The wedding featured in today’s post was quite an unusual one for me. No, it wasn’t strange in any way or outlandish at all- my position was just a little foreign.Â
 I was a bridesmaid!
Before I go into the details of the day, I have to explain that I owe my own marriage to my own wonderful hubby to Jesse- the groom. Over four years ago, I knew Jesse as a customer who came to the restaurant I worked at for dinner every so often, since the restaurant was close to the house he was living in. One night he brought with him a tall, skinny guy I hadn’t seen before. Right away I was kind of interested because I knew Jesse as a guy with a great personality- so his friends had to have great personalities, too, right?Â
 Before he left that night, Eric had captured my attention…and the rest is history. So thank you, Jesse- to whom I owe my marital bliss!
As soon as I met Bridgette, we were instant friends. Bridgette is so warm, intelligent, honest, and sincere in everything that she does that I couldn’t help but love her right away and know we’d have much more in common than we discovered that first night. When Bridgette and Jesse began planning their wedding, Bridgette had a tough time deciding that she wanted me to stand up for her instead of photograph her wedding. I was really honored that she chose to have me as a bridesmaid, as difficult as it is for me to be a guest, and had an incredible time standing by her side on Saturday, August 15th, 2009. We all had such a blast- and to be honest, I was so teary all day that I’m not sure autofocus would have helped me through an entire wedding!
Luckily for me, my dear friends also chose a fantastic photographer – Armando Vera – to shoot their special day. Last week I caught Armando on Facebook and introduced myself as the “bridesmaid with the camera” that the couple may have mentioned. To my delight, Armando was happy to have me tote around my 5D and shoot alongside him throughout the day. So, I pulled a little double duty!
Here are some of the shots I was able to grab between my bridesmaid duties (which included ensuring that the beautiful bride had lunch: ladies, friends don’t let friends teeter down the aisle on an empty stomach!). Guys, I had an amazing day as a part of your wedding, and I wish you a lifetime full of love and happiness- and of course, nights out with good friends to reminisce on your gorgeous wedding!
In the morning, I accompanied Bridgette to MAC after both of our hairstyles were complete. It was too funny that she had hired my friend Barb to do her make-up! She looked just stunning:
Jesse gave Bridgette the sweetest wedding day gifts I have seen so far. He surprised her with a beautiful bouquet that was much more than she was expecting, and then he had one of their engagement images framed in a custom-engraved frame. It was so beautiful, and so sweet to watch Bridgette open her gift and be reminded on this special day of just how much she is treasured.
Our bridesmaid bouquets were crafted by Nikki, Jesse and Bridgette’s sister-in-law and a wonderful friend of mine. I took several images of mine in the downtime, but here’s my favorite!
I just LOVED Bridgette’s shoes! They made me wish I’d gone with something more stylish on my day. They don’t look like your average wedding shoes, so I know she’ll get lots more wear out of them! They’ll look so cute with jeans.
Bridgette’s Uncle Carl walked her down the aisle. Carl was such a ham throughout the day! I just love these two images I captured of him, just having a great time observing the wedding day events.
A lovely shot of Bridgette waiting outside the Marriott while we ladies in yellow piled into our limo:
Now, of course I didn’t get shots of the ceremony- I was too busy holding flowers and trying to keep the waterworks at bay! The ceremony was beautiful and unique, the highlight being a friend of the bride’s sister who sang “At Last” just after the vows. I did capture this shot of Armando (one of many action shots) through the limo window. I don’t think he could see me. Sneak attack!
During the portrait sessions, I was able to capture some candids and a few quick posed portraits. Aren’t the flower girl and ring bearer adorable? They’re twins that just moved to Madison, so I’m crossing my fingers that I’ll be able to see them again soon!
I snapped this one while Bridgette was posing for Armando. I love the frame created by her two family members casually observing the portrait session:
This is my favorite of the few shots I snuck in at the church. I just loved the chandeliers in there, and the colors were very cool, too. The entire church was just fantastic!
After the church, we moved on to a beautiful garden in Middleton. I’m not even sure what it was called- since I wasn’t driving, I didn’t pay attention! The shots there were very fun. Jesse (who is a budding photographer himself!) took my camera while we were doing girls shots and caught this shot of me and the other girls. I’m the second one:
I followed Armando around a bit and just LOVED this little vineyard-style row of grape plants.
Jesse’s brother was the best man, whose wife Nikki was also a bridesmaid. I got a very cute shot of the two of them all dolled up together!
On the way to the reception, we toasted with pink champagne. I LOVE pink champagne!
I’m so impressed with my wonderful hubby for deciding to pick up the camera I threw into his lap right before the grand entrance- he got some shots of their first dance, and a few more of me doing my bridesmaid thing!
Nice shot, my love…don’t do much more of this or I’ll force you to be my assistant.Â
Now I have to admit I’m not often at the reception for more than an hour at the most after the DJ starts up. As a bridesmaid, though, I partied the night away- which proved far more amusing with my trusty Canon in my hand. This reception was a P-A-R-T-A-Y! The bride changed into her “something blue” and everyone let loose to the smooth moves of DJ Chill. Let me tell you, we had fun!
Here’s a little soul train action, starring my own hubby:
Not sure exactly what’s going on here, but it was amusing.Â
The bride and groom took plenty of time to dance the night away!
Here are a few shots of their wonderful soloist- talk about a woman who can belt it out! When this amazing singer broke into her song, the entire church just about looked like they’d fall over in their seats! Her performance definitely merited this encore at the end of the night:
The very last treat of the evening, for me, was meeting a wonderful bride-to-be whose wedding is next April. We chatted away about weddings, photography, and all kinds of other fun stuff. Her wedding will be in Chicago, at what I hear is an amazingly beautiful venue with a modern theme. I snapped a few shots of her dancing with her sister and maid of honor, again the beautiful Nikki! I look forward to her wedding in 2010! She looks like she’ll be a very fun bride, doesn’t she?Â
Once again, to Bridgette and Jesse: Your wedding day was beautiful, touching, unique, and a very good reflection of who the two of you are as individuals and as a couple. I was so honored to be a part of it- I wouldn’t have missed it for the world!
Congratulations, Mr. & Mrs. Jesse Nelson!
by Mandie Haberman
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