Katie and Michael | Wedding @ Shumway, IL

We survived the July wedding season! Typically July is full of humidity and heat misery but this July was actually kind to us (for the most part) while we had the warm weather we had several Saturday’s in there with near perfect summer weather and breezes for days but for Katie and Michael’s wedding it was a tad warmer but we had a great breeze and a wonderful couple to work with. Katie is one of the sweetest brides ever, she always thinks of others and is so compassionate and friendly. This was confirmed by the multiple speeches at the wedding that confirmed my observation of Katie’s personality as well as Michael’s. While Michael was out braving the heat he also managed to laugh at a few of our jokes so we are fairly certain he’s a great guy 😉 We started the morning at Side Street Salon where Katie and her bridesmaids gathered for pre-wedding prep and fun followed by some detail shots of Katie’ s dress and shoes at St. Mary’s Church in Shumway. Katie chose the most beautiful dress for her big day and we loved how she had beautiful hair and jewelry details to go with it! We started morning photos before the ceremony and thankfully were graced with a nice breeze and were able to get in a lot of outdoor formals before Katie walked down the aisle to let Michael see her for the first time. He had such a sweet reaction and it was a memorable moment. After the ceremony was over and our newly married couple exited the church to a sea of bubbles we headed into church for more formal shots before boarding the party bus over to the park for some outdoor shots. We had plenty of time to enjoy and take advantage of the outdoor locations and Katie and Michael were a dream to shoot photos of. We headed to the Effingham Event Center for the reception and Katie’s wedding vision was stunning with amazing decor, a cool photo booth area, and some great food from Deb’s catering. We listened to some touching speeches from Katie’s dad and the bridal party talking about the kind of amazing people Katie and Michael were. We loved hearing the touching stories and interacting with the family. It was a fantastic day! We were able to squeeze in a few sunset shots giving Katie and Michael a bit of a break before heading back in to their dance and reception. The guests were having a blast at the dance and we enjoyed the evening a lot! We are so thankful Katie and Michael chose us to document their big day with photo and video, we know they will have a blissful life together. Congrats Katie and Michael!

-The Keys