Jenny Spires Photography

Ashley & Ben // Wedding

I loved this wedding. I mean it and I'm not just saying something schmoozy to put on a blog to make you read it. Let's face it, I probably have a mini crush on these two love birds and might even get a little smitten every time I think of their wedding day. Kind of ridiculous, I know ;). 

Ashley and I met at a coffee shop along with her bestie, Lindsey, the day she emailed and inquired and I think we both left wanting to work with each other. Maybe it was the sweet childhood love story which started from the third grade, or her life long crush on Ben. Perhaps it was that we are all PK's (pastor's kids). It could have been that when she described her adorable style that went from her outfits to her description of how she wanted to decorate her southern style wedding. And then after we shot their engagement photos, we were all goners and just waited with anticipation until their wedding day. 

Click here to view their slideshow and see more photos from Ben and Ashley's day. 

Ashley started her day off at Studio Escape in Old Town Scottsdale. I loved it's bungalow style charm. So cute.  

Ashley and Ben both decided to get ready and do first look photos at the Royal Palms Hotel. Everything was gorgeous. 

Love this. 

Ashley, you are breathtakingly beautiful. 

I love seeing Derrick's (my husband who shoots with me) perspective. He's the guy that's always hiding behind things and brings in such an amazing diversity to our shooting. 

A little bit of tropical, which only made sense as it was well above 100* that day. Hot. 

I sort of like it when there are tons of people in the Bridal Party. It just makes things more fun. 

Ball jars you say? Yes please. 

See? Much more fun :). 

I know, I'm going way over the top with pictures of Ashley. My photographer friend and I have been discussing this topic and while I've worked very hard at cutting down blog images when I post, I get a big fat fail on this particular one. I just can't help myself!!! 

These guys were seriously a blast. Just wait, you'll see even more fun coming...

Such a handsome guy you are, Ben. 

Ashley wanted Ben to read her letter to him right before they saw each other for their first look. I have to say, I feel pretty lucky to be able to see him read it. The emotion all over this boys face was beautiful and my favorite part was when he realized the ring she gave him back was her promise ring. This day she would be replacing it with their wedding rings. 

I love his emotions in these, he could hardly wait to see her. It was everything for him to keep it together. So sweet. 

Finally. 

And then he read his letter to her. 

It took quite a bit for Dad to keep himself together here, too. 

Giving his little girl away. 

These are seriously the most amazing stained glass. I'm in love with this church every time I see it. 

This ceremony was incredible. It was really more of an act of worship than a ceremony the entire way through. I couldn't have been more amazed at how much of an impact Ashley and Ben have on the community around them; how they have become such examples for people, both young and old. It's amazing for me to see two people so young already doing the Lord's work so fervently in how they live their lives.

I loved Ashley's details. So simple and beautiful. 

They opted for pies instead of cake. Let me tell you, I had a bite (or three) of that pecan pie and was so tempted to sneak a whole pie in my camera bag. 

Ha! I love this girls face as she watches Ashley's brothers #thelittlethings. Oh wait, I'm not on Twitter. 

Yes, this is choreographed. Yes, this does turn into a giant dance routine that took everyone by surprise!

Yes, Ashley is shocked, I mean, look at her face! 

Thank you lady in the back for providing me with awesome light for this photo :). So boy band!

Hilarious. Ben kept his face serious the entire time. It was awesome. 

Ok, I know I am breaking about a hundred photography rules by posting these last two photos. My flash over heated on literally my last 10 shots of the night, no joke. Ironically, so did Derrick's. What are the odds? These were beyond adjusted to see them and I think I ended up loving them just the same. Thank goodness for RAW files. 

Thanks Ashley and Ben for allowing me to photograph your incredible wedding!!! 

Cassie & Phil // A Little Peek

Here's a tiny little preview of my friends, Phil and Cassie's wedding, complete with all of my favorite things; some lovin' (actually, they had just tied the knot at this point and couldn't keep their hands off of each other! It can't get more real than this, folks), golden sunshine, and even some shrubby desert (which normally I haven't loved, but I have to admit I'm enjoying shooting in it lately!).

I have a line up of lots and lots of things to finish before I go on vacation in a few weeks, so I wanted to make sure I showed you all some of my favorites before I disappear on my looong Michigan vacay in August! 

Enjoy!

Sarah & Michael // Wedding

The happiness flooded in like the warm Arizona sunshine did on the day that Sarah and Michael married one another. And we had lots of sun. I enjoyed soaking in every golden bit as I watched and witnessed two people exchange vows to one another to love each other from this day forward. 

There is always something special about being allowed to spend the entire day with someone as they walk through one of the most important days of their lives. I cherish each time and I don't take it for granted. It's such an important commitment; sacred between loved ones and intertwined with a promise with God. It is just beautiful every. single. time. I'm lucky to be able to see it over and over again. 

  

Here is Sarah, soaking in the sun herself. I just couldn't get enough of those beautiful, red curls. Gorgeous. 

And their happiness cannot be missed on each of their faces before seeing each other. There's always unmistakable emotions floating through before the bride and groom finally get to see one another; anticipation, nevousness, sheer joy, giddiness, disbelief that this is finally happening. 

This is Michael and his brothers (plus Rowdy). Can you guess which one is not related? :)

Sarah and Michael decided to do a first look before the ceremony. I always love these photos. Remember all of those emotions I just mentioned? If we zoomed up really, really close, I bet we could see every one of them all over their faces. 

A moment to themselves. One of the few times in the entire day where they will have this until they leave for the night. I adore these moments. Out of all of the ones I remember from my own wedding day, I remember my first look with Derrick right before the ceremony. 

My favorite image from their entire day: Sarah admiring her husband. 

Beautiful. 

Thank you Sarah and Micheal for sharing your amazing day with me. I pray you are so incredibly blessed for so many years to come!

**********

*Sidenote to all of my blog readers: Please keep Sarah and Michael and their unborn baby girl, Anastasia in your prayers. Little Miss Anastasia and Sarah have had complications in their pregnancy and we are all praying for miracles that she can remain safe in her Mama's womb. Sarah is a fighter and Anastasia has fought hard to grow as well. She's showing amazing progress so far! I believe in the power of prayer and believe that our Mighty God can bring complete healing and health to both Sarah and her baby girl! Thank you all so much! 

Dana & Brian // Wedding // Part Two

If you missed part one, go here to see it!

This second batch of photos are my favorite photos of the day between Dana and Brian. They chose to see one another before the ceremony and that gave us a tremendous amount of time to do photos. 

Click here to see the slideshow of their day!

I just kind of really like this photo :). 

And the emotion of this one. 

One of my most favorite photos of Dana. 

When I first saw Dana and Brian's venue, I worried that we wouldn't have a ton of spots to shoot at. I think the value of being able to see each location before the actual wedding day is great and thank God I did, because I'm not sure I would've found this little area of trees had I not. I LOVE that we found it, I just adore the look of the trees here (hard to find in Arizona sometimes). We were also away from the venue a bit, which gave Dana and Brian some time to themselves without all of their party and guests around. Some just them time. 

Showing off his juggling skills ;). 

Beautiful. 

Dana and Brian share a HUGE love for sports, especially baseball. Dana's mom had this awesome idea to bring the blow up baseballs which turned out great for the wedding party shot!

....and then they through them straight at me :). 

Her dad putting the penny in her shoe. 

The signing of the Ketubuh. This was my first Jewish wedding to shoot, and attend for that matter, and I couldn't get over the traditions that they brought into the ceremony. Derrick and I just fell in love with all of it and loved the depth and meaning of everything. So beautiful. 

This moment chokes me up every time. 

Here is Dana circling Brian during her Seven Circles. I was getting dizzy just watching!

Dana was so excited about her Chuppah, the canopy above them. This is symbolic to the first roof that will be over Dana and Brian's head. The tradition of having no walls comes from Abraham and Sarah, who always had their home open to everyone. This particlar Chuppah is even more special as it has been passed down through the generations of Dana's family. So beautiful. 

See the Bobbleheads on top of the cake? :)

This happy couple took months of dance lessons to perform a choreographed first dance. I might have cried just a teeny tiny bit. 

And then I might have cried even a bit more during her dance with her Daddy, the second thing next to marrying Brian that she was most excited about. 

This is quite possibly the most fun I've ever had at a wedding! It was so exciting!

:). 

Thank you Dana and Brian for sharing such a fun and incredible day!!! Congratulations to you both! 

Dana & Brian // Wedding // Part One

I met Dana four years ago when we worked together for an incredible organization working with children with Autism. We became fast friends and I can tell you that she is one of the most intelligent, hard working people I know. I have adored that we have become friends through working together; sharing our lives and hardships and laughter (Dana, there are a million jokes that I would love to *insert here*, but none of them will be appropriate for my family friendly blog :). 

More than anything, I've adored watching Dana go through her process of marrying her best friend and soul mate, Brian. As cheesy as it sounds, the two of them complete each other (yes, I just said it) and compliment each other in just the right way. I think it's incredible when two people can find a love like that. And let me also add that I don't think I've ever seen anyone as happy on her wedding day as Dana! She didn't have a stress in the world (she's an uber organizer and incredibly on task...if only I could possess an ounce of that!) and had an unwipable smile a week before her wedding until she left the ceremony. 

I've also split this post into two, which I don't do all that often. I just couldn't cut my images down this time! Look for the slideshow of the wedding day in the next post too!

That beautiful smile..

I adore the look between Dana and her Mom in the above photo. 

Dana chose to put on her dress with only her sister and mom in the room. I love how intimate it was during their first look at Dana all put together. Putting on the dress always makes everything real.

And showing her bridesmaids.

I love the personalized hangers from etsy (not sure which shop).

I LOVE Dana's dress. 

This box held Dana's grandmother's ring. 

Beautiful, stunning girl. 

This moment between she and her sister makes me smile. 

 

Brian, you're pretty handsome yourself! 

The first look was breathtaking. I love that Derrick (my husband and second shooter) captured the image on the right. 

You can see their smiles from a mile away after seeing each other for the first time (or at least 20 yards). 

Ear to ear. 

You think she loves him? I sure do :). 

Carly & Toren // Wedding

I met Carly and her mother in a coffee shop long before her wedding day and just knew that I had to photograph her from the moment I met her. She had a sweet, shy smile, but was quick to peel away her layers as we continued to chat about how she met her fiance and the details she was dreaming of as she planned her wedding. I loved her chemistry; her witty remarks that layered around a little bit of sassiness that made her just plain fun to be around. I knew she would be amazing on her wedding day and I was right. So was Torey. And they were that much better together as they couldn't stop smiling the entire day, nor could anyone else around them.

They married at Blackstone Country Club on a perfect December day. I love December in Arizona; just enough cool air mixed in with bright warm sunshine. If I ever marry Derrick again (because there will never be anyone else), I think I would pick the same time of year here. Carly and Torey couldn't pick a better day in a more beautiful place. 

Feel free to check out their slideshow here for more images of their day. 

The venue was spectacular nestled in the foothills and desert. 

The details were simply beautiful.  

I loved this hair piece that Carly chose. It was the perfect touch. 

I think I cried just watching her read her letter from Torey. We didn't know it at the time, but they were right next to each other on their adjoining patios reading their letters at the exact same time, which was completely unplanned. 

He makes her so happy :). 

Gasp. Sigh. She is just so beautiful, huh?

This is one of my favorites of the day. 

There's that sass...yeah!

Everybody was tying the ties. Thanks to my friend and photographer, Kristi Stone, who shot most of the boys photos that day. She caught so many wonderful moments (showing the importance of having a great second shooter!). 

Handsome Torey. 

I love this moment. Every. Single. Time. 

Big, blue, Arizona sky. 

Love this. 

Torey's car that they shared their first date in. I love that he made sure we took photos with it! Way to throw in a little edginess to such an elegant day!

So sweet. 

I like that Carly kept with the Christmas, but subtly. It was a nice touch right before the holidays. 

No one messed around getting their dance on! Everyone was on the dance floor all night!

Congratulations Carly and Torey!! I wish you the best!

August 23, 2008 :: Cristin & Sam

Last weekend I had the most amazing opportunity to capture my friend Cristin's wedding! She flew me out of the oven I call Arizona to the eighty-something, overcast skies of Atlanta. Because we are old friends, I was able to stay in Cristin's beautiful home with all of the bridesmaids and didn't miss a moment of her wonderful weekend! I even got to room with one of best friends whom I haven't seen in a long time! How could it get any better?

So here's the story, the condensed version: Sam & Cristin both attended Buckhead church and met at a friends birthday party. Upon discovering they both loved tennis, they agreed to meet for a game. Unfortunately, both Sam and Cristin had different ideas of what they were attending. For Sam, it was a date. For Cristin, a tennis match. Well, one thing led to another. Cristin hurt herself before their match and they ended up having dinner. Cristin wasn't so interested and decided to move on. After a long story that I won't tell, a handful of months later, she realized that she had made a mistake about Sam. They got back together and the rest is history!

Check out the slideshow below to see more of the Serio Wedding!

 

I love this set. Cristin just got a text from Sam saying I can't wait to marry you! Look how excited she!

I adored her dress. Adored.

A little touch up before her photos.

Cristin's flowers were stunning!!! They were done by Alison from Viridis.

I absolutely LOVE that there are clouds in the sky. I rarely get days like this in Phoenix.

We loved this bar that was actually in the church...well, it's a coffee bar, but it was fun!

I'm pretty sure I said something to embarrass him right before this shot!

I had to run inside for a second and when I came back out, the guys were just hanging. I loved this shot even more than the ones we set up.

Well, except for maybe these. These were funny.

Cristin had her friend, Abany, from Brown Linen Goodsdo all the calligraphy for her wedding. Not only did Abany rock on her fabulous writing skills, but she also sang in the wedding. She was amazing!!!!

Sam pretty much had tears in his eyes before Cristin came out. It was so sweet.

Check out this sanctuary. I loved the ceilings and the blue background!

Cristin's something old was a ring from her grandmother that she wore on her right hand.

And her something new.

Aren't they fun!?

I mean, look at this guy :). He wanted to do a sexy pose like Cristin.

The reception was at the Duluth Festival Center in Duluth, GA. I wish we had more time! I could've shot there all day!

The first dance.

Sam sang an amazing performance. :)

He had taken his sweeet time getting the garter out!

Click on the image below to view the slideshow. The music is what Cristin walked down the aisle to. They wanted their wedding to be a time of worship and even had footwashing! I loved it!

Leslianne & Richard : 08.08.08

Here is the fabulous wedding of and Richard from last Friday! I had such a fun time shooting along side Stephanie. This is the second time we have shot together and she is such a blast! So many of our friends were at the wedding too, so it was easy to forget that we were working!

The day was great and both Leslianne and Richard floated through it in anticipation. Leslianne and I have been involved in the same Bible study for the past year and I have enjoyed watching her grow as into such a beautiful young woman of God. She has such a meekness and a gentle spirit and I enjoyed catching those qualities come out even on her wedding day.

 

When I went to buy my wedding dress 3.5 years ago, I was completely caught between two dresses. Because I was getting married on a beach, I was between a more simple and light dress and between the very same dress Leslianne wore! I couldn't believe it when I saw it! I had fallen in love with the back, the dip in the back and the three rosettes placed asymmetrically down the side.

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.

When I saw Leslianne's cousin holding onto this little blue box, I was immediately drawn to its aged, blue design. When I asked what it was, I found out that it was Leslianne's Grandma Annie's (I'd since heard many stories) box holding an antique candle holder. She was using the holders on the alter in the wedding. I loved them!

Always fun.

Richard had his own idea that he wanted his own line on the football team. So fun.

This is Emma, praying before the ceremony. She holds her hands like this every time she prays! 

  

After the ceremony, we rushed the bride and groom off to a nearby lake with only minutes left of sunlight! The images turned out beautifully saturated with the evening light.

Let's just say, if you want to know more about the best man's speech, you're gonna have to ask him yourself. I can't repeat it on here :).

I love both of their faces in this image.

Richard totally busted out his air guitar!

And then his own rendition of a song for Leslianne.

With complete dance moves to follow. This guy is hilarious!

Leslianne had a little surprise for her husband. He pretty much loves the Suns.

And he had his own little gift for her. Check the right of the photo!

Emma owned the dance floor! So cute!

Thank you to Stephanie for letting me shoot with you and to the Bride and Groom for letting us in on your day! Love you guys!

 

 

Wedding : Jeff & Susan Spires

I had the honor of taking Derrick's Dad's wedding photos last month. I typically don't do weddings.....yet.. but was honored when they asked me to do so. Off of a lake in Michigan, around fifty close friends and family gathered to celebrate Jeff's marriage to Susan. We came together for dinner and enjoyed the festivities at a friends home. Everything was beautiful! Susan had flowers everywhere! I loved how the scene was set with the sun setting and children playing together on the lawn.

I put together a slide show of a few of the photos from the wedding, but will post a few of my favorites in the next couple of days. Enjoy!

Welcome to the family, Susan!  Derrick and I are so happy for you both. Congratulations!