Mr. & Mrs. Nawrot

Olivia messaged me about a year ago looking for wedding photographers for their October 23rd, 2016 wedding. I had shot one of her friends weddings and thats how they had heard about me. We met in February of 2016 and were able to sit down and chat about the different packages and options that I had available. It was so great to meet her and her fiancé (at the time), Kevin. They were such sweet people and seemed quite excited to have me photograph their wedding! I thought we were a perfect fit!

The day of the wedding, I met Olivia and her bridesmaids at the Hyatt Place Hotel where we captured some getting ready shots and her getting into her dress. My second shooter for the day, Jordan Parham, met the groomsmen at one of their homes. Adding a second shooter to your day allows me to give you all of the best moments. My second shooter will capture some of those candid moments that I may not be able to get while I am busy with the bride and groom. It basically allows me to be in two places at once and gives you quite a few more images to choose from.

It was a gorgeous fall day and our couple wanted to do a first look. Kevin was awaiting his bride at Aman Park in Grand Rapids. Olivia, the bridesmaids, and I walked through the woods to find the rest of the group. Kevin was already set and waiting in a nice little private trail where they would be able to see each other for the first time. First looks are amazing on wedding days. They allow you to get those wedding day jitters off your chest before you have to walk down the aisle. I also love them because it gives us a lot of extra time to capture those wonderful images of you on your big day.

After we went walking through the woods it was time to get down to business and get this couple to their wedding celebration. Their ceremony and reception took place at Johnson Park. It was a beautiful park. Everything was so simple but so stunning at the same time.

They were surrounded by friends and family at their wedding and reception. We had a wonderful soup bar to choose from for dinner with salad and bread (it was delicious!). They decided they wanted to do a sparkler send off as well so we played a little bit with the sparklers before I headed home for the evening.

It was a pleasure getting to know these two and seeing their love for each other. I was so happy to have been able to photograph such important moments for them and I wish them the best of everything to come in the future. They deserve it!

My partner and I over at Brick Street Studio just booked our first destination wedding! We will be heading to Washington D.C. in July and we are definitely looking forward to it. We will only be taking on 3 more weddings in 2017 but we are ready to start booking for 2018. Packages start at $1450 and there are Create Your Own options available.

Brown to Bailey

My fiancé and I just recently had our first photo session done that wasn’t by me or my best friend. These images were taken by our wedding photographer, Marisa Henry, she allowed me to edit them but she did a wonderful job shooting! Check out Marisa’s work on her website.

I wanted to share these because I honestly cannot stop looking at them and I cannot wait to get some of these enlarged and hung up on the walls in our new house. For those of you that don’t know, we have officially moved to Ionia. We have been living here for about a month now and we absolutely love it. I must admit, I was so nervous to move back to Ionia. I loved living in Grand Rapids, having everything I could ever need right at my finger tips. However, now that we have been here I realize I truly missed that small town living. I just love that there is not much traffic to deal with!

I was nervous moving my business back to my home town but I think it will turn into one of the best decisions we have made! My studio space is roughly the same set up, its a tad smaller but hey we are making it work out just fine! My office however, is a bit larger and it is so nice being able to have a nice little set up that people can come visit. The end goal is to be able to have clients come over and see all of their photos how I see them, on my giant computer screen in full color! I can’t wait to have my first client over once the office is completely finished (its so close!).

Any who, onto these images that I love so much. These were taken right outside of our new home. To me, that makes these even more meaningful. This is Logan and I’s first official home that we own and having images near by really makes it special. I can’t wait to marry my best friend next October.

10.14.17 #browntobailey2017

Photos taken by Marisa Henry

Make up by Cydney Robinson

All images were edited by myself, does not directly represent Marisa Henry’s image style.

Apple Orchard Wedding

Hey there everyone! I know lately I have been slacking quite a bit on blogging. It has been a crazy couple of weeks though!

It’s official, Logan and I will be moving back to Ionia. My old home town. I was going to wait to announce it but who knows how many of you will even read this so if only a few of you know thats fine with me! We have already taken about half of our things over to our new home, we even started painting the new studio space. Woot woot! I can’t wait to share some pictures once we get all settled and everything looking the way we want.

Any who, enough about myself, I want to share with you some gorgeous photos from the McKeown wedding! These photos were taken at Meckley’s Flavor Fruit Farm in Jackson MI. It was a gorgeous day and we got so lucky that it didn’t rain!

Nicole got her dream of being married in front of the apple trees in full bloom and let me tell you, it was absolutely stunning! Nicole and Chad met at a church in Belding and they had the cutest little proposal story!

In the words of the bride herself when I asked about their proposal “THIS IS MY FAVORITE STORY. Chad proposed by taking me on a ‘surprise picnic’. He blindfolded me in the car until we reached the picnic spot. It turned out to be the marina in Holland (I have ALWAYS wanted to go sailing). I was shocked beyond belief, and still expected nothing. After about 2 hours of learning how to sail on Lake Michigan with our captain, he suggested that we sit on the edge of the boat and enjoy the view. While sitting, he started his speech and asked me to marry him. :)”
How cute right?!

Well, lets get on with it as I am sure you’re all dying to see some of their images!

How awesome that a rainbow appeared right before their ceremony!

The amount of love between these two was amazing! You could just tell every time they looked at each other that they were meant to be. It was such a beautiful day!

I had so much fun working with these two and their families, they are just all around great and wonderful people. The entire day was planned out wonderfully and everything was so easy!

I am now booking weddings into 2017! If you are interested in a digital welcome packet, don’t hesitate to ask!

Mr. & Mrs. Hardin

I had the privilege of photographing this adorable couple on their big day two weeks ago!

Kelley and Travis met in Greenville, MI in 2005. They dated & lived together for 5 years (2005-2010)…separated for a year/traveled ect. We reunited in 2011 and have been together ever since. We met April 2005 and having our Ceremony April 2016. They also have a beautiful little boy who came into this world not to long ago!

Kelley shared with me the story on how Travis proposed to her. It is just so sweet!  “Travis proposed on our property (We had recently purchased 12 acres of totally undeveloped land to “start our life on”). One day, we had to mark out the ‘intended driveway placement’ for city/building approval & permits… and Travis proposed there as I was placing the marker-flag. It was a big symbol of our future ‘path’, and I was totally surprised!”

Their wedding was held at the Ionia fairgrounds where they have worked most of their summers running their concessions stands. I first met Kelley and Travis as a couple at the fair when they had asked me to take photographs of them around the fairgrounds to remember their time there.

The fairgrounds is a beautiful location that the Grand River runs though. They got married right on the river with the bridge in the back ground. It was a gorgeous ceremony!

“Travis proposed on our property (We had recently purchased 12 acres of totally undeveloped land to “start our life on”). One day, we had to mark out the ‘intended driveway placement’ for city/building approval & permits… and Travis proposed there as I was placing the marker-flag. It was a big symbol of our future ‘path’, and I was totally surprised!”

Kelley and Travis decided to do a “first look” on their wedding day. The first look really gives the bride and groom a chance to be completely alone (aside from photographer of course) when they first see each other. It allowed them to have a private moment during the day where they could just talk to each other and have those special moments when the groom first see’s his bride.

In the words of Kelley “Those of you that know Travis and I, understand that ‘tradition’ is less important to us than doing what is actually best given the time and situation! Our Wedding ceremony held true to that also! We did a “First Look Session” with our Photographer and I’m so glad we did! A couple hours prior to the Ceremony, Travis and I met eachother to capture the intimate moment of seeing eachother all dressed up. These are just a few photos from the preview… I’m excited to see the rest ♡”

I can’t wait to share with them their entire album! I had a wonderful time photographing these two. You can really see how much they truly love each other. Its such a beautiful thing!

Mr. & Mrs.Kuipers

I had the honor of photographing the Kuipers wedding! I met Mrs. Kuipers through our photo program at GRCC. We had a lot of classes together and became good friends in school and outside of school. I remember even when she met Mr. Kuipers!

The minute I saw these two together I knew how Tyler made Aubrey feel. It was so special to see all that love between them, even in the early stages. They are two amazing people and their wedding day was absolutely gorgeous. Here are some previews from the first half of their wedding ❤

The Girls:

The Guys:

The Ceremony:

The Bride, Groom, and their party

These two are just wonderful people and I am so very happy for both of them! Shooting such a big event for people you care about is so special. I couldn’t believe Aubrey chose me to do the photos, it was such an honor to be a part of your day Mr. and Mrs. Kuipers!

Mr. and Mrs. Browne

I met Angela and Jordan at the beginning of last year when they were in need of a wedding photographer. A few of her friends had recommended me, as I had shot some of their weddings or family sessions. When I met with Angela I knew we would be a great match!

Showing up to the hotel to see Angela getting ready on the big day was great. The atmosphere in the air was amazing. She was surrounded by so many friends and her family, you could just tell how excited they all were and how much this entire day meant to them. To feel that when walking through the door, I knew this was going to be an amazing day.

Angela had her mother and her maid of honor helping her with putting on the dress. She was such a beautiful bride!

After that we were headed over to a park in the area where she would see her groom for the first time. They decided to do a first look. First looks are something you should really consider when thinking about your wedding day. They allow for so much extra time with getting images with your spouse to be, as well as your family and bridal party. Also being able to capture that first moment between the two of you with no one else around is amazing.

The ceremony was held at St. Gerard’s Church in Lansing. Such a beautiful location! This was my second wedding I had shot there so I was pretty excited.

Let the party begin!

A few more favorites before I end

Thank you Angela and Jordan for such an amazing day. I had so much fun working with the two of you and you truly show what love really means. You can tell the way you act with each other that there’s something real there. I am so happy to have met you both and look forward to working with you more in the future!