Purple Lemon Photography

Grace & Joel

Thursday, April 22, 2010
I am so full of wonderful things to share about this wedding I have no idea where to start. Back during our planning sessions, this delightful couple tried to convince me that they were so simple that they were bordering on boring. Let me just say they were wrong.  They were so full of character, simple yet elegant detail, and genuine expression that I cannot even begin to let the fullness of my spirit come down after such a great wedding.  Days later I still feel such a bursting forth of joy in my heart from being a part of their special day.  No exaggeration. Right now my throat is tight and my heart is racing.  Joel and Grace- your wedding was great!  Grace was absolutely radiant!

This might get long... I feel like I have something to say on almost all of these images.

They asked for a "killer ring shot" and though I shot several throughout the day, this one taken early on is my favorite.  Grace's apartment has all the right colors to compliment their day.  
 
Do you see these incredible flowers?  She made them. Out of ribbon. Amazing. Simply amazing.
There were so many priceless expressions that I wanted to show from their ceremony that I couldn't choose.  This is my husband's favorite.  It was very unique lighting situation with some rather harsh, direct sunlight on them during the ceremony, which was really fun to edit.  I did some work with deep, deep shadows and some fun highlights right on the edge of their skin.  This is one with more even lighting.

This is my absolute favorite from the whole day. I think I will enlarge it to a grandiose scale and put it in my office.
Here at the Dukes household, we think Grace looks an awful lot like Charlize Theron, especially here.  This one has a very movie-set feel to me.  Not your classic wedding picture.
 
Grace and Joel have a love for photos that have a vintage feel- hence all the black and white and brown tone images.  It was fun to break away from mostly vibrant pictures and work more in these muted palettes.  I did some work to create a new look that I am calling my "Wonder Years" styling.  Beyond the theme song and intro that delightful classic show, it reminds me of a picture that I restored for my mom's family a few years ago. What do you think?


Cameo.  A photographer at work.
 
Some fun night shots here.  This first one could have been done in a far less rudimentary fashion, but Chase and I had fun doing some experimentation (and a lot of counting to three) to achieve the lighting on the front of the building.  Perhaps one day (but probably not), I will show you a picture of Chase holding two speedlights in victory after we nailed our timing.
I feel a fitting close to this wedding was one of the last pictures I took at the end of their reception.  Here Grace's grandma embraces her during a goodbye.  It highlights the love of family (so evident that day), the flowers Grace made, and the broach that adorned the back of Grace's dress, which she bought in New York at a flea market on their first vacation together.

I feel as though I only shared a small tidbit of the wonderful stories, details, and overall elegant simplicity that surround these two.  Hopefully I will get to photograph these two again in the future and share more of their love story.  It's a good one.

Note to Grace and Joel: I think that God wants me to be your photographer for life because I, like Grace, have the same cabinet that began your relationship sitting right here next to me in my office, purchased from your store. *wink*

4 comments:

Janele Oros said...

ah, they're so great! What lovely shots from the day, Nikki.

AMZGGRC said...

We love them, Nikki!!
-Grace

Unknown said...

It is always a thrill for me to hear of see that someone is following the path God left for them. Photography is obviously your passion, your talent is amazing and your gifts appreciated.

Michelle Moreton said...

the picture of the grandmother's hands made me tear up. amazing.