Rayna at Always Planned called and asked me if I’d be open to shooting a wedding at the Opera House in Lexington.  Uhhhh….let me think about that.  YES!  Of course!

Anne-Bennett grew up in Kentucky and spent a lot of time watching performances at this theatre.  She’s been living in other states more recently, so this was a homecoming of sorts for her.  I love that she and Austin picked such a cool spot for their wedding.

Big thanks to all the great vendors!

venue: Lexington Opera House (Thank you all for helping out with the lighting! It rocked!)
hair: Amanda Reed
catering and linens: Lundy’s Special Events (Hey Kara!  You rock!)
live music: Tim Talbert Project
chairs: Purdon Rentals
makeup: Ana Crane-Simpson (Good seeing you again, Ana!)
flowers, decor, design, planning: Always Planned (Rayna—Your company’s name should be Always Awesome!)
ceremony music: Chanson Trio
cupcakes: BabyCakes (Tricia!  Oh. Em. Gee.  Those cupcakes were so good.  I had two.)
pipe and drape: AVT
car rental: Goldshield

Here are some highlights from the day!  Don’t forget the slideshow at the very end!

Anne-Bennett and Austin wanted to go ahead and knock out all of their pictures beforehand, so we arranged for their first look to be on the stage.  Talk about a picturesque moment!

These two were so sweet with each other during the first look.  They literally stood there for 5 minutes chatting and loving on each other.  Awesome.

Hello Miss Wedding Gown Model!  Way to rock that dress!

Great shot by Betsy.

Coolest part of the evening?  After their first kiss at the end of the ceremony, the curtain behind them was raised to reveal the reception setup.  The live band went right into a song, and Austin and Anne-Bennett had their first dance right then and there with the guests watching from their auditorium seating.  Pretty cool, eh?

And here’s the slideshow! When you’re finished, please feel free to leave me some comment love below and hook up with me on Facebook and Twitter. I love staying in touch with folks who stop by my blog. Thanks, y’all!

Oh, and lastly, to see all of the shots from the wedding and reception (there were tons more), click HERE and preregister. You’ll be notified here in a few days once they’re posted into a gallery. Thanks!

Do me a favor?  If you’re one of Holly’s and Vinay’s friends or family, please go HERE first and preregister to see ALL of their wedding images.  There are thousands….seriously.  I’ll have them up on the proofing site in the next week or so.  If you’re registered already, you’ll receive an email notification once they’re ready….and a gift credit toward purchases.  From there you’ll be able to look through all the shots and order some prints, etc.  Thanks!

Now for the slideshow….It is the biggest one I’ve ever put together.  You’re going to want to click play, then immediately pause it for a few minutes and let the show pre-load first before unpausing it.  Trust me, it will help the show run more smoothly.  When you’re finished, please leave a comment below and hook up with me on Facebook and Twitter.  I want to hear what you think!

To Holly and Vinay—Thank you for including me in this part of your lives.  You could’ve hired ANYBODY.  I’m sooooo stoked you picked me.  I loved being around you all, your friends and families.  Everyone was so warm and happy.  I’ll never forget it!

Last, but not least, give it up for the vendors!

VENUE

The Lexington Center

Contact:  Natasha Stamper

Phone:  859-233-4567 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              859-233-4567      end_of_the_skype_highlighting ext 3224

http://www.lexingtoncenter.com

Wedding Decor

Weddings Instyle

Contact:  Sima Patel

Phone:  513-307-4162

http://www.weddingsinstyle.net

Videography

Cineline Productions

Contact:  Matt Perry

Phone:  859-420-7024

http://www.cinelineproductions.com

Cake:

Tinker’s Cake Shop

Phone:  859-224-0639

http://www.tinkerscakeshop.com

Hyatt

Contact:  Amanda Sharp  (Sales)

Phone:  859-519-4136

Make-up

Contact:  Kayla Purkey

MAC cosmetics

Hairstylist

Contact:  Kinnari Shah

Phone:  859-533-9773

Catering

Punkaj Patel (Alabama)

Masala “Sunny”

Ramesh Patel

Horse

Contact:  Pendleton Farms

859-497-1716

D.J.

Raaz Entertainment

Contact:  Jay Rana

Phone:  732-397-1925

www.raazlive.com

Shooting this wedding was a photographer’s dream-come-true.  Everywhere I turned, there was beauty.  Uninhibited emotion, sacred rituals, warm people, over-the-top decor.  Sensory overload!  I loved it!

I’ve put a few of my favorites below, but I really want you to check out the slideshow.  There are plenty more images in there that best tell the story of those two days leading up to the wedding.

And be sure to check back in a couple of days.  I’ll be posting the images from the actual wedding day.  This is just the beginning!

The Haldi ceremony:

Holly’s and Vinay’s grandmothers were holding hands during much of this ceremony. So sweet.

During the Haldi ceremony, a turmeric paste is applied (quite generously this time) to the bride.  It’s supposed to give the bride glowing skin on the day of the wedding.  It worked, because Holly was gorgeous!

One of my favorite shots of Holly’s mother.

Once Holly had cleaned up from the Haldi, she and her parents took part in the Ganesh Puja ceremony.  Ganesh is the Hindu god known as the “remover of obstacles.”

Friday, we were at The Lexington Center (connected to the Hyatt Regency) for the Grah Shanti ceremony.

A cold refreshment is given to the guests during the ceremony.  What a great tradition.

Holly and her bridesmaids.

OMG.  Stunning, right?

The whole crew.

The fellas.

After the Grah Shanti, we moved to an adjoining section of the Lexington Center that had been setup for the Mehndi Sangeet.  It’s the big celebration preceding the actual wedding day.  It’s a great time for both families to meet, enjoy good food, dance, and have Mehndi artists apply henna to the hands of the women.

Funny story?  After I took this next picture, I thought, “Man, that particular dish looks awesome.  Must be an entree of some sort.  I have no idea what it is, but I’m going to make sure to get a large helping of it when I go through the buffet line.”  For those more familiar with Indian cuisine, you can imagine my shock after eating that large helping of pickle.

Holly with her bro Victor.

One of my favorite shots ever.

Holly and Vinay enjoying a dance performance put on by one of their family members.

These guys know how to dance.

Magnus grabbed this shot.  Pretty cool, eh?

Before you watch the slideshow, please go ahead and preregister HERE to see all of the images.  Once they’re released to the public view, you’ll be notified by email so that you can look through them and purchase prints.

And here’s the slideshow with almost 200 images!  Depending on your internet connection, it might take a few extra seconds to load.  It’s worth the wait!  Enjoy, and be sure to check back soon for the actual wedding day post. In the meantime, leave a comment below and connect with me through Facebook and Twitter.  Thanks! -shaun

Katie does such a great job with Carson.  Here she is planning some new activities to keep Carson from getting bored.

He’s recently discovered the camera on Katie’s cell.  And text messaging.  If you get message from Katie’s number and it has the alphabet, the numbers 20 to 1, or the word rhino (his favorite), I’m gonna go ahead and bet that it’s really from Carson.  Thank goodness he hasn’t figured out how to text the photos he’s taking.

One of the best things we keep downstairs is a Carson’s easel, drawing paper and markers.  If you haven’t noticed it before, Carson always opens his mouth wide when concentrating.

If you have kiddos and don’t already have one of these Display and Storage Frames from Target, do it.  Get a few of them and put them in a series somewhere in your home.  The frame opens like a book almost, so that you can easily change out new artwork.  Where to put the artwork being replaced?  How about in the handy little pocket inside?  Cool idea.

Here’s a hippo, tree, grass and sun.  I might be biased, but I think it’s pretty dang awesome.

Carson took this picture of Katie and me.  I dialed in the settings, but he was the one sighting us up in the viewfinder and pushing the shutter release.  I put the camera body on the floor to make things easier.  Pretty nice shot, eh?

A few weeks ago, we spent a few days in Cincinnati taking in the Newport Aquarium and the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal.  In the absence of having  a tripod, the old wide-angle camera-on-the-ground self portrait is a good call.

Thanks for stopping by!  -shaun

Brandi Romines at Happy As A Lark Cakes created an airplane cake for the party.  I can assure you that this cake tasted just as awesome as it looked.  Brandi is amazing.

Is Jacob handsome or what?

Love this shot.

Okay, so maybe Dad had to help out with the candle-blowing a bit, but hey—it’s all good.

Kisses from mommy go great with ice cream and cake.

We tried to get Jacob to sit with his parents for this shot, but as an independent 2-year-old, I guess he figured it was time to create some space. Ha!

What a sweet family.

Whitney—After being around you and Evie for just a few minutes, I could already tell that you’re an amazing mommy.  How did I know?  The way you are with your daughter is really similar to the way Katie is with our Carson.  Evie has a healthy self-esteem and a sweet spirit.  That doesn’t happen by accident.  It’s from you!

As a reward for doing such a good job during the shoot, Evie got to take a pic with my camera.  Nice shot of me and Whitney, right?

If you enjoyed this post, leave me some comment love, yo!  I’d love for you all to stay in touch through Facebook and Twitter, too.  Thanks for stopping by!

Kristie did a fantastic job planning the wedding.  She even called/emailed me several times looking for advice on elements of the day that weren’t directly photo-related, but that would ultimately affect the photography (colors, location for hair/makeup, order of events, scheduling).  I love helping out with that stuff.  It gives me a chance to make things easier on the bride and groom, and it makes for better photography.

To Kristie and Nick—You were awesome to work with.  I’m so happy that you chose me to be your wedding photographer.  It was fun making the trip, and I’m really thrilled with how everything turned out.  Stay in touch!

Thanks to these vendors who made the day perfect:

Hair – Impulse Hair Studio and Day Spa

Makeup – Absolute Beauty Day Spa

Ceremony Venue – Neu Chapel (University of Evansville)

Flowers – Robin’s Nest

Musicians – Henry Maurer (Pianist), Sam Barnett (Violinist).

Cake  – Icing On The Cake and Kristie Jenkins Freihaut (yep—the BRIDE decorated the cake—awesome!)

DJ – Millenium Entertainment

Reception Venue and Catering – The Centre

Videography – Jason Welden

And lastly—thank you to my second shooter Betsy Whiteman for traveling out-of-town for the weekend to help out.  You’re always a huge help!

Betsy nailed this shot.  Stunning.

All of the pictures will be available HERE, so please feel free to go ahead and pre-register to see them.  You’ll get a gift credit toward print purchases for signing up.  Also, I’d love it if you’d connect with me on Facebook and/or Twitter.  I love hearing from readers and staying in touch with the friends and families of my clients.

Thanks for stopping by, y’all!  Enjoy the highlights slideshow!

Katie and I work really hard to always make sure that Carson has new experiences and opportunities for personal growth.  Of all of the classes and groups that we’ve been a part of with Carson, he has been the most interested toward the Kids Yoga class at Bliss Wellness Center.

Katie took Carson the first couple times, and she would come home telling me about the incredible instructor Kara, who would take Carson’s interests (dinosaurs, animals) and develop around them playful, imaginative yoga.  I just had to meet her and see what this was all about.  Of course, I brought my camera, too.

I was shocked by how well Carson did.  He can really rock some poses!  Most impressive, though, was the genuine warmth that Kara exudes.  She has the ability to bring fun and peace to a room.  Like a super-hero.  So cool.

Bliss Wellness isn’t just about kids yoga, though.  They offer a variety of services–yoga, pilates, massage, reflexology, reiki, meditation, acupuncture and Chinese herbs, Phoenix Rising yoga therapy, life coaching, and counseling.

I’m passionate about my businesses, and I can’t help but want to cheer-lead for other people who are fervently pursuing their own.  So after you check out these shots from Carson’s yoga class, I really want to encourage you to check out Bliss Wellness Center.  You’ll be so happy you did!

In addition to photographing their tasty products, we also spent some time photographing the Henderson’s two daughters, Cara and Amanda.  It’s only fitting that they appear in the advertising, since the company’s name was derived from their first names.  They did great and were more than happy to help out with setting up the cupcakes.  After some posy shots, we let them run for a bit and then dive into some baked goodness.  Best part of the shoot?  Melissa sent me home with a dozen of the cupcakes.  Score!