At Kristen and Ryan’s Brookside Country Club wedding we endured every kind of weather you can expect in July it seemed like.  From humidity so thick it was almost soup, to a torrential downpour when their ceremony was supposed to start, to a beautiful evening with a spectacular sunset – Kristen and Ryan’s wedding day had every kind of weather you could throw at it.  The one thing that remained cool about the day was Kristen and Ryan.  Neither one of them were terribly fussed over what happened and it was yet another wedding with crazy weather where I was lucky enough to have clients that were not too concerned about it.  It all worked out in the end though, after a slight delay (and quick action from the country club) the ceremony still took place outside, the reception went off without a hitch and we were lucky enough to be able to go outside for a spectacular sunset!

Kristen and Ryan have SO much chemistry that it almost made me feel like I wasn’t working at all.  Before the wedding they stressed how they were not really into being overly posed and I worried that it may impact their day but I needn’t have worried because these two just are naturally adorable together.  Their chemistry combined with the gorgeous backdrop of Brookside Country Club’s golf course made for some gorgeous portraits as you will see below without having to direct them much at all.  It was perfection!

I also wanted to give a shout out to the friends and family of the couple.  Everyone was so amazingly kind and the family even had me sitting with them for dinner!  It was such a perfect day and I am honored to have been a part of it.

Congratulations to you both!  Thank you so much for trusting me with your wedding day!

Bridal Gown: Sarah Janks via White of Dublin / Bridesmaid Gowns: Adrianna Papell / Cake: All Occasions Bakery / Ceremony & Reception: Brookside Country Club / DJ: Billy Manos / Florist: The English Garden / Menswear: J. Crew / Officiant: A New Way of Hope Weddings / Videographer: HD Blue Skies Video

 I adored Kristen’s gown, it was just the right thing for a hot July day!

Her shoes were also amazing!

While Kristen’s Mom was buttoning up her gown, her bridesmaids were playing one of her favorite songs and she couldn’t help but shimmy her shoulders to the beat.

I love this image of her Maid of Honor helping her put her shoes on,

Meanwhile, upstairs, we heard there was a bit of a crisis with the men… particularly one groomsman.  He put his pants on and they split.

In a stroke of luck though J Crew had accidentally sent him two pairs instead of one and we were able to get the second pair en route to us pronto.

We delayed the first look a smidge and had to tell Kristen why… and this was her reaction.  I love when my clients just roll with the disasters that sometimes come with weddings.  Luckily this one was easily solved because the rip was pretty bad and would have been tough to sew.

The pants were almost on site so we went ahead and got the first look and bride and groom portraits underway while the pants were being sorted since rain was moving in.  We decided on the ceremony location since it was the easiest location to escape inside in case of rain.  Their first look was perfection!

The radar showed that the round of rain nearby was juuuust going to miss us so we headed out onto the course for some quick portraits before the next round of rain came.

I loved this portrait of them walking towards the next stop for pictures!

Just so you know, even if you don’t like being posed I’m still going to make you do the traditional “look at the camera and smile” pose because trust me, you need at least one – and how cute are they???

This was when I breathed a sigh of relief because they did this unprompted and I realized that their “not posing” day was going to be a breeze.

I don’t know why but I LOVE this image.

We brought the bridal party out while we were still rain free and the pants had arrived in time!

How beautiful is this bridal party all together?  I loved that the guys just had suspenders, such a smart decision for a hot summer wedding!

You can see the skies are pretty angry in most of these pics, while we did still have some rain, we really did get lucky in that most of the storms missed us by just a few miles.

I must confess, I’m obsessed with these bridesmaid gowns!  I loved how Kristen chose the long version for her maids of honor and the short for the bridesmaids!

The white bouquets were the perfect touch with the gold gowns!

There was a beautiful grassy area down a bit further on the course that was within walking distance and I’m glad we were able to make it down there.

See what I mean about the skies?? They were intense!

Speaking of intense…

However I couldn’t decide between the above and the smiling portrait so you get both sides of Ryan!

Kristen was such a beautiful bride!

I loved the simple and elegant look she had on her wedding day.

As we were walking back the rain started up but luckily they had an umbrella to keep them dry.

The first rain (above) let up pretty quickly but just before the wedding ceremony was to start we finally got hit by one of the many storms in the area.  Luckily Brookside Country Club was quick to pull inside anything that could have been damaged by the rain and once the rain stopped they quickly moved in to dry up the seats and laid down some tablecloths for an aisle runner so Kristen’s dress wouldn’t get muddy!  I’m glad that they made the decision to still get married outside and opted to move the ceremony start time back just a smidge!

I loved their fan programs!

This is why I’m glad they held out for the outdoor ceremony!  Unless you were there, you’d never have known it was a downpour 15 minutes  before!

Ryan walking down the aisle…

…and waiting for his bride.

I loved that Kristen was escorted down the aisle by her parents!

Also, I just want to say how much I ADORED Kristen’s Mom’s gown.  So pretty!

It was seriously a beautiful service!

The best man pretended he’d lost the rings in a gag that everyone got a laugh out of.

The ring exchange was perfect!

The kiss!

After the ceremony the videographer needed some time and allowed me to come along.  I’m so glad she did because the light was so golden and the skies had lost their anger and it was a beautiful time for portraits!

Once we returned from our quick jaunt outside for portraits we went back to the ballroom which was beautifully set.

Their first dance was how they decided to kick off the reception and it was perfection.

They then moved over to cut their delicious cake from All Occasions Bakery while everyone looked on.

The toasts were the perfect balance of sentimental and funny and I loved the way that the tables were set up so that Kristen and Ryan could be toasted without any awkward toast-dancing (if you’ve been to a wedding you know what I mean – when the person giving the toast has to choose to either look at the couple and away from the guests or to the guests and not the couple).

After dinner and before the evening started back up we noticed the sky was alight with beauty and Kristen and Ryan were game for going outside for a few portraits with the sunset.  I’m SO glad they did!

Once we went back inside the remainder of the reception at Brookside Country Club was underway – which included some fantastic greek dancing!

I always love when DJs make sure to throw in some slow songs through the night – especially when I can end my night with a portrait like this!