Atalya & Chase: Black Tie Wintergarden at PPG Place Wedding Day

This was an incredible day for an incredible couple! Atalya & Chase are one of the kindest, most sincere couples - and their friends and family are just as lovely! This was truly such a joyful day to be a part of from start to finish - a true Pittsburgh wedding day!

Atalya and her bridesmaids began their day at the Pittsburgh Fairmont. This was my first time taking photos here… and I have to say, it was such a beautiful location! You can see so much of downtown from the floor to ceiling windows… including PPG Place, Atalya & Chase’s reception venue!

Chase & his groomsmen got ready at his apartment. Each groomsman was gifted a custom jersey with his last name on the back… such a fun gift!

The ceremony took place at Heinz Chapel, quite possibly one of the most iconic churches in all of Pittsburgh. After family portraits, we were able to sneak in a few photos of Atalya & Chase in some different spots around the interior of the church. And I say “sneak” because Heinz Chapel hosts TONS of weddings, so they run a very tight ship when it comes to timelines… so extra photos in addition to family portraits on the altar are not always possible. But thankfully, we were running a bit ahead of schedule, and there weren’t any other weddings on the books for the rest of the day (love a Friday wedding! 🙌).

One of my favorite moments of this wedding day was when Atalya, Chase, and their bridal party stopped at the place where they had their first date - Lefty's in the Strip District! It was so worth the pit-stop, and such a beautiful way to commemorate the beginning of their relationship to bring things full circle! Their whole bridal party took a shot to celebrate, and off we all went to the reception!

The reception took place at the iconic Wintergarden at PPG Place in the heart of downtown. This was my first wedding here, and I absolutely LOVE this space! There is much natural light. It’s modern, clean, classic, and everything you would want in a wedding venue. And as a bonus… it is walking distance from the Fairmont, where many of their guests were staying!

The reception was full of heartfelt toasts, a huge cookie table, and a killer band (Go Go Gadjet) that kept guests dancing all night and put on an incredible performance!

Atalya and Chase, it was truly such a pleasure to be a part of your day. Congratulations on your marriage!

This beautiful day was made possible by an incredible team of vendors. I have to give a huge shout out to Vanessa from Alyssa Thomas Event Planning & Design, who coordinated the wedding day and kept every detail in place. She was absolutely incredible!

Vendors: Alyssa Thomas, Event Planning & Design, Community Flower Shop, Bridal Beginning Pittsburgh, Go Go Gadjet, Jeremy Scott films, Beacon Lane Wedding Invitations, Antonette Medved Makeup Co, Emma Hathworth (hair), Oakmont Bakery, Wintergarden at PPG Place, Pittsburgh Fairmont, Lefty's

Lauren M: Hartwood Acres Mansion Senior Photos

Lauren was a joy to photograph a few weeks ago at Hartwood Mansion! It was toasty & humid, but I'm not sure you would know it from these photos She was such a pro!

Lauren is a life-long dancer - since she was about 3 years old, to be exact! She does lots of different types of dance, and chose to incorporate her pointe shoes into some of her photos! She hopes to go into Psychology and work with children - she loves kids, loves helping people, and loves chit-chatting, making it a perfect fit!

I absolutely LOVE the outfits Lauren chose for her photos! She opted for a short dress, a long dress, and a blouse with white jeans. The variety of her outfits gave us lots of different opportunities for posing and movement!

Congrats Lauren on your senior year!

Brianna & Andrew: Moraine State Park Engagement Photos

Meet Brianna & Andrew!

These two met online! After their first date, they both knew they had found their best friend (Their words, not mine!)

After a few years of dating, Andrew proposed (in March of this year) and of course Brianna said yes!

Last night, we took some photos celebrating their engagement at the beautiful Moraine State Park - a place they frequent with both of their dogs! I love that they chose a location that was meaningful to the two of them... and so beautiful!

We found a GORGEOUS field with absolutely beautiful light… it was magical! And then we finished off our time together closer to the water. I love the area near the water right before/at sunset… the light is always so soft and pretty!

Congratulations on your engagement, Brianna & Andrew! It was such a joy to take these photos for you!

Hartwood Acres Mansion Summer Family Photos

I had the pleasure of photographing this sweet family of three - Freya & her parents - on a lovely summer evening at Hartwood Acres Mansion.

I went to school (middle & high school) with Jourdain (Freya's dad). There is something truly wonderful about getting to see people from your past who are thriving in new seasons of life! It truly brought so much joy to my heart to get to see this family thriving as a family of three!

Lauren (Freya's mom) had such a lovely vision for the session - serene, candid, romantic, joyful - and chose beautiful outfits to match the space we were taking photos in, as well as the vibe of the session as a whole! I just adore how these turned out.

Thank you three for letting me capture these sweet, fleeting moments!

Deidre & Paul: Summer Irons Mill Farmstead Wedding

Deidre & Paul’s wedding was a BLAST to photograph at one of the most beautiful venues - Irons Mill Farmstead! It's been quite a few years since I've photographed a wedding here, and I was so excited to be back!

Deidre & Paul’s wedding day featured a lavender color palette with lots of greenery - but the most important piece there for them was the people they invited to share the day with them! We took the majority of their portraits prior to the ceremony so they would have time to mingle during cocktail hour and chat with their guests - something that was so important to them!

We couldn't have asked for a more fun day with these two, and with their friends & family - thank you Deidre and Paul for letting us be a part of it!

Vendors: Irons Mill Farmstead, Butterfly Wish Bouquets, Pastries A La Carte, DianaRua Media (DJ), Sin Pretty Beauty Salon, The Exquisite Bride (bride's dress), Medure's Catering

Lindsey & Brody: Butler Private Estate Wedding Photos

What a wedding day! Lindsey & Brody tied the knot in a beautiful garden & floral themed wedding day on Brody's grandfather's property this past weekend, where his parents were also married 26 years ago.

Lindsey & Brody met in middle school and have been together for many years - so this day has been a long time in the making! There were so many beautiful details incorporated into their day, including:

• Lindsey’s veil, with the couple's initials and wedding date embroidered onto it

• Lindsey's grandmother's ring, which served as inspiration for her own engagement ring (and served as her something old, borrowed, and blue!)

• The florals, which included flowers from both Lindsey & Brody's birth months

Aside from all of the special details, this day had a few twists and turns. Honestly, this may have been one of the most eventful weddings I’ve ever photographed! And of course, the couple took all of these in stride. There were storms, power outages, and a fallen cake table (just to name a few - you won’t want to miss the photos we got of that! ;) ), but what really impressed me about Lindsey & Brody is how they kept their focus on water mattered most in the midst of it all.

Because this was such a beautiful and eventful wedding… this blog post is HUGE! There were so many photos that tell the story of the day that I just couldn’t bear to leave out. So get your scrolling finger ready for a workout!

It was truly a privilege to be a part of this wedding day! Thank you Lindsey & Brody for having us!

Vendors: EHWeddingspgh (Coordinator), All About Reclaimed (Florist), Beyond Imagination Films (Video), Soundwaves Entertainment Group (DJ), Prima Capelli Salon (Hair), Sorelle Bridal Salon (Bride's dress), Zazzle (Invitation), Medure's Catering, Ambassador Tent Rentals (various rented pieces), Almost Like Home Restrooms, Walktail Mobile Bar, Chance Kelosky (Officiant)

Lindsey's grandmother's ring above (her something borrowed, old, and blue) inspired the design of her own engagement ring! I love this shot of them side by side.

Lindsey's parents and Brody's parents after the ceremony ❤️

Brody's grandfather built this lake and dock (not pictured that he also build: a log cabin!) for him and his cousins when they were younger as a gift. I love that we were able to get photos of him and Lindsey here!

This was the beautiful cocktail hour space inside the barn, next to the reception tent. It felt so homey!

One angle of the cake encounter...

The bride & groom took this so well! Lindsey isn't a huge fan of cake so it wasn't a huge deal to them!

They DID cut the cake, but in case you're wondering... no, they did not feed it to each other! They used ice cream instead!

Another fun detail about this wedding day: the groom and his friends had a fantasy football league, and the loser of it had to sit at a table across the field during the wedding reception. 😆

And it was a pretty big field.

You wouldn't be able to tell from our photos (since our lights light up the reception tent!) but a few times, the generator for the power went out and there was almost complete darkness for lengths of time!

Rachel & Boaz: University of Pittsburgh Engagement Photos

Meet Rachel & Boaz!

These two met while attending the University of Pittsburgh through Rachel's roommate, and got to know each other while they were both attending Bellefield Presbyterian Church (in Oakland) during their time at Pitt!

Boaz proposed to Rachel in the church's sanctuary after playing the piano for her... so it's a very special place for them both!

For their engagement session, we, of course, took photos all around Oakland! We started off our time together at Bellefield Presbyterian. It has some gorgeous red doors and beautiful architecture for us to incorporate into their photos! Afterwards, we made our way to some different spots on Pitt's campus. It was the most gorgeous sunny afternoon... and made for the loveliest photos!

Rachel & Boaz, you are the sweetest and I am so excited for your wedding day!

Zelienople Professional Headshots

I had the lovely pleasure of photographing a mini headshot session around the town of Zelienople a few weeks ago - and it was such a treat! As a local to Zelienople myself, I was so excited when Chrissy reached out to ask if I would have any availability to take a few professional portraits of both her and her husband.

We walked up and down main street and found a great variety backdrops to work with!

And a huge thank you to my neighbor Holly for assisting me with this session!

Spring Hartwood Acres Mansion Family Photos

I had the honor of photographing this sweet family mini session a few weeks ago at Hartwood Acres!

We've known (and photographed) Kim & Darren since before they were married... and has been so beautiful to see how God has grown them from two into a family of five! They are some of the kindest people you will meet... and they have some beautiful testimonies of how God has worked in their lives, most recently with the birth of their youngest, Eliza!

Congratulations on your beautiful family of five, Kim & Darren!

Sofia L: Hartwood Acres Mansion Senior Photos

Meet Sofia!

Sofia is graduating with the class of 2024 this spring! She plans to study elementary education post high school. She loves sweets (and works at an ice cream shop! ), and believe it or not, she is the third senior in her family I've had the joy of photographing at Hartwood Acres Mansion!

We weren't sure how the weather situation was going to play out the evening of her session... but at the last minute, we decided to go for it! And I'm so glad we did. It turned out to be a gorgeous evening, and we almost had the whole mansion area to ourselves during her session!

If you're wondering where Sofia's gorgeous pink dress is from... it's the "Emma Smocked Tulle Dress" from Baltic Born! Her red dress is from Abercrombie.

Congratulations to Sofia on her senior year!