Oh so lovely!  Another wedding at one of my favorite venues: Oliva on the Hill.  I keep trying to narrow down the number of images I blog per wedding so it isn’t such an incredibly gigantic daunting task to sort, resize, logo, order, upload, etc…but my couples keep having such beautiful weddings that that goal has become unreachable.  My favorite detail from this wedding was the brooch bouquet handmade by the bride and consisting of family brooches, some from friends and family and others from antique shops.  I LOVE it.

I also love how much these two love each other.  Each of their families was so obviously happy for them and Mike was a wee bit teary eyed through the ceremony.  Their theme for the day to friends and fam: We love our ordinary life with you.  How perfect is that?  On with the photos!

I almost never get to carry a dress outside for a photo! And how about those shoes?!

I love this one. The getting ready photos always have this sort of calm before the storm sort of feel for me. Not to compare a wedding to a storm...more of a whirlwind!

Mike is a fire chief in Belleville and this is his truck. And his girl Angie.

When in Illinois...find a corn field! Hey - I went to high school over there so I am allowed to poke fun. I think corn fields are cool. We went from a corn field to the City Garden...I like the juxtaposition.

The fabulous brooch bouquet. There are no words.

Aged bench at Oliva on the Hill.

Even Mike's boutonniere was a perfectly shaped brooch.

Oliva later in the summer with the wisteria vines filled in.

Every guest had their OWN chocolate gnash covered cake. YUM.

Cute cake topper. Their nicknames for each other may have something to do with bunnies...or so I've heard.

Congrats!

As I was lying in bed last night, far from sleep, husband snoring so loud it woke up the dog, I started thinking. I have really had some kick ass weddings this year! I mean, one is just as beautiful as the next. I’m feeling so incredibly lucky that it may be time to go buy a lottery ticket! Although now that I’ve said that I’ve jinxed it. Kind of like telling your birthday wish. Oh well. It was a fun thought while it lasted.

Welcome to the beautiful wedding of Erika and Tyler. They had a quaint ceremony at the Missouri Botanical Gardens followed by a very personalized reception at the Grand Hall at the Marriott in Union Station. Let’s put it this way…no DJ at this wedding. You’ll never guess…BLUEGRASS BAND Cumberland Gap! Their love of music carried through to the tables where each one donned a record and matching name. Like the REM and Michael Buble tables. Kate and I had a great time. Thanks to you both for having us! Now on to the photos. I’m making a concerted effort to talk less rather than ramble on and on and on…some call me long winded. I won’t tell you what the others call me.

Paper and wood parasols for guests at the outdoor wedding in the Japanese Garden at the Missouri Botanical Gardens.

And program fans in a jute basket. They were ready for the July heat!

Thanks to Kate for both of these awesome walking shots! I had the fabulous idea to use the hill and the strong sun flare but then my camera refused to cooperate. These turned out great! Just as I envisioned.

Take a look at the right side of this photo. Due to the slow shutter speed and a slight breeze, it looks as if the greens and yellows have been manipulated and pulled around like paint. No photoshop work here whatsoever! Cool eh? Not that I did it on purpose. Just thought it was sweet.

One of my very favorites from the day. Serene yet strong.

The beautiful Grand Hall at Union Station.

I didn't take a photo of my place card because I am that self involved. It was one of the only ones left! Very cool display.

I have never seen this and I love it! Instead of a guestbook, they had a board with years on it. Guests wrote notes and stuck pins in on the year in which they met or had a specific memory. So very cool.

See? Record themed tables. Genius.

Tyler wrote a song for Erica. It was beautiful and brave of him. He was a wee bit nervous so he sang most of it with his eyes closed to block out the crowd.

The effect Tyler's song had on the ladies. Not a dry female eye in the house.

I think they like each other.

Ceremony: Missouri Botanical Garden Japanese Garden
Reception: Marriott St. Louis Union Station Grand Hall
Flowers: Botanicals Design Studio
Cake: McArthurs Bakery

L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photography by Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

This blog is not only long, but has been a long time coming. Kate and I shot this one together and it was a good day which means WAY too many photos to sift through and edit. Now it was hot as hell, and if you’ve ever been here before you know I’m a snow bunny and like Frosty the Snowman, I melt when placed outside during crazy St. Louis summers. However, even heat indexes over 110 couldn’t put a damper on this day. A little bit (ok – A LOT) of heat didn’t stop Natalie, Grant and their friends and family from enjoying every minute of it! And capturing that is what we love to do. No matter when I put the camera on either of them, neither was ever frowning, or complaining, or worried. They were always smiling and usually in the direction of each other. Talk about making our jobs easy! Take a look!

Kate caught this one. I couldn't think of a better way to start the blog. Or the day for that matter!

Oooo...shiny. And Tiffany blue! Considering changing the L photo green. Darn color ADD kicking in again.

Grant re-tied his tie at least 5 times. It had to be perfect! Which gave Kate and I plenty of time to get great shots...which we appreciated!

First sight at the Artists' Guild! These two were so excited to marry each other.

How sweet are those TAUPE roses in this beautiful bouquet by Bloomin' Buckets? Exquisite!

Kate captured one of my favorite images of the day!

It was about 110 degrees but everyone was still in great spirits!

These two never stopped smiling all the way through the ceremony. The sun was beating down on us and I had to photoshop a glistening droplet of sweat off of the tip of Grant's nose, but it really didn't matter. Still so happy!

Fun cute details! From the Gooey Looey butter cakes to the wheat grass holding the place cards, to the colorful Asian lanterns...it was perfect.

A little bit of dramatic flair to end the evening!

Congratulations! Kate and I could not have felt more appreciated by both families. And to the wedding party: THANK YOU for being the best sports ever on a seriously devilishly hot St. Louis day. We couldn’t have asked for a more fun group!

Ceremony: St. Louis Artists’ Guild
Reception: St. Louis Artist’s Guild
Caterer: Catering St. Louis
Flowers: Bloomin’ Buckets
Cake: The Cakery Bakery
Dress: Maggie Sottero

L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photographers Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

Julie is coming by to pick up her proofs today….so, I, uh, thought I would try to get a blog up first. So behind on my blogging! So many beautiful weddings to edit that it’s tough finding time to share them! This gorgeous wedding (both ceremony and reception) took place at the Ninth Street Abbey in Soulard. It just so happens that for over 3 years of my life I lived in the apartment literally right next door. I mean, their driveway was 2 feet from my front steps. Being back in the neighborhood was a little bit of a flashback so I was feeling a bit nostalgic all day. Really, if you’re going to have a crazy hot wedding day, it’s great if you don’t have to be out in it too much. We had about 30 minutes for photos and we made the best of it! Just walking around a 2 block radius in Soulard. So many hidden gems! Due to the fact that Julie is swinging by in a couple of hours, I’m going to cut my story telling a bit short and get to the photos. I think that’s what most people visit for anyway. Not my witty banter?! I’m hurt. Hee-hee!

The flowers, the cake, EVERYTHING was beautiful at this wedding. Once I find out vendors from Julie today I will comeback and add them all here! I think I remember them, but I'm not 100% sure and don't want to misrepresent.

My very favorite photo of the day.

I'm kind of in love with yellow right now, so basically, I love this.

Beautiful linens on the head table from BBJ!

Matching little personalized m&m's. And seriously, I LOVE fruit in arrangements. Mesmerizes me every time. I'm drawn to them like a raccoon and shiny things. Wait, I'm drawn to shiny things too. Hmmmm....

Congratualtions!

L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photography by Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes
Ceremony and Reception: Ninth Street Abbey
Cake: The Cakery Bakery
Florist: Kenary Park in Webster Groves

Wanted to share our current Saint Louis Bride Magazine ad featuring a few of our clients!

Top left: Tim’s favorite green wellies worn by his bride Sarah for a few photos on their wedding day (to be featured in the next regional Knot mag!)
Top right: The beautiful owner of Cha Boutique Sarah Craig Garlich on her wedding day at her mother in law Annie’s house in Clayton.
Bottom left: Another one of Sarah and hubby Pat playing in the City Garden fountain at sunset during their Trash the Dress session.
Bottom right: Wildflowers bouquet from Laura and Peter’s beautiful November wedding last year (also featured in the current regional Knot mag!)

We are so lucky to have such wonderful, beautiful people and vendors to work with on a day to day basis!

L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photographers Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

Fun times in West County! I’m not going to lie, I don’t get to spend much time in West County or in Illinois for that matter. For some reason I am rarely outside of the 270 loop. However, it is wonderful to branch outside of my comfort zone and work with some new spots from time to time! Christi and Jeremy got ready and saw each other for the first time at the airport Hilton and then we took off for photos. Side not: If you haven’t seen that Hilton recently they did a great job with the renovation! Very modern and artistic. So then it was off to St. Charles for some industrial shots near the river followed by a beautiful garden at Blanchette Park. I always like to get a couple of contrasting looks! Christi has been well “trained” by her talented photographer sister Sarah Crowder which made my job quite easy. Too bad Jeremy is completely untrainable…kidding! Jeremy is quite the photographer himself and played along with my random thoughts and suggestions no questions asked. Well, maybe with a little sarcasm, which I totally appreciate. I also love that one of the guys at this wedding said I was ok with him because I shoot Canon and drive a German car. Such high standards!

After photos we headed out to Wentzville in a torrential downpour (hey – it mostly waited until we were done with photos so I’m not complaining!) for the ceremony and then it was back to the Hilton to dance the night away. Congrats guys!

Love how different Jeremy's ring is.

See? Totally playing along!

I feel like Christi's eyes are shinier than most peoples. They somehow pick up every bit of light in the room.

The shoe shot was a specific request. And is one of my favorites!

For once a bubble exit in which I don't have a bubble in an inopportune location!

Cheers!

L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photography by Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

We are so excited to say that we had the opportunity to shoot the cover and fashion spread for the latest issue of Saint Louis Bride Magazine! It just hit shelves this week so be sure to pick up a copy and peruse. I can’t thank Nancy Slade, Editor of Saint Louis Bride Magazine, enough for this opportunity. It was a really fun experience and everyone is so happy with the end result. We shot this back in May and since Kristie was having a baby and all, Kate stepped in and helped me out. (Speaking of Kate – more to come!) Shayna Laiderman, owner of St. Louis Wedding Consultants, was the shoot coordinator and did an amazing job getting everything together. We had a blast dress shopping together! Lisa and Lois (makeup and hair respectively) from Looks by Lisa made our beautiful model into an even more beautiful bride. My pops lent us his retro red bicycle and Shayna donated her red cardigan for the cover shot (which we shot in about 5 minutes as the sun left us for the day!) Madeline, our model from West Model Management was a trooper. The mosquitos were killer that day and she just continued to look like a happy go lucky bride on a picnic while multiple mosquitos were snacking on her! Oh, and the bouquets by Thetis at Luluthia Floral Design were to die for. Red peonies, feathers and all kinds of fun textures.

I don’t have images of the inside spread yet, but I did want to at least share the cover! It was a pretty amazing group effort. Thanks everyone!

L photographie St. Louis Wedding Photography by Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

Last night was the launch party for the latest Saint Louis Bride Magazine with the cover by yours truly!  I’ll get that up here in a few.  But first, more important things.  Stacey and Dave had a signature St. Louis wedding.  They were married at St. Ambrose on the Hill followed by the reception at Favazza’s Rose of the Hill.  For any outsiders that don’t know, The Hill is our historic Italian neighborhood known for it’s culture and absolutely delectable food.  And being huge Cards fans, they even talked me into going to Busch Stadium for a few photos…on a game day!  What can I say, I’m a sucker.  The Cardinals were on our side that day though.  So instead of getting there at the exact same time the game was ending and traffic would have made us about half an hour late for the reception, the game went into extra innings!  Just for us!  And the really rad vendor guy outside let us use his stand as our very own photo booth.  How cool is that?! On with the photos!

I realize this is a little bit odd, but the doors at St. Ambrose are very cool. And I LOVE the patina on the handle. Perfectly aged.

Random back staircase inside the church. Lisa at Belli Fiori did a wonderful job on the flowers.

I love this one for some reason. Dave is like "What do you want from me? Am I doing it wrong?!"

I have a giant soft spot for doggies.

Favazza's Rose of The Hill

L photographie wedding photography by Liz Sloan and Kate Hayes

Next up Val and Scott! Valarie and I used to work together in the media industry, and I was so excited when she asked me to shoot her laid back, garden wedding. The entire event took place at St. Albans at the Gardens at Malmaison. It was the first time I had ever been out there, and I was impressed by the quaintness they managed to keep when the built it. The old, no longer used railroad tracks and wood bridge are darling. As are Val’s two kids. It really struck me that day that this is truly a joining of families. Scott loves those kids as if they are his own…his face made that obvious to me over and over all day long.

It was also obvious that Val and Scott wanted this to be a relaxing, fun party surrounded by friends and family. Just so happens there was a wedding thrown in there somewhere! And a few photos…enjoy!

Val's sandals were fitting for the garden wedding.

Scott is perfect with Val's kids.

This may not be the prettiest photo ever, but the fact that the fridge had beer and chocolate milk on the same shelf made me chuckle. It still makes me chuckle. Chuckle is a funny word.

First sight at Malmaison.

I love the look on Scott's best man's face in the background.

Val's kids valiantly walked her down the aisle. The whole family was incorporated into the ceremony.

One of my favorites of the day. Maybe of the month.

It was a wee bit warm so the cake started to melt a little...after it was forever captured in photos!

Scott - are you listening to the toasts at all?!

A beautiful evening. Thank you for letting me be a part of it!

Liz Sloan L Photographie St. Louis Wedding Photography

My little sick doggie put me a wee bit behind on my blogging. I just shipped out Becca and Josh’s photos to Jefferson City, MO today! So in an effort to beat them, I thought I’d get a quick last minute, under the gun blog up for them. Quick, but not short! So many cute photos – so tough to narrow it down! They had a fabulous ceremony and reception at Oliva on the Hill. AND one of my favorite new favors ever. Guests took home individual, ready to plant baby pine trees with little burlap covered root balls. I may have a new favor idea for my annual holiday party! Yes, already planning Christmas in July.

I love how laid back Becca and Josh are with each other, and it is obvious they (and their friends and fam!) like to have a good time. It’s been a couple of years since I saw a conga line break out, and I can’t tell you how many people at this wedding tried to get me to have a drink, relax and enjoy myself. I tried to tell them that the photos turn out much clearer, not to mention right side up when I am alcohol free! So I stayed the course…which took all of my will power with this group! Not to mention the fact that Catering St. Louis makes a killer strawberry basil mojito. Mmmmm…enjoy the photos!

Gotta love that smile.

I call this one "How many bridesmaids does it take to open a stylish little clutch?!" Sorry ladies...I had to.

First sight. Cute.

Always love monochromatic bouquets. A simple mass of color makes the biggest statement.

The decor on the door at Oliva as well as the programs set the tone for the "natural" feel of the wedding.

Snuck away for just a few more portraits. Totally worth it.

See what I mean?!

Cutie little pine trees and marinated olives for guests to munch on. The munching only applies to the olives. I think the trees would be dry and tough.

Tree guest book!

Guests were asked to sign the wine bottle for the couple to enjoy on their 1 year anniversary. I basically like any idea that involves wine.

Even Josh's son had a little something to say to the crowd. Youngest toaster ever!

Just take a minute to count the smiles in this photo. It's a happy room.

And POOF! The patio is perfectly reset and ready for a dance party.

Conga.

Dancing into the night...congrats guys!

I had the pleasure of shooting Kelli and Brian’s wedding in late May. These two are good friends of mine and as I have mentioned before, it is always a pleasure to capture people you know so dearly on one of the biggest days of their lives. I was actually there for a little undercover shoot of their engagement at the zoo last year due to the crazy cool Brian who actually created a secret engagement website for fam and friends without Kelli’s knowledge. Let’s just say that we all had very specific instructions complete with background info and maps showing us where to stand (and stay out of sight) for this big surprise!

So a whole year of planning has gone by and during that time plenty of late evening/early morning drinks have been had over dresses, locations, shoes, colors, etc. Well, I’m not sure what Brian and my husband Steve were discussing on the other side of the bar table, but we were very productive on our side.  These two are so in love with each other…I would say passionately in love with each other. I’m sure many couples love each other just as much as they do, but these two seem to ooze love. And it makes me smile.

Although an incredibly happy occasion, I shed more tears behind the camera this time than usual. Kelli lost her mom recently but it was obvious to everyone present that she was there with us all day in spirit and in memory. The room was filled with love and it was beautiful.

I know we talked about me having fun and really getting to kick back and enjoy your wedding, but I am honored that I was able to do this for you instead. Enjoy the preview! Want to pick up proofs over a few beers?!

Ceremony: Sheraton City Center downtown St. Louis
Reception: Lemp Grand Hall

Green Shoes. Love.

This is one of Kelli's wedding gifts. Brain knows her love for pirates. Arrrrrggg!

Glowing.

And maybe a wee bit nervous!

And happy! Talk about a range of emotions.

They wrote their own vows. Some of the most thoughtful, unique and fitting I've ever heard.

Proud papa.

Kelli...serious hottie face. You're always so smiley. I didn't know you had it in you!

Back at the zoo where it all started!

Someone tell them there's a doggie on the cake.

Side funny story: I'm not sure why, but Kelli and Brian's nicknames for one another are Ray and Jerry. It has something to do with Jerry McGuire. That being said, not everyone knows this. I was taking this photo when a guest walked in and said, "Oh, I think we're at the wrong reception." And Brian is a Cubs fan. Yes folks, mixed marriage. We wish them well.

Engravable frame! Guests sign it with a sharp "pen." Love it!

Reception took place in the historical Lemp Grand Hall.

Teary eyed toasts from the father of the bride.

St. Louis Wedding Photographer Liz Sloan for L Photographie

The Knot magazine (and online for that matter!) has been so good to me over the years featuring some of our fabulous weddings from creative, detail-oriented brides! The latest one to hit the shelves is Laura and Peter’s perfect fall sioree at Oliva on the Hill by Catering St. Louis. Take a look! Seriously a couple of my favorite bouquets EVER. Props to the designers at Wildflowers for killing it on this one!

St. Louis Wedding Photographer Liz Sloan for L Photographie