I photographed Colin’s sister's wedding in Peoria last year, and Alyssa loved the images from their wedding so much that she hired me to shoot their September Chicago wedding. For obvious reasons, that's one of my favorite parts of this story!
Alyssa was very detailed and thorough during the wedding planning process. This is fun for me because, on the flip side, some of the brides I work with are not. I love this variation. I find it challenging, and I love the fact that I can set any type of personality at ease with my level of flexibility and experience.
I arrived in Chicago the day before the wedding to scout out potential shooting locations with my Chicago-based portrait manager, Abbie. I even took a spin on a bike share Divvy bike along Lake Michigan and around Olive Park between Ohio Street Beach and Navy Pier to get a good feel for the scenery we’d be working with the next day.
The morning of Alyssa and Colin's wedding brought a little rain (that's supposed to be lucky for the bride and groom, right?), but each time we were getting ready to shoot specific photos outside, it either stopped raining or only slightly sprinkled. Yep, for a photographer, that's pretty lucky too!
The rooftop of the Hyatt House, where we shot pre-ceremony photos of Colin with his groomsmen and Alyssa & Colin's first look, provided a beautiful and scenic view of the Chicago skyline. Alyssa was stunning in her ivory mermaid gown and custom matching lace veil, both designed by Amy Szynal of Peoria's Adagio Bridal Boutique. Flowers for Dreams designed the floral arrangements. I shot a few more photos of the guys in the hotel bar while the girls finished getting ready in the bridal suite where hair stylist Debra Petrielli and makeup artist Laura Rose worked their magic. We then hopped on a party bus to Olive Park along the lakefront for formal photos of the wedding party.
The ceremony and reception both were held at City Winery in Chicago's West Loop. City Winery's event manager, Emily Fitzgerald, served as Alyssa and Colin's wedding coordinator. By the time the ceremony began, there was no rain in sight! As far as ceremonies go, this one rocked! Lester Carlstrom, Alyssa's father's cousin whom they refer to as Uncle Les, officiated. His father was a minister who performed the marriages of the previous generation! It's also notable that Alyssa served as maid of honor to her matron of honor, Alexandra Piatt, and Colin served as best man to his best man, Dan Sobodas. How fun!
Alyssa and Colin's guests enjoyed in-house catered Caesar salads along with seared filet and Scottish salmon followed by family-style mini desserts. The raspberry-filled lemon cutting cake was crafted by Alyssa's sister's friend, Katelyn Johnson of Kate's Cakes in Lombard. The wedding favors, lavender and sage cured salts, were also quite delightful! Using ingredients from local growers, they were created by Johanna of Pixie Dust Salts, whose products Alyssa had previously purchased at Randolph Street Market.
Alyssa was pretty excited for the father-daughter dance. She explained that her dad is a good dancer and such a wonderful father. They danced to "Have I Told You Lately" by Rod Stewart. The mother-son dance was quite memorable as well! Colin and his mom transitioned from a slow song into Prince’s "Let’s Go Crazy!" The combination of amazing music from Toast & Jam's DJ Mike Palmer along with Alyssa and Colin's fun crew kept the dance floor hopping until the very end. It was a magical event! I literally cried because of the amazing energy in the room. It truly was a day of soul-filling bliss!
