Lora and Justin were married in a beautiful stone church in Pigeon Falls, WI, just a stones throw to the south of Eau Claire on picturesque Highway 53.  If you’ve never been to the west central WI area, I recommend you bookmark this webpage, get into your car, and start driving because it’s absolutely, unequivocally, amazing countryside.  There are rolling fields and barns on EVERY CORNER and halfway in between – and anyone who knows me well, knows I have a slight obsession of barns and tall grass.  I found myself seriously considering, more than once, whether I could persuade any of my portrait clients to drive that far for a session.  It’s that gorgeous – seriously.  But I digress.
The couple chose to wait until the ceremony to see each other – a choice not often made these days – but with excellent planning of the day, we had plenty of time for portraits, family and wedding party photos in multiple locations, and even stopped at a local watering hole for good measure before continuing on to Eau Claire for a night of dinner and dancing.

During all the hustle and bustle of the day, the bride and groom couldn’t take their eyes off each other.  It’s always the little things – a sideways glance, brush of the hand or peck when no one’s looking – that make it so blatant a couple is utterly in love.  Lora and Justin couldn’t fool the world if they tried – they’re meant for each other and are absolutely, undeniably smitten.
Gives me the warm fuzzies just thinking about it. :)

Congratulations Justin and Lora – thanks for inviting me to share in your day!

As always, if 25 people comment directly to this post, I’ll send a little something special their way as a token of my thanks!

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Fast forward to early Fall, 2011, and almost 200 of their closest friends traveled the few hundred miles from WI,  IL, CA and the likes for a weekend of festivities that surrounded Monica and Josh’s union at the Wild Eagle Lodge in Eagle River, WI (snowmobile capital of the world, for those of you that didn’t know).  Monica is a Graphic Designer by trade, so she planned, designed, and executed every detail down to the stands the placecards sat on.  Can I just say… Ah-Maz-Ing!?!  Coupled with the natural beauty of the surrounding chain of lakes and tall pines, the overall effect was beautiful.  It really was the perfect setting for such a fabulous couple.

I had the pleasure of being accompanied by the ever fabulous Casey V. over the weekend and boy did we have an amazing time!  We both commented more than once about how their friends and family were so genuinely warm and welcoming and how utterly, fabulously in love the bride and groom are.  It must be the Northwoods – as my husband says, “it’s God’s country” you know.  It’s magical.

What better way to celebrate than an intimate voyage on a pirate ship?  Captain Steve provided a fabulous venue for the wedding party to unwind before dinner.  What’s that you say?  A Pirate Ship in Eagle River?!?!  Who Knew?!?!  But, it was crazy awesome and I highly recommend it!

Man, Chicago knows how to dance!!!   The dance floor was packed the ENTIRE night – Monica and Josh’s guests were rockstars!

**UPDATE** – I almost forgot! 
If 25 people comment on this post, Monica and Josh will receive a little something special from me, so let’s see your comments! :)

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tag yourself at: facebook.com/amberengferphotography !!

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To start things off right, I think I’ll post a few quickies in the next few days – sessions from this summer, some of which you may have seen sneak peeks to on my Facebook page here.

Little miss Ella!

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Even with the weather, the scenery was beautiful – there’s just something about a still lake on a cold day that mesmerizes me – add a super fantastic couple in the mix and I think we nailed it!

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On to part two of E+B’s fantabulous wedding festivities.  We were able to venture towards the capitol for wedding party photos and ooooh, man, am I glad we did!  I could’ve shot there all day if there wasn’t a ceremony to be had!!!

Emmaly’s grandfather built the bride and groom a beautiful wooden box that the officiant incorporated into the ceremony.  Friends and family contributed notes and well wishes to accompany a special bottle of wine and letters Emmaly and Brent wrote to each other.  The bride and groom then locked the box with keys from their fathers and vowed to open it on their 5th wedding anniversary.  It was such a unique and touching ritual; I had a hard time focusing with the tears in my eyes!

Last but not least – Emmaly and Brent set up a DIY photo booth for guests and it was the hit of the party! (that and the late night nacho bar!!)  I highly recommend a photo booth as a fun way to capture your guests through out the night – as you can see from below, the props even made it out to the dance floor!

Congrats Emmaly and Brent – thanks so much for letting me be a part of your day!

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Emmaly and I have been friends for more years than I care to divulge – having worked together in college at the local Supper Club (how’s that for Midwestern-ness for ya?)  I taught her everything she knows about schlepping prime rib and the art of White Merlot.  For real – all me.  But I digress.  When Emmaly asked me to photograph her wedding, I was humbled, a little nervous, and super excited, because I knew this wedding was going to be fabulous!

The festivities took place at Inn on the Park, which is a bea-u-ti-ful hotel with amazing views of Wisconsin’s capitol in Madison, WI.  The entire wedding party was up for anything, and since Emmaly works for the hotel, I had *almost* free reign of the place.   Of course, I took full advantage and *may* have pulled furniture in from the down the hall, to the roof and back, etc.  At any rate, it was all worth it. I took so many shots that I just loooove, I’ve deemed it necessary to split the wedding day into two posts.  So, sit back and enjoy – then come back in a few days and check out a few more!

Oh, and lastly, I thought I’d try something new.  If at least 25 people comment directly to this post, I’ll be sending Brent and Emmaly a little gift as a token of my appreciation!

The first look was done on the roof of the hotel – just a small perk of working for the hotel you hold your wedding at…

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This girl is seriously awesome – she’s really into music and art and animal rights, and is brave enough to be a vegetarian in an area of WI that’s a real meat and potatoes kind of place.  She and I clicked right away and had a blast driving around town scouting out the perfect photo locations – two hours later I had to make myself stop shooting!
Thanks for an awesome morning Sonja – have a great senior year and good luck! :)

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Katy and Adam married this summer in the beautiful Northwoods town of Eagle River, Wisconsin.  The nuptials took place at Katy’s parent’s amazing home and it really couldn’t have been more perfect!  Everyone that was a part of the wedding was absolutely fabulous – incredibly warm and welcoming and so genuinely happy for Katy and Adam that even the 5 minutes of rain which drizzled down just before the ceremony couldn’t dampen their spirits.  They thought of everything down to the tiniest detail, and so the party was epic, like any Wisconsin wedding should be, after all!

Katy has been a huge fan of The Wizard of Oz since she was just a wee one, so hints from the story were incorporated throughout the day, including her fabulous ruby slippers and a real, honest to goodness, yellow brick road that her family laid as a surprise the night before!

What do you get when you mix the Spam Capital of the World with the Snowmobile Capital of the World?
Well, a super fly wedding party that can’t help but dance themselves down the aisle!

The Bride and her family collected vintage china, silverware, and table linens a year in advance for the reception – I was in heaven!

Of course, no Northwoods wedding is complete without a bonfire and fireworks – the display was amazing and the perfect end to such an awesome celebration!
Congrats Katy and Adam!!

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In the last few weeks, I had the pleasure of shooting Kelli and Nick’s beautiful farm wedding in Cannon Falls, MN:

Jennae and Elliot’s oh-so-fabulous St. Paul wedding:

A high school senior session with my ridiculously cute cousin, Elisabeth:

Baby Nora’s 1 year photos – can you believe she’s already a year old!!?

And some amazing photos of soon-to-be-High School Senior, Sonja:

Needless to say, it’s been a busy summer!  Lots of fun blog candy to come, so be patient my friends!

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