junior bridesmaid painted her nails extra special in order of Natalie and Jeramy.

The moment when the bride slips on her dress is one of my favorites of the day.

Natalie stayed sequestered in her dressing room to make sure she wasn’t seen, but I was able to track down Jeramy and get him outside for some portraits.

This view is the reason why brides choose to marry at Paradise Cove (one other reason must be  the coordinators as they were particularly awesome!).

Natalie alternated between beaming and floating down the aisle.

One reason I loved the coordinators at Paradise Cove was how efficiently they handled the timeline and kept the day flowing. After the ceremony they ushered Natalie and Jeramy into this little alcove, and sent guests up toward the reception. It really helped us get to our portraits quickly which was extremely important as we didn’t have much time before the sun set completely.

The bridesmaids hate windy days because their hair and skirts fly all over. I like them because they make the photos exciting.

Ah, portrait time. Hooray! I’ve had some weddings with a very limited amount of time for portraits and I kept thanking Natalie and Jeramy for the amount of time they gave me. I also thanked them for how natural and relaxed they were in front of the camera. The secret to great wedding day portraits for the bride and groom is just forgetting that the camera is there and enjoying each others company.

I was in love with this majestic tree.

THAT SHOT! My favorite from the batch. Natalie, you’re smokin’.

Every wedding at Paradise Cove needs a  dramatic sunset shot.

The happy couple are due back from their honeymoon tomorrow and I wanted to have this post up for their return. Welcome back you two!

Pt II, the reception, will be posted on Monday.

A reader named Amanda emailed me and asked if I ever invite people to shadow or second shoot with me, and I said I would be very interested in setting something up, but I didn’t have any shoots scheduled that she could come along for. She was kind enough to round up her friend Vicki (convincing her to wake up and get ready for a 7:30 am session, my favorite time to shoot!) and we went out to Rock Creek Park and explored a little bit. I even brought my little one and managed to hold him in the Bjorn, feed him a bottle, juggle my Shootsac and camera, AND take pictures at the same time. It was pretty impressive if I do say so myself.

Amanda emailed me some feedback regarding the time we spent together:

i stumbled upon jenna’s blog late one night and instantly fell in love with her style and beautiful images. i decided to e-mail her and see if she would be up for a mentoring type session where i could shadow her and just observer her “in action”. i didn’t know if i would hear anything back from her {especially since it was around the time of her little one’s arrival}, but to my surprise, she got back to me and was up for it! i was ecstatic! we met up early one morning for a few hours in arlington and i can’t even begin to tell you how amazing she is. i am a very visual learner, so i learned so much just watching her shoot & her interaction with the model. she instantly puts you at ease and you feel like you’ve known her forever. she made sure to take time and answer any questions i had about anything; lensese, camera settings, business. she even gave me a few awesome tips and some of her own advice. she has so much knowlede and experience, i loved getting to pick her brain a bit! i really learned so much and this experience with jenna was priceless, it really helped me grow as a photographer and changed the way i shoot. amanda onstott

So kind, thanks Amanda! Here is a photo she took, I hope she won’t mine me sharing it here!

I’m going to be doing a little mini workshop of sorts with some friends this weekend, a sort of “momtog” lesson for the women I’m friends with who have dSLRs and are wanting to learn how to really get the most out of their cameras. Depending on the feedback I get back from them I may consider making them a regular occurrence for a small fee, available to dSLR users who just want to better understand how to utilize the fancy equipment they’ve invested in. If you are in Chicago or Dallas and would be interested in such a thing please email me!