My First Wedding Shoot

On Saturday I assisted MandyMiller Photography on my first ever official wedding shoot. I was excited, nervous, anxious, worried and amazed all at the same time. Mandy is a great photographer, check out her photos here or here. She tried to calm my nerves by telling me any photographs I took would just be a bonus....nope, didn't help still nervous. Kid pictures you can retake, who cares if you don't get a scenic shot, but a wedding...you pretty much have one chance to nail it! Needless to say, I'll leave wedding photography up to the experts, but I had a GREAT time and would LOVE to assist Mandy anytime (Mandy, if you're reading this : hint hint). The bride, groom and entire wedding party was great, I couldn't have asked for a better first experience....well, I should have worn different shoes, but other than that it was AMAZING!

During the ceremony I was in the balcony.

I loved that he was holding up her dress.

In front of the Capitol...we didn't climb the stairs too high....TOO HOT!

Wish she was a little more to the left and that the Capitol was more blurred, but still love how the blue pops. 

The bride and groom did a shot before the reception. He did Jager and she a lemon drop. 

On Sunday, I was hoping to get up for the 9:00 a.m. service, but I was drained...so Damon, Terry and I went to the 11:00 a.m. service here. WOW, it's a lot less crowded! It was a wonderful service on prayer and we sang some of my favorites and Damon kept whispering that "this one and that one" were songs from VBS. He doesn't seem to mind volunteering for VBS at all, partly because he gets to be with Ethan and in Monica's class and partly because he does really enjoy the little kids. Oh, and I'm sure my funding of Decaf Carmel Machiatos from Cafe Hope doesn't hurt any. He and Terry both got one on Sunday, Terry is still amazed you can 1. get that stuff at church and 2. drink it during the service and no one thinks twice. It's a little different than his Catholic roots and his hometown church is still very traditional (or at least it is when we attend weddings and funerals). It's nice to visit the traditional services, but..... I like everything about Hope, I always get something out of each service and I feel welcome. Surprisingly enough, if you get involved enough it doesn't seem as HUGE and overwhelming as it did at first. It also has a great youth program, although I think sometimes it can get a little out of control due to the shear volume of kids...it reminds me a lot of my church growing up.