Hannah and Blake | Wedding @ St. Anthony of Padua, Effingham IL

I don’t even know where to BEGIN about Hannah and Blake’s wedding, and it’s going to be a long one and it’s not because I’m paying favorites it is because this couple has been through a crazy ride to get to this wedding day, it’s worth sharing!

I’ll actually be honest, this wedding scared me to death. I don’t think I ever walk into a wedding with a “nothing will go wrong attitude” and I’m always prepared for the worst. I knew that there would be a lot of familiar faces at the wedding so that put me at ease but I also knew that I would be responsible for documenting the memories of this AMAZING couple and their very large bridal party. When someone tells me they are going to have a very large bridal party that usually causes me to want to breathe in and out into a paper bag. Normally, a large bridal party is a death sentence for productive time but NOT in Hannah and Blake’s case. They chose some amazing people to be in their wedding and they were nothing but cooperative and awesome for the entire day, I was SO impressed with their wedding party and I rarely get to say that. As a photographer sometimes you fight an uphill battle with a wedding party:  people don’t want to take pictures, they’d rather party, sometimes they can be drunk or disruptive or even sometimes rude but this was not the case. I can’t say enough about the families and the bridal party, shooting this wedding didn’t even feel like work, it was so enjoyable.

Hannah is a trooper, seriously. Anyone that knows her knows not only is she beautiful on the outside she is one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet. In the course of their wedding planning I know that they had a mishap with their planned honeymoon and then almost directly after that poor Hannah had to go out and find a completely new wedding dress. All through the mishaps she always kept the same positive attitude that I wished I had the ability to keep in my every day life. Instead of letting things get her down, her personality and good nature shined right on through knowing that the ONLY important thing about the wedding was that she and Blake were married and happy and she KNEW that was all that mattered. It is SO easy to forget that in all the craziness of planning and this couple, despite EVERYTHING that went wrong (even down to a church scheduling issue last minute), never forgot what was important.

Branches in Effingham was kind enough to graciously host us for morning hair and makeup and everything was relaxed and enjoyable. No one was injured in the champagne explosion but plenty of laughs were had. As always the ladies there did a flawless job preparing the bridal party and family. We had an amazing and relaxed space for preparations and I immediately fell in love with Hannah’s dress. This dress is exactly what I would chose for myself if I got married again, in all seriousness (to Doug, of course). The dress was flattering, beautifully styled, fit her to a T, AND had pockets! I was absolutely in LOVE with this dress, it was perfect for Hannah! We had some emotional first looks and some great bridal party shots before heading to the church. The ceremony was beautiful and touching and Hannah and Blake were beaming with happiness. We had some great family spots chosen for photos and even some curious horses that joined us for posing. Hannah found a four leaf clover during photos which can only mean a happy marriage! The Keller Convention Center was in full swing providing world class décor and food as well as a well-planned event. Katie, the wedding coordinator there is like the queen of weddings, she always does an amazing job taking care of the bridal party, the guests, and the vendors! I can’t say enough about the Keller Center and the fantastic job they do hosting events! Hannah and Blake booked this AMAZING band “Hey Jimmy” for their reception and I’m telling you there wasn’t a song they couldn’t play. They covered everything from Etta James to Uptown Funk and the entire dance floor was rocking, one of the best wedding entertainers I’ve ever seen. We left this wedding feeling energized and loving life, it really was a fantastic night. Hats off to their families and bridal party for being so awesome and to all the great vendors we worked with. We loved seeing so many familiar faces that we knew! Congrats Hannah and Blake it was an absolute pleasure to work with you both! Best wishes for a long and happy marriage!

-K+D

*Stay tuned because in a few weeks Key-Films will be featuring the wedding trailer of the happy couple!*