I’ve been a fan of Wild Magnolia Design for a couple years, but hadn’t seen one of their albums in person. They are pricey, but I finally bit the bullet and ordered a sample. It is GORGEOUS!

I chose their Organic Vintage cover, which is made of 100% hemp canvas.

Wild Magnolia Album

Hemp Canvas Wedding Album

For the end papers, I chose their Scrimshaw pattern, which happens to be tree-free and made of recycled plastic bags.

Scrimshaw End Papers

Scrimshaw Close Up

The paper is Epson Somerset Velvet, a high-end giclee paper that is made entirely of cotton. The bride you see here getting handfasted is the very same designer who made the game.

Handfasting Album Spread

I couldn’t choose just one wedding, so after months of agonizing I decided to include several. This next spread is from Emily & Jeremy’s awesome DIY wedding at General Potter Farm that was featured in State College Bride magazine. Yes, the one where Nigel the goat ran off with a program!

General Potter Farm Wedding Album Spread

The next spread is from Emily & Matt’s wedding, which was featured in Green Bride Guide. They chose the Gaia Book for their wedding album, which is another earth-friendly favorite of mine. I just had to see their images in this album, too.

State College Green Wedding

Kristin & Steve’s gorgeous two-day, compost-everything wedding had to be included, also!

Green Wedding Album

This album is SO soft, I could sleep with it. It’s also VERY high-quality! You should check it out!

Wild Magnolia Hemp Wedding Album Binding

Hemp Wedding Album

If you’d like to see this album in person, call me! I’ll bring a Gaia Book for comparison!

My life is so full of serendipitous moments. Remember the album I had to drop-ship because it was delayed? I finally got to see it.

Keri & Brian ordered a 12×12 Finao One with two gorgeous leathers, ‘Secret Garden’ & ‘Datebook.’ Secret Garden was out of stock, so we had to wait… and wait…  and wait. It was painful! She mentioned to me that she was coming into the State College area in July and offered to meet up so I could get my hands on it. The serendipitous part? She was staying at a family cabin that is WALKING DISTANCE from my house. They live in Virginia and their wedding was in Shamokin Dam. I live in Spring Mills, not State College. Cool, huh?!

Without further ado, here is their awesome wedding album!

Finao One Datebook & Secret Garden

Finao One Flush Mount Album

Finao One Album

Finao One Flush Mount Spread

Finao One Spread - No Pink Line

One more cool nugget of information: Brian proposed to Keri at this cabin!

Keri & Brian

Thanks, guys! It was so great to see you again!

I am so lucky sometimes. Eight months ago a fellow photographer asked me if I could cover a wedding for him. I hadn’t yet booked the date, so I said I would love to help him out. Little did I know, I was MEANT to photograph this wedding.

It was a crazy on-the-cheap-but-looked-really-expensive wedding. The DJ & the videographer were their friends. The flowers, the cake, the programs, and the decorations were all homemade. The hydrangeas were driven in from several gardens that were hours away. This family has mad creative skillz, especially Cathy’s mom. Everything looked incredible. The reception took place in a family friend’s backyard where several weddings have been held, the first being HER PARENTS’ WEDDING! Sooo romantic.

Cathy is a law student and Steve is studying screenwriting. If you know me, you know that those are two of my favorite subjects! The best part – they are totally, madly, head-over-heels in LURVVVvv. Spongebob’s “The Best Day Ever” was playing in my head when I was taking pictures, I’m totally serious. I also cried about 5 times, which is a record-breaker for me. Every single person I met was kind, unique & wonderful.

Homemade Wedding Decorations

Homegrown Wedding Centerpieces

Wedding Head Table

Bride Getting Make Up

Harrisburg Crowne Plaza

Mother of the Bride

Bridal Bouquet

Dyeables Shoes

Mother Putting Veil On Daughter

Saint Margaret Mary Church in Harrisburg

Homemade Wedding Programs

Catholic Wedding Ceremony

Cute Ring Bearer

Bride and Father Walking Down The Aisle

Groom's First Look

Wedding Kiss

Wedding Bubbles

Homemade Wedding Cake

Bride Kisses Groom

Oh! I totally forgot to tell you, she SINGS!

Bride Sings To Her Groom

Packed Dance Floor at Wedding

Awesome Dance Moves

Bride Dances With Father-In-Law

Outdoor Wedding Reception

Fun Dancing at Wedding

Wedding Reception

I became friends with Tamira in 2010 after reading this amazing story. American Dog Magazine ran a story about the rescue and I provided the photographs - one of them is hanging in the Centre County PSPCA. Since then I have been a huge fan of hers and a supporter of her wonderful organization.

If you haven’t heard of Dogs Deserve Better, you haven’t been watching the news. The organization just bought the old Michael Vick property and they are moving in RIGHT NOW. It will be transformed from a place of horror to a place of rehabilitation.

Dogs Deserve Better Chain Off

Every year they hold an event called Chain Off, where people all over the country chain themselves to dog houses in an effort to pass laws that limit the amount of time that dogs are chained. Last year Tamira spent 54 days chained at the Harrisburg capital steps advocating for a law. While she walked away empty-handed, she did not give up.

This year the focus was on two tethering bills: HB 826, which was introduced in the House in February by Rep. Scavello, and SB 972, which was introduced in the Senate in April by Sen. Alloway. These bills would limit the amount of time a dog could spend chained each day, and provide some protection for extreme weather conditions.

Since rescuing dogs is her life’s work, it made perfect sense for her & Joe to be married during Chain Off. When she asked me if I could photograph their wedding that day, I said I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my birthday!

Chain Off 2011 Harrisburg

Honk!

State Senator Andrew Dinniman

Tamira Thayne and Andrew Dinniman

Andrew Dinniman Hugs Tamira Thayne During Chain Off

Chain Off 2011 in Harrisburg, PA

Taylor Allmon at Chain Off

Dogs Deserve Better Chain Off

Dogs Deserve Better

Man Chained To Dog House

Tamira Thayne, Founder of Dogs Deserve Better

Tamira and Joe

Tamira and Joe Get Married

Click “like” if you wish you were there!

Dogs Deserve Better Wedding

Wedding on Capital Steps

Tamira & Joe, Just Married

DDB Wedding Cake Topper

Chained Bride and Groom

Dog Chains and Collars

Wedding Bouquet

Cake Cutting on Harrisburg Capital Steps

Vegan Wedding Cake

Dogs Deserve Better Thayne-Horvath Wedding Party

Tamira & Joe

Check out their awesome wedding highlights by Hi Focused!

Congratulations, Tamira & Joe! We’ll miss you in PA!

I met Patrick & Sarah while I was photographing Rachel & Nathan‘s wedding.  We were on the trolley heading to the lion shrine when we came around the bend and saw Patrick getting down on one knee! I immediately jumped out of the trolley and grabbed their picture while everyone on the trolley cheered for them.

Nittany Lion Shrine Proposal

They were married a few weeks ago and came back into town for a post-wedding portrait session, ninja-style.
Naturally, we started at the spot where IT happened.

Nittany Lion Shrine Wedding Portrait

They had stayed at the Inn on that special day, so we walked around to the front while talking about serendipitous moments.

Nittany Lion Inn

Then something serendipitous happened! “There goes that trolley again!”

Penn State Trolley

That Trolley!

After that we walked around, basically following the light.

Purple Iris Wedding Photograph

Cute Wedding Portrait in State College

State College Portraits

State College Beaver Stadium

These pictures are KILLER! Click “like” if you agree!

State College Arboretum Portrait

The Arboretum at Penn State

The Tavern in State College

Old Main at Penn State

Old Main at Night

Downtown State College

We had a great time and got some AMAZING shots. The universe put us together to create these images, I am sure of it!

Rachel & Jared were married at her parent’s home, a beautifully secluded property in Port Matilda. It was a very intimate affair with picnic baskets, rice krispies treats, frisbee, and lots of personal touches.

I started my day at Euphoria, where she had her hair done up with pretty BRAIDS! I noticed right away that she had major dimples and stared at them all day long. I ADORE dimples.

Euphoria at Le Salon in State College

Back at the house, family members were working hard to make everything just right.

State College Tent Reception

Picnic Wedding

Wedding Picnic Lunch

They ordered sandwiches from Wegman’s, and made Rice Krispies treats with an “old family recipe” that used peanut butter instead of marshmallows.

Peanut Butter Rice Krispies Treat

They even had chocolate bars with love poems inside!

Chocolove Chocolate Bars with Love Poems

Their cake was by Kim Morrison and Daniel Vaughn was their florist. Everything went together perfectly.

Kim Morrison Wedding Cake

Daniel Vaughn Flowers

Daniel Vaughn Wedding Bouquet

This handmade quilt was a wedding gift to her parents, and will someday belong to them! Oh, and the purse isn’t bad, either!

Purse on Wedding Quilt

Beautiful Bride Getting Dressed

Groomsmen Arrive

Jared is a Mass Spectrometry Specialist. Scientists are so cool.

Groom Getting Ready

Real men wear pink! Click “like” if you agree!

Rachel’s Man of Honor did the goofiest walk down the aisle I have ever seen!

Wedding Man of Honor

Bride and Father

Groom's First Look

Outdoor Wedding Ceremony in Port Matilda

Wedding Vows

There were awesome handmade signs telling you where to go.

Homemade Wedding Sign

There’s a big tree on their property that her parents requested a picture by. In 50 years it will be fun to see how much bigger the tree is, and maybe take an anniversary portrait there.

Outdoor Wedding Portrait

These evergreens were planted by their family as saplings.

Elated Wedding Couple

We had some rain right after the ceremony and the conditions were perfect for a giant rainbow… unfortunately the sun didn’t make it all the way out before the rain clouds were gone. I was on high “rainbow alert” for at least 30 minutes. Since we didn’t get our rainbow, we made our own.

Rainbow Lens Flare

They have a gorgeous overlook as well. We waited until the lighting was just right and got this awesome contre-jour shot.

Contre-jour Wedding Portrait

The party continued into the night with a fire, torches, and frisbee. It was the perfect ending to the perfect day.

Plywerk is a company in Portland that is run by “sandal-wearing, tofu-eating, bike-riders.” They make eco-conscious photo mounting & art panels. I’ve been interested in offering their products for awhile, but had to see one in-person first. My hopes were high, but not my expectations. I recently received some samples from another eco-friendly vendor and was sorely disappointed. I’ve also found several great products with service that was non-existent. I’m ecstatic to report that Plywerk is the REAL DEAL.

This is an 8×10 Plywerk, made with ¾” carbonized vertical grain bamboo. First, the color is spot-on. It’s hard to tell by looking at pictures online but some labs just can’t print right. Even if you send a digital image that has perfect color, you can get a really bad print back. They could make unwanted adjustments. The chemistry could be dirty or contaminated. They could use bad paper. Plywerk created a print that is the exact same quality that I would get from my pro lab.

Eco-Conscious Photo Mounting & Art Panels

Second, it is a high-quality, heavy duty product. I love bamboo, but sometimes bamboo products aren’t very well made. I expected the panel to be light, it is heavy. I expected it to be rough, it is smooth as silk. I expected weak points in the construction, there are none. This is a SOLID product.

Bamboo Photo Mounting

Authentic Plywerk

The customer service was great. The turnaround was fast. They answer their email. They don’t use excessive packing material. So far, I am blown away by this company. My boyfriend and I have already decided that we will be ordering these instead of gallery wraps when we move.

The best part? You don’t need a pro account to purchase from them. That means you can buy Plywerks of your professional portraits AND have matching Plywerks made of your own pictures and FILL UP YOUR WALLS.

I call this next one “Plywerk in Potato Patch, with weeds.”

Plywerk in Potato Patch

The very first email Jennifer sent me started with: “Hey there! We are getting married!” I knew right then that this wedding was going to be awesome. In fact, my reply to her email started with: “Hey there! That’s awesome!”

Jennifer & Jason are VERY down-to-earth people. Their life is a simple & honest one filled with children, goats, service & a genuine appreciation of life. Their energy is very calm and happy, and I loved every moment of the day.

It was a small-ish event that took place at The Carriage Haus in Newville. Most of their wedding decor was either homemade or homegrown.

Handmade Wedding

Wedding Flowers

Wedding Lilies

DIY Wedding

The Carriage Haus

Their ceremony took place out back under the pergola. It was non-stop smiles.

Groom

Wedding at The Carriage Haus

Outside Wedding

Wedding Ceremony

Wedding Ceremony Yellow Lilies

Carriage Haus Wedding

Wedding Kiss

Honk if you’re lovin’ all these smiles! Oops, I mean, click “like!”

Just Married

Bride & Groom Exiting Pergola

Bride & Groom Portrait

Bride & Groom Entering Reception

First Dance at The Carriage Haus

Bride & Groom First Dance

Father & Daughter Dancing at Wedding

Beautiful Outdoor Wedding Portrait

Military Wedding Couple

Wedding Rings

Wedding Sunset Portrait

Jennifer & Jason, I am so glad to have met you. Congratulations on finding your perfect life partner and thanks again for picking me to photograph your wedding!

These are a little more creative than the first set. I played more with double exposures & had a couple rolls pushed by The Camera Shop. I’m not all that impressed by the scans, but since they are test rolls I can deal with the imperfections. I’m buying a film scanner for July’s wedding.

Nittany Lion Shrine Holga

State College Holga

Nittany Lion Shrine Old Main Holga Double Exposure

Penn State University Lion Shrine Holga

Penn State Campus Holga Push Processed

Turtle Old Main Holga Push Processed

Can anyone guess what this is?

State College Holga Double Exposure

Nittany Lion Shrine Holga Pushed

Leah Lion Shrine Holga Pushed

Nittany Lion Shrine Film Holga Pushed

These are the ceiling lights in Green Bowl.

Green Bowl Lights Film Holga

This last one was taken at the Pow Wow.

State College Pow Wow Holga Film

Looking forward to July!

Heather & Matt met in pharmacy school and live in VA, Matt’s home state. Heather grew up in PA so they had their wedding here. I drove to VA for their engagement session last year, and as soon as I met them I knew their wedding was going to be a blast!

Their wedding was at Lake Raystown Resort, one of my favorite venues. It is totally secluded and surrounded by trees, and the windows run ceiling-to-floor. The weather was overcast with random bouts of rain. It was the perfect day for a wedding.

The first item on the itinerary she sent me was “Our first obligation is a mimosa, I mean brunch at the Marina Cafe at 11am!” I arrived at about 12:30 and the alcohol was flowing well.

Best Friends

Heather is so excited to share her man’s last name & had many items personalized. This is one of my favorites.

Personalized Hanger

They are both extremely blessed in the looks department. No doubt, their babies will be GORGEOUS.

Matt Looking Dapper

Gorgeous

Their ceremony took place at the gazebo. The rain held out just long enough!

Bride & Dad

Man & Wife!

We had to take our groups shots under the roof, because it started coming down right after the ceremony. I stood in the rain. It felt good!

Fun Wedding Party

Like this post? Then don’t be shy!

Bride & Groom Entering Reception

The window light was excellent, so I alternated between two cameras for much of the reception. This picture of their first dance was taken without a flash.

First Dance

Since picture time was rained out, we snuck out for a few more shots at sunset.

Sunset Wedding Portrait at Raystown Resort

They fed me so well all day that I totally forgot to snag a cupcake! Doh!

Cupcake Tower

CONFESSION: I cry a little at every wedding. It’s usually the Anniversary Dance that gets me. Right about the time I took this picture, I started weeping like a sad little baby. I don’t think anyone saw me… did they?

Anniversary Dance at Raystown Resort

Here’s the longest married couple with the couple just starting their journey together!

Anniversary Dance Portrait

I love how they mimic each other’s expressions. It’s like they have their own secret language.

Wedding Garter

Garter & Bouquet Toss

I also got great shots of the bouquet & garter in the air, which you can see on my Facebook page.

Last Dance

It was a beautiful wedding, and I’m so grateful that I got to be part of it. Oh one last detail… Matt planned the honeymoon and she had no idea where they were going!

Heather & Matt, may your life be full of many more wonderful surprises! Thanks again for picking me to document your love!