That’s right, my very first Rapid City wedding. I’m still amazed by how it happened – Tammy’s photographer had to cancel at the last minute because of a family emergency and Tammy’s bridesmaid Loni (my friend Mindy’s sister-in-law) gave her my information and the next day Josh called to ask for a contract and how to send payment!!

I met Josh + Tammy about a week after they called – they were in Brookings for a weekend and Mindy invited me over to meet them. After chatting with them for a little while and watching them interact, I knew their wedding was going to be awesome. They are such friendly, laid-back, lovable people and photographing them was super easy. Tammy told me that I wouldn’t have to worry about her being a bridezilla – she and Josh are the most care-free people they know.

After spending a week in the Black Hills, Saturday finally came around and Josh called me to give me the girls’ cabin number where they were getting ready….while he was in line to have lunch at Taco Bell. I thought to myself, “Really? Taco Bell for lunch on your wedding day? You really are laid-back!!” We joked about it later that afternoon – Josh was so nervous for the wedding, he was probably wishing he had eaten something a little less spicy. Tammy, on the other hand, hadn’t eaten at all before photos so during group photos she would sneak bites of graham crackers, peanuts, lunch meat, anything that was around! If you know me very well, you know that I get pre-wedding jitters, so it was so nice to know that I wasn’t the only one with butterflies!! :-)

Tammy’s dad was so funny – he came out wearing his dress shirt and pants with tennis shoes and wind-blown hair and announced “I think I’m gonna go to the wedding just like this.” Then later when he came out with the jacket on he kept the bright green $50 late fee card in the front pocket and asked if that was better. Wedding days that start with jokes always turn out to be the best. :-)

Loni tying Kiah’s bow:

First look! Someone got teary-eyed and it wasn’t me this time!!

Of course, Josh was joking around with Tammy during photos – I love laugh/smile combos!

Sidenote on this next photo: most of the editing was done on the sidewalk part of the image. If you’ve ever been to Canyon Lake, you know why. Ducks. Everywhere.

Josh’s daughter and Tammy’s daughter are so close – not only are they best friends, now they’re officially sisters!!

The weather was perfect for their outdoor ceremony at Canyon Lake Resorts.

Aren’t grandparents the sweetest things ever??

This is the “we’re REALLY sisters now!!!” face:

And this is the “WE get to ride in the limo TOO?!!!” face:

As soon as everyone got upstairs for the meal, Josh’s sister made a toast to Tammy and Josh – I love how Josh is proudly looking over at her!

And the classic best man’s toast laugh:

Mr + Mrs:

Father-daughter dances are always so beautiful.

Tammy + Josh – I can’t thank you enough for how great you are. Not just for having me as your wedding photographer but for being such amazing people. Tammy – I still can’t believe how busy you were finishing nursing school up until the final days before your wedding! Josh – I still can’t believe you ate Taco John’s for lunch on your wedding day!! :-)

My friends Tim and Loni were the ones who gave Tammy and Josh my number when their wedding photographer cancelled at the last minute due to a family emergency. After Tammy and Josh booked me, Tim and Loni offered to give me a ride out there and back for the wedding – there’s no sense in bringing two cars for three people going to the same event, right? Luckily I can work from anywhere as long as I have my computer because we drove out to Rapid City last Sunday and came back yesterday!

The whole week was awesome and of course went by way too fast!! I hiked Lovers’ Leap Trail with Lance, got all my work done that needed to be done, and signed a lease on an apartment for when I move out there this September!!!! The wedding on Saturday was just icing on the cake for me! It was my very first Rapid City wedding and it was beautiful…but I’ll blog more about that later!

I love sharing good news, and good news deserves to have a photo along with it. Here are some baby barn swallows that were keeping cool in the shade of Lance’s car. I think that anything baby-sized is just adorable!!

I met Jeff + Bethany this weekend in Fargo for their engagement session and when I showed up they immediately claimed that they weren’t very photogenic and they weren’t very fond of PDA. However, I think they secretly love getting their photo taken because we spent a good two hours in downtown Fargo – most of the time they were showing me locations they had previously scoped out. Plus, even without kisses these two pull off the adorable look pretty well!! :-)

Thanks Jeff and Bethany for being amazing and having fun taking photos!! I told you I could keep going if it hadn’t been for our hungry tummies. I’m so excited for your wedding this November! See you in a few months!

Wedding #2 for me this weekend was Styles and Ashley in White – again, perfect weather and fun opportunities for photos!!

Ashley’s mom helped her get ready and all the girls watched as she prepared to be the beautiful bride for the day. I thought it was so awesome how obviously close Ashley is with her mom – you can just tell by how they look at each other and do what the other is thinking without saying a word.

Babies are magical – they can make anyone smile and want to cuddle with them – especially grandmothers. :-)

This was the first time I had ever seen a man help bustle the bride’s dress – it had to be documented.

Styles + Ashley – I hope the rest of your day was great and you’re enjoying your honeymoon! Thanks again for having me as your photographer!

My double-header wedding weekend started out with Sarah + Brice in Flandreau on a perfect day. No rain, no extreme wind, just perfect sunshine. Sure, the a/c in the church was nice, but compared to the crazy rain storm days we have had lately, Friday was perfect. I think what made it an above-average day was that Sarah and Brice got married!!! :-)

I love it when the bride is getting her dress laced up and she can’t help but look down at herself in her wedding gown!!!! It’s such a beautiful, peaceful moment.

In this next one, I’m pretty sure Sarah is just making sure no one is peeking in through the window, but I think she looks gorgeous! :-)

Sarah’s sisters showed up just as she was finishing getting ready – I love how they’re all so excited to see her all dressed up!

*moment*

Classic. :-)

This next photo is just so typical of a ‘Brice look’ I couldn’t help but share!

Sarah is an actress – can you tell by the way she can totally pull off the serious look?!

While doing photos of just Sarah and Brice, they quickly found out that one of my favorite parts of wedding photography is walking around, finding awesome shooting locations. I was just glad that they were such troopers to walk around with me! :-)

I think it’s so cute when the little kids have no idea what’s going on. :-)

But they are usually aware of where the photographer is.

I couldn’t pick just one favorite from the next group, so you get to see three!!!

Congrats Sarah + Brice and best wishes for the both of you in your new adventure!!!