Bride and Groom kissing in the sunshine on their wedding day at Lake Oboboji.

Tyler and Shawn’s special day couldn’t have been more “them.”  The rehearsal dinner and ceremony was held at their grandparents’ beautiful lake house in Iowa on Okoboji. The lake house itself was already a perfect venue for the couple’s nautical themed celebration, but to make the day even more perfect, guests were transported by ferry boat across Lake Okoboji to the Arnold’s Park Amusement Park for the reception. There I took one of my favorite photos- of the entire wedding party on a roller coaster! The entire day served as a tangible representation of Tyler and Shawn’s relationship. The love they have for one another is serious, but they definitely don’t take themselves too seriously. 🙂

I had so much fun. It’s clear that Tyler and Shawn are good at having a good time. What they’re even better at is making everyone else around them have a good time, too. The couple didn’t just invite people to celebrate their marriage with them, they invited them into their joyous love for one another. It was contagious. The only moment that wasn’t filled completely with smiles and laughter was when Tyler’s father saw her for the first time in her wedding dress. Instead, that moment was filled with awe of how beautiful she was, pride about what a wonderful woman she had become, and satisfaction, as he knew that she was about to marry a man who will take care of her heart for the rest of her life.

It was obvious how good of a fit Tyler and Shawn are for one another. But also how seamlessly their families and friends united as well. That harmony made their love even easier to celebrate. Since I had flown from Minneapolis to Iowa, the morning after the wedding I took the couple out for an airplane ride above Lake Okoboji, so they could see from above, where it all had happened the day before. I wanted to give them a view they would never forget of the weekend they would surely never, ever forget. All of their friends and family were standing and waving from the edge of the dock as we flew off. It was a beautiful finale to the celebration. Congrats you two!

Reception Venue – Arnold’s Park Preservation Plaza – Arnold’s Park, IA
Videographer – Tyler Breitbach – Des Moines, IA
Ceremony Officiant – Mark Brandt – Des Moines, IA
Hair – Bella Via Salon – Okoboji, IA
Makeup – Okoboji Skin Care – Okoboji, IA
Catering – Marketplace Catering – Inwood, IA
Florist – Elements Design – Arnold’s Park
Cake – Lisa’s Bake Shop – Spirit Lake, IA
Dress – Zazous Bridal Dubuque – Dubuque, IA
Dress Designer – Allure
Menswear – Dockers – Marengo, IA
Menswear (Blazers) – Chaps
Transportation – Okoboji Boat Works – Okoboji, IA
Reception Music – Complete Music – Sioux Falls, SD
Event Rentals – Ideal Weddings & Events – Sioux Falls, SD
Jeweler – Joseph’s Jewelers – Des Moines, IA

Hend and Nohman are a beautiful couple with a beautiful love story. I really enjoyed capturing the big and little moments of their wedding day. Both are first generation Americans who were raised in traditional families and in two different cultures. Hend is Egyptian, Nohman is Afghan, and for both, the expectation was to marry someone of their same culture. Initially, they struggled to convince their families that their love was meant to transpire into marriage, despite their cultural differences. In the end, the families happily united to celebrate the joyous occasion. As the day full of laughter, good food, and nonstop dancing was coming to a close (literally as the sun came up), Hend remembers looking around the room and feeling so lucky that so many people she loved, from all different parts of her life had come together in one place for her and Nohman’s wedding day. The day was truly a celebration of love and a seamless interweaving of three different cultures. It was beautiful.

The reception at the St. Paul Athletic Club, felt like the set of a classic 50s movie, glamorous and timeless. The Athletic Club was a perfect venue to host the celebration of Hend and Nohman’s love for one another. Guests could see that the couple was overwhelmed with admiration for each other, and genuinely found joy in one another’s presence. While I was photographing, they could barely hear my directions because they were making each other laugh so hard! They found bliss in every moment. From posing in Minneapolis alleyways to the grand ballroom of the St. Paul Athletic Club, they made each second special and never stressful. This made the day feel like a holiday, celebrating the couple’s commitment, culture, and the people they care about the most. If only it could happen once a year.

Wedding coordinator – The Simply Elegant Group – Minneapolis, MN
Reception venue – St. Paul Athletic Club – St. Paul
Videographer – Sunset Blues Production – Twin Cities, MN
Hair & Makeup – Marwa Eshmawy – Minneapolis, MN
Caterer – Crescent Moon – Minneapolis, MN
Cake – Buttercream Bakery – St. Paul
Cake-toppers – MiniMeCity
Florist – Grace Klein Design
Wedding dress –Lovella Bridal 
Grooms wear – Franco Uomo
Transportation – Renee’s Royal Valet – Plymouth, MN
DJ- DJ Emad
Stationery – For Love PolkaDots – Etsy
Equipment Rental Service – Linen Effects – Minneapolis, MN
Drapery and Stage Rental Service – Festivities – Medina, MN
Rings – Bhindi Jewelers
Photo Booth – Mobile Photo Booth – Eagan, MN

Katie and John had a super elegant wedding. With a live band, slick tuxedos, dancing between dinner courses. East Coast style. These two are just cool. The kind of people that glide through life, in a way that makes you want to be like them. I had so much fun photographing their wedding at the Depot in downtown Minneapolis. Everything about it was classy. The venue, the outfits, the guests. The band, R Factor was one of the best I’ve ever heard at a wedding! I’m not kidding when I say that every single guest was on the dance floor while they played.  This wedding will go down in history as one of my favorites, out of literally hundreds of weddings over the years. Congratulations, Katie and John! Keep being cool. B-)

Wedding coordinator – Mi Mi Design – Minneapolis, MN
Ceremony venue – Central Lutheran Church – Minneapolis, MN
Reception Venue – The Depot – Minneapolis, MN
Videographer – Anthony Begley Productions
Officiant – Rev. Mark Nelson
Hair – Molly Black Style
Makeup – Nan Fletcher
Cake – Cold Spring Bakery – Cold Spring, MN
Florist – St. Cloud Floral – St. Cloud, MN
Dress – Macy’s Bridal Salon
Mensware – Men’s Wearhouse
Band – R Factor
DJ – Bellagala
Stationery – Ginger P Designs
Decorations – Apres Party Rentals

Where do you take pictures on a rainy wedding day? Under anything you can! Utilize bridges, overpasses, awnings, umbrellas and large trees.

Ashley and Colin’s wedding day was a whirlwind of emotion. Only the happiest of emotions, of course. But there were still a lot of tears.

This was because Ashley and Colin were simply overjoyed to make it official. Every detail had been sorted out, and the couple spent some time getting ready in the morning… They opened sweet love letters from each other, and there were some tears.  Ashley put on her Rush’s Bridal gown, and had her hair and makeup done by The Blushing Room in a way that made her brilliant blue eyes pop even more, and there were more tears.  When she walked outside to see Colin for the first time, you should have seen it… Actually, you can! Just scroll down to see how ridiculously happy these two were to see each other on their wedding day!

Yes, it rained, and it rained some more. We took lots of pictures under bridges, overpasses and in parking garages (which actually turned out pretty great.) But they say rain on your wedding day is a good omen, and I say, so are tears.

Congratulations, Ashley and Colin! You two are perfect for each other!

Ceremony venue – Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church – Apple Valley, MN
Reception venue – Intercontinentatl St. Paul Riverfront – St. Paul, MN
Videographer – Matthew Smith 
Hair stylist – Bridget Wanchena, The Blushing Room – St. Paul, MN
Decorator – Erin Olsen, We’ve Got It Covered  
Florist – Gayle Kenow, Design n Bloom – Eagan, MN
Dress shop – Rush’s Bridal – Minneapolis, MN
Tuxedoes – Savvi Formalwear 
Limo – Exceptional Transportation 
Party bus – Schmitty & Sons – Lakeville, MN
DJ & uplighting – Adrian Perryman, Events by MV LLC 
Pianist – Sharon Planer, Pianist for Parties – Minneapolis, MN

Kayla gets ready to marry her best friend, Pavlo…

There’s probably nothing worse than having to be far away from the person you love. Kayla and Pavlo had to spend a year apart when she first started pharmacy school, but Pavlo managed to use this to his advantage… When he visited her for spring break, he took the first chance he got to do something special. After Kayla picked him up from the airport, and they had a moment alone at home, she began to cry because she was so happy to see him. That’s when Pavlo asked her if she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him.

Kayla and Pavlo got married at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, and had their reception at the elegant St. Paul Hotel. I’ve photographed several weddings at these locations, and they are both impressive venues for wedding photography. The church’s colorful interior and tall, arching ceilings look so cool in wedding ceremony photos, and the St. Paul Hotel has fantastic lighting and plenty of room for dancing in their M St. Cafe banquet space.

When I asked Kayla what stood out to her about her wedding day, what she said struck me, because it was the exact same thing my wife said about our wedding three years ago!

“I did not anticipate that marriage would change anything about our relationship because Pavlo and I had been dating for over seven years. However, there is a sense of wholeness or completeness about being married to your best friend, and that really sunk in as the wedding day progressed.” -Kayla

I’m also humbled and grateful for the nice things she had to say about her experience with Brovado Weddings.

“Preston was so attentive, and for every picture he took, he wanted it to be perfect. He was so patient with us, the wedding party, family, and friends. I received many compliments from family and friends about how impressed they were with Preston and that Pavlo, and I chose an amazing photographer.”

Thank you Kayla and Pavlo, and congratulations! I wish you all the best!

Ceremony venue – St. Thomas More Catholic Church – St. Paul
Reception venue – The Saint Paul Hotel – St. Paul
Hair & Makeup – Lisa Reinhardt Makeup and Hair Artistry – St. Paul
Florist – Doug Boisvert with MBZ Design and Event Studio – St. Paul
Wedding gown shop – The Wedding Shoppe – St. Paul
Bridesmaids dresses – Elegant Occasions 
Suits – Men’s Wearhouse  
DJ – Bellagala – St. Paul
Jeweler – Shane Co. – Woodbury