The Clouds Will Blow Over: Tulsa Wedding

All that mattered was that the rain stayed away. It has rained for the past two weeks in Oklahoma therefore, our prayers for two weeks consisted of blessing us with a rainless day. We got it. You see, we had an outside wedding scheduled. Got that? Outside. As in, no shade anywhere. So, our day was either going to be rainy & muggy or just plain blisteringly hot. It was perfect though. Right as Danielle turned to begin walking down the isle a small little cloud, I like to call him my blessing cloud, moved in front of the sun and broke whatever heat was present that day.

If you’re ever been in a wedding or been behind the curtain before a wedding then you’ve witnessed the endless amounts of chaos that go on just hours before that beautiful bride comes walking down the isle. To me, this is the best part of the day. Sure, we all get a little stressed and think “… is this seriously all going to come together…” but it always does. This day was no different. I turned to the maid-of-honor early on in the getting ready stage and said, well, it wouldn’t be a wedding if nothing went wrong. Someone always forgets something, the groom doesn’t have shoes, the flower girl falls down and gets a nice grass stain on her dress, a bridesmaid backs into something wet and has a spot of something nice in a certain area of her backside… all these things happen. And I’ve had each of them happen at one wedding or another. But the best part about it all is the moment that girl turns the corner as the doors of the church open and her groom sees her coming towards him for the first time. The hours of chaos that mattered mere moments ago – no longer matter. She suddenly doesn’t care that twenty minutes ago she wanted to flop down in a chair, cross her arms and cry because ‘everything was ruined!’ This is the beauty of a wedding day. That moment of her walking towards her future, her husband, symbolizes so much if you think about it. He is the one that calms her. They are the ones that calm each other. Nothing else matters any more and they both realize everything is going to be alright.

And from this moment all the ‘I have spray glue covering my nails’ and ‘half of the groomsmen don’t have shoes’ start to melt away. They no longer matter. Everything worked out. Now it’s time for the party to start!


You may remember this couple from an engagement session a few months back. They have been together for eight years. Oh, what’s that? Eight years? Yes. EIGHT YEARS ladies! They complete each other. You know, like peanut butter and honey. Fine, you like peanut butter and jelly better? Ok. But they do. I have never cried at one of my bride’s weddings before, so I was caught a little off-guard. But as this beautiful bride began walking towards her future…I felt myself tear up. Like, big crocodile tears swelled up. I didn’t know what to do. The photographer can’t cry. That’s not professional. But cat’s outta the bag. I cried a little.


Juan and Danielle are still on their honeymoon right now. So if you disobey and check the internet while in paradise… here’s a little look back at your day.

Senior Session: Tulsa

It seems like yesterday.  But it's not.  It seems like it will take forever.  But it won't.  It seems like the worst part of your life.  But when you look back, it's the best.

High School is that love-hate relationship everyone goes through. We can’t WAIT to get out on our own, but once we’re out we’re continuously asking ourselves why we were so excited to leave in the first place. I remember the overwhelming feeling of college. Standing in the dorm bathrooms at Oklahoma State praying I could go back in time. It didn’t happen. I had to continue to put one foot in front of the other. I had to continue to eat completely unhealthy food off my meal plan, get myself up for class every day, make myself study rather than watch TV or spend time with friends and even… I know we don’t want to go there… but… Do. My. Own. Laundry. It was horrible. Let me tell you.

We grow up. We move on. It’s all a part of life. But for now, enjoy the season of life you’re in. You can never get it back.
 

Senior Session: Tulsa

My favorite thing about shooting seniors is seeing who shows up the day of pictures. When I had my senior pictures taken it was little ‘ole me, myself & I. No momma. No brother. No daddy. Not that they didn’t want to be there – parent’s just didn’t come back then… I guess.

This guy. Yeah. The whole gang showed up. And it was awesome. We had everyone from mom to the girlfriend – and I’ll tell ya, so glad that girl showed up. She knows how to ease him up a little and make him laugh and have fun. Which, let’s face it – made my life a lot easier! Ha.

You Had Me At Hello

It began in an aquarium. The middle happened on a beach. And it ended at that same aquarium.

It’s the romantic love story every girl swoons over as they grow up. They want the romantic fairytale. They want the white picket fence with the family dog and curly headed monsters blonde kids running in the front yard. Ok, my fantasy. Maybe. But that’s what these two have. They look at each other and you just stare because you can’t help but notice the love they share for one another. In the words of Jerry McGuire. “You had me at hello.”

Braden surprised Courtney with an engagement at the aquarium in Jenks – she said it was perfect. They then had the ideal wedding at sunset in Destin, Florida on the beach and jotted off to what has been said was the best honeymoon one could have. I had the privilege of photographing the new Mr. & Mrs. upon their return for a reception at… what’s that? Oh, yes. The same Jenks aquarium where Braden proposed to his lovely bride-to-be.

It began in an aquarium. The middle happened on a beach. And it ended at that same aquarium.


You had me at hello.

I Have Loved You Beautifully...

When I look in the mirror you’re the only one I see, and I have loved you beautifully.

You know those songs you hear and instantly stop what you’re doing. For whatever reason, the lyrics stop you in your tracks and grab your attention. Yeah, that happened today.

I am always listening to the lyrics in songs and matching those lyrics up with different times in my life where they are applicable. I want songs to have a meaning – you know, an individual meaning to every person that listens to it. Song lyrics just twist, pull and yank at my inner core. Some girls swoon over the way love scenes play out in movies. Not this chica. Give me a random line in a song of someone saying something awesomely sweet and I literally get goose bumps up and down my arms, my nose starts tingling and my eyes water up like I’m going to burst with tears any second. They never fall though. Don’t worry. Almost every Sunday I stand in church and have this exact thing happen to me. I think it’s a mixture of watching others worship – lay their hearts out on the floor and how real the lyrics of each song are – I seriously fight back tears every week.
Just last week I was driving to work. 7:50 am – just like every other weekday, listening to Air 1 – I just love how they always tell the most gut-wrenching stories about families and how awesome our God really is. Well, they started reading a letter from a woman in Cali – she spoke of how her husband had gone through a really rough patch – he wouldn’t do anything around the house. No acknowledgement of their marriage, the children or anything that had to go on in order to continue the everyday flow of their household. She continued on about how she randomly came home from the grocery store one day, and everything changed. He heard Lead Me by Sanctus Real and the lyrics spoke so close to his heart that it God pulled him out of his funk.

This is what I’m talking about. Words have such an impact on the human being. If you combine the right words together you can ultimately change a person’s outlook on life. I love it.

Listen to something today. I mean closely listen to what it’s talking about. It just might change your outlook.