Downtown Milwaukee
Villa Terrace
Retzer Nature Preserve
& Formal Gardens
Historic Pritzlaff Building
Whistling Straits
Chenequa Country Club
Elle and Christian’s wedding day blog post is finally here! It feels like it’s been such a long time coming for this- they first booked me 18 months ago, and I’ve spent from then until last Saturday awaiting their special day. Despite meeting them both for the first night the night before their wedding, walking in to any room with these two makes you feel like you’re just old friends catching up. However, after meeting and knowing Christian and Elle, it’s not a surprise that their kind and hospitable selves were surrounded by the same kind of friends and family. I will never forget just how genuinely caring and helpful they are, asking to help with anything I needed, offering me drinks, holding my umbrella- literally any possible need was anticipated! That sort of thing leaves an impression on vendors that work 20+ weddings a year!
Chenequa Country Club
The wind caressed the side of the stone buildings that were nestled into the rolling green hills of Whistling Straits. The sunlight peeked through the leaves of the four pines and danced on the grass below. Golfers roamed the greens in the distance, and the river cutting through the 5th hole’s fairway brought an audible sense of calm. This might sound like any other day golfing for Kortney and Matt. But today was different; surrounded by their closest family and friends and steps from a tee box, they held their wedding.
Whistling Straits
“Love each other like your life depends on it, because it does.” Leah’s stepdad offered this advice in his speech before dinner, saying it as a sort of benediction over the room full of family and closest friends. The flickering candlelight mimicked the twinkle in everyone’s eyes as he closed by recounting the line of 200+ years of successful marriage in the generations that came before Leah and Mason. It was clear that though today was the start of something new, it was also very much a continuation of things that started long ago. I think that’s one of the beautiful paradoxes of marriage; though we are finite people, the legacy of your marriage lives on long after you do.
Historic Pritzlaff Building
It’s not often that I get to photograph at two of my favorite locations in one engagement session! I was so excited when Kristina reached out to me and expressed interest in both Retzer Nature Center AND Frame Park’s Formal Gardens. Both places are filled with so much beauty already, and then you throw Kristina and Will in there and it’s magic! Kristina and Will recently relocated to Wisconsin from Lake Forest, IL and this was a great way to show them around 🙂
When I asked about the proposal story, they both looked at each other and laughed. Will was so excited, he just pulled the ring out when they were in their kitchen and proposed! I think that’s so romantic, and it’s not the first time I’ve heard of guys being so excited/ feeling like the ring is a “hot potato” that they throw any kind of fancy plans out the window for the more immediate ask! Kristina and Will are getting married back in Lake Forest in 2022, and I couldn’t be more excited for them. Enjoy a few of my favorites from their engagement session!
Retzner Nature Preserve
& Frame Park Formal Gardens
Meet Ingrid and Jaron! I get a few butterflies in my stomach every time I’m about to meet new couples for the first time, but when they’re walking to me dressed like THIS?! Those butterflies are basically doing backflips haha!! They are as beautiful on the inside as the out, and romping around downtown Milwaukee/ the Third Ward with them was an ideal way to spend any Sunday evening. We started our session outside Milwaukee’s famous Public Market, capturing the beautiful flowers as well as the wonderful Colectivo in the background! The Third Ward has so many pretty spots to photograph in, so we just took a stroll around and found so many cute places!
Ingrid and Jaron have been together since they started college at Marquette and have a glamorous and fresh wedding planned for next July at The Legend at Merrill Hills Country Club. I love how much they love each other, and waiting until next July to photograph their wedding will be it’s own kind of test of my patience! Congrats, you two!!
Downtown Milwaukee
Caitlin and Rich’s Villa Terrace engagement session was one for the books! This venue might be my absolute favorite in all of Milwaukee- it’s not often that you feel like you’re in Italy here!! Villa Terrace’s old arches, columns, and sprawling Renaissance garden totally rivals the real stuff!
I met Caitlin when we were both in school at Loyola, so it was extra special to take her engagement photos (and next month, her wedding photos!). Caitlin and I both spent time studying abroad in Rome, so when she mentioned she was considering Villa Terrace as the backdrop for her engagement photos the nostalgia was REAL!
Villa Terrace