Don't let Mother Nature stop you at your door!  Tell your fiance and your photographer to grab their coats and gloves and follow you outside for some amazing photo ops in the snow!  With the impending storm coming, those of you who were hoping for a white Christmas are all set to go!  A winter wonderland is the perfect backdrop for love.  Check out these examples below...

photo by Jonathon Campbell Photography 

photo by Rebecca Westover Photography 

photo by Stacey Hedman Photography 

photo by Front Room Photography 

photo by Tiny Water Photography

So remember, your photos do not have to be in an indoors studio just because the weather turns on you.  Make lemons out of lemonade...or snow lemons out of...nevermind.  Just get bundled up and get out there!  

Six years ago I flipped my car upside down into a ditch after fishtailing on some black ice.  I was as good as new, however my car and my nerves were damaged for good.  Since that point, ice and snow have given me the heebie jeebies.  There is one time of year though when I love looking out the window to see mounds and mounds of snow covering every possible surface...Christmas of course.  Do you all remember last year when there was no snow anywhere around here?  Christmas felt weird.  Still good of course, but weird.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a white Christmas this year, and I thought I could possibly inspire Mother Nature and a few of our brides as well with some winter wedding pictures.  Take a look at these gorgeous pictures taken out in the frosty snow!

Picture by Mike Larson Photography

Picture by Brovado Weddings

Photo by Jenny Haas Photography

Photo by Peter Bang Photography 

So while these pictures don't make me want to go out and sommersault in my car a million times, they might make me step outdoors to enjoy the beautiful weather no matter what time of year I was getting married!  

My smile never looks the way I think it would look when I glance at pictures of myself.  What I feel to be a huge cheesy grin might make for a photogenic shot whereas if I tried my darndest to put on my prettiest smile, I may end up looking like I'm more in pain than having a good time.  That's why I love to see a wedding album where there are a mixture of shots both posed and on the spot.  You catch people at their cheesiest and at their loveliest at in one day. 

Side note: I haven't really shared my wedding photography on here in part because I like my anonymity - I sometimes fantasize that I'm some warped bridal blogging super heroine.  The other reason that I have kept my pictures somewhat sacred is that we have so many talented photographers in our vendor directory that I didn't want anyone thinking that I am biased towards our photographer.  Oh but I just can't help myself...  Our photographer was the first wedding vendor that we booked because I happen to think (any my smart fiance now husband agreed with me) that photography is about the most important decision we made while planning our wedding.  Anyway, I digress.. 

Our photographer was Giraffe Photographer with the amazing husband wife duo of Steven and Elaine who we zeroed in on specifically because of their non-cookie cutter style of photography.  Their mix of candid and formal shots make their outcome amazing.  I thought it would be great to finally share some of our engagement pictures in this blog post because of the great balance that Giraffe Photography was able to find...

Here are some formal shots.  These would be the ones where everyone knows their picture is being taken and is in fact told where to sit and how to pose.  This would be much of what you see in traditional photography.  This is the kind of photography where your entire wedding party and/or family may be lined up with everyone in height order and hands placed just so...a favorite with grandparents everywhere...

And then we have some more free-stylin' candid shots.  When we were taking these pictures, I remember Stephen and Elaine telling us general directions like, "Give her a smooch!" or "Look at each other."  Other than that, what we did was up to us.  Look how different these pictures are...

I love all of these pictures, and it was nice to provide a variety for our familys to choose from.  If I had to pick one style over another, I think I'd go with candid...  How about you?  What kind of photography do you like best? 

I'm going to make it really simple today...and then I'm going to add ten thousand complications.  It's what I do.  :)

For me, the number one priority is photography, and here's my little plug as to why this is so important:  I would rather get married in old jeans and a stained t-shirt in order to have enough money for a good photographer rather than spending money on any other aspect of our wedding.  Photos will last a life time.  Think about all the joy experienced by ever so many people as they look back on their memories of their wedding day encapsulated in photographs.  Think about looking at your parents' pictures...your grandparents'.  We remember, we laugh, we love. 

A thing to remember about priorities:  It's not necessarily about the money.  It's about arranging your preferences so that what is important to you is present on your wedding day.  What was really important to me was finding someone who could tell the story of our big day through finding real moments.  We wanted a brilliant photographer who was really great at capturing photojournalistic images rather than setting people up for pose after pose.  We Quad Citians are so lucky because we have MANY photogs in the area that are delightfully talented.  In the end, we went with Giraffe Photography.  

Yesterday, I spent some time with Stephen and Elaine while we took some head shots around the Village of East Davenport.  Along with the time spent on taking pictures, I was also able to hang around and watch as Stephen edited the photography to ensure that the lighting was correct, the best angle was shored up, and that the bags under my eyes seemed to magically disappear.  (Thanks, Stephen!)  Here are some of our favorites from the shoot:

"I am so busy!"  (Staged.)

"I love this door!" (Not staged.)

"I have no forhead wrinkles!" (My forhead is airbrushed.)

"Look at me!" (Look at the awesome wallpaper that Stephen and Elaine have!)

Watching Stephen work yesterday just reinforced what I already knew about photography:  It's my priority.  I'm glad I've got that figured out.  

What is your priority?  Comment below and share!