I wish all my weddings could have the prep location be directly across from Starbucks! I swear half of my own prep time before a wedding is spent trying to use my Waze app to search “along route” for my nearest fix.
Well these girls had the luxury of having me latte’d up and ready to start their day thanks to their hotel being right by my supplier. *(I’m completely okay with that sounding like a drug run.)
I have had the pleasure of getting to know this couple during their engagement and knew how sweet they were together, so I was happy their wedding day had finally come! Their engagement session was an epic night, with their pup in tow and with us taking full advantage of the country and city parts of Austin. *(click the link to see their Austin engagement session!)
With the girls all in their floral robes and hair and makeup looking flawless, I was able to capture the excitement of the wedding day before we even arrived at the church.
As someone who goes through the motions of a wedding every single weekend, I search out and cling to any special moments that make a wedding it’s own. Little moments like the bride giving a gift to her father as a tangible memory to hold on to after he gives her away. Little things like the groom’s jacket being custom made and embroidered with his name. The way the wedding party and family get slightly anxious before having to walk down the aisle in front of the bride. Every combination of people will handle a wedding differently and I love capturing it all unfold.
Santa Cruz Catholic Church is beautiful. With stained glass, high ceilings, and enough hiding spaces for me to be able to catch a few expressions between the bride and groom during the ceremony, I was extremely pleased walking in. That’s a huge thing to consider when choosing a wedding venue, by the way. As you research, you can talk to each venue, especially churches, to ask ahead of time what rules they have for your photo and video team. Most will not allow the photo team to move an inch during the ceremony, so that clearly limits what photos are able to be taken in real time.
Every Catholic ceremony has beautiful traditions and I have loved getting to see how each one plays out. When Gisela and Joe were pronounced husband and wife, they exited the church to cheers, high fives and even a baseball-like pat on the, well.. the “backside” of the new groom. Hey, I’ll take it if it makes the bride and groom laugh! We took a minute at the little prayer chapel outside the church for portraits before going over to Stagecoach Park in Buda since I believe time waiting for a limo to pack up is perfectly useful time for photos. *(Ok, ok, I think ANY moment during the day is a perfectly useful time for photos, I know.)
I think the best part about taking photos for these two is their ability to make each other laugh. As I uploaded their photos there are so many times where both of them are laughing together and it’s contagious when you’re around them. Their wedding party had zero troubles making a fun time of group photos and that makes my life SO much easier!
The mariachi band started the reception off with such a great atmosphere while guests enjoyed dinner. Speeches throughout the night were helpful to see not only the love of the bride and groom, but between family members who had been lost too soon and were there watching from above. The DJ’s made sure the music fit every mood and we all (yes, me too!) enjoyed every style of dancing throughout the night.
The bride hiked a football with the garter on it to the groom who threw it out to the guys for a dramatic scene (twice!). The dance floor stayed full and the music stayed loud for this crowd to celebrate the newlyweds for as long as they could. I pulled them out for their night portraits and I of course had to include the two of them laughing at how hard it is to stay still for the shots! Especially while I am laying on the ground in the pitch black after running and spraying fog all around them. I can only imagine how ridiculous I looked!
Congrats to you both- and I can’t wait to send off ALL your wedding photos!
Austin Wedding Hair– Meagan Dodson
Austin Wedding Makeup– Pretty Little Lashes TX
Buda Wedding Ceremony Venue– Santa Cruz Catholic Church, Buda
Austin Reception Venue– Phillips Event Center
Not your average wedding blog. 
The stained glass at Santa Cruz is so beautiful, and I love all of your wedding photography! The couple look so happy and in love, I can’t get over how beautifully decorated Phillips Event Center is!
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What a lovely wedding at the Phillips Event Center! Santa Cruz is so pretty.
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Such a gorgeous wedding starting out at the Santa Cruz Catholic Church and then finishing at the Phillips Event Center. Such beautiful places to have a wedding celebration. I adore the bride and groom portraits outside the are so happy and full of love.
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What a gorgeous wedding at the Phillips Event Center! I loved how happy the couple looks!
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This wedding has some of my favorite wedding photos from Elizabeth Birdsong Photography. The very dramatic bridal portrait, beautiful detail shots, and epic wedding night portraits! Great advice for future brides about choosing a ceremony venue. SO good!
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Wow! So many pretty details at the Phillips Event Center. Your photography really showcased the killer view in those nighttime evening photographs. Santa Cruz sure is pretty.
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This wedding is jaw-dropping! Your photography is out of this world! From the stunning night portraits to the unique detail shots you nailed this wedding! Stunning work!
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Amy, this wedding is absolutely gorgeous. I literally found myself with my mouth open drooling over some of the shots you have here, especially the awesome stuff you got in the Santa Cruz Catholic Church.
You’re so right about shooting in a church that will give you access to more than just one place, it allows such creative freedom and you took advantage of that wonderfully here.
The formal portraits you shot were all beautifully done and I loved the way you captured that four-photo string of the bride and groom. It tells their story so well.
Great job. 🙂
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