When we shot their engagement photos we were completely impressed by them and we couldn’t wait to photograph their wedding day.  When we showed up to the reception site, which was in Andrew’s parents’ family barn, we found ourselves in the middle of a photographer’s paradise: vintage details in every direction, mason jars filled with wild flowers, candles hanging from the pillars, corn fields, tall grass, and creative DIY details.  There are so many yummy details to share from this wedding, that I have to break this wedding into 3 posts!  Part 1 of their wedding day can be found here.  This second piece features their outdoor ceremony, details from the barn, the attractive bridal party, and a few of my favorites from our session with Bekki + Andrew alone.

Each of the bridesmaids rocked a fancy peacock feather in their hair and Bekki chose a trendy hair piece.

The bride + groom hosted nearly 350 guests in the barn.

Isn’t this adorable?!  Guests found their birdy place card here.

I love the personality and care that Bekki put into her wedding.

Guests were informed ahead of time that there was going to be a sparkler send-off at 9pm {which is brilliant}.  These amazing rustic signs were posted all over the wedding site, adding an adorable touch.

Yard games!! {More on this in the next Zaffke post.}

These incredible wedding programs doubled as a fan for the sunny ceremony.

Both Bekki’s mom and dad escorted her down the aisle.

One of my favorite parts about their wedding was this: just like many other couples, B + A poured two different containers of sand into a third container during their ceremony.  What is super cute and unlike other couples, is that Bekki and Andrew collected sand from the ground at the places that held special meaning to them: Bekki’s college softball field and Andrew’s home in Baltimore.

Bekki, “I’m a wife! I’m a Zaffke!!”

I loved photographing this bridal party on the farm.

They are so lovely together.

More photos from Bekki + Andrew’s day will be posted tomorrow.  Enjoy your evening.

Love,

Kate

We will be sharing Emily + Jon’s wedding on the blog this week.

Love to you on this Labor Day,

Kate

As the guests approached The Zaffke farm, they were greeted with this adorable sign.  Bekki is an art teacher, loves all things vintage, and her style was displayed perfectly throughout the wedding day.

I always knew Bekki was my kind of girl, but the next photo really confirms that.

Bekki found this perfect dress in a sea of fru fru cinderella gowns.  It was meant to be.

Bekki’s pick.  

Aww Andrew, he really looked this elated all day.

The girls got ready with Bekki in Andrew’s parents’ farm house.  Gorgeous home with perfect light.

Our ravishing bride.

Khaki + Coral bridal colors = best idea ever.

Girl power!  I loved these turquoise accessories the girls wore.

These boys had me laughing all day.

She’s inspiring and whimsical.

Sam & I just adore Bekki & Andrew and I cannot wait to share another piece of their day with you.  The barn is incredibly breathtaking, the ceremony, yard games, and the photos of the bride & groom make me swoon… check back on Tuesday!

Love,

Kate

When I arrived out at the farm to start their engagement session, they came out all dressed up and looking cute.  It was easy for me to make some romantic images because they are so sweet together.  Here is a little taste…

It’s wedding day for us here in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin!  Check back next week for lots of goodies on the blog!

Love to you all on one of your last summer weekends, enjoy it.

Kate

Cheers to Bekki & Andrew, and I hope you two are enjoying your honeymoon!!

Love,

Kate

He is crazy about her.  She is giggling like a high school girl all over again.  He makes her feel like anything is possible.  She squeezes him and holds his hand. They make each other come alive.  It’s really a beautiful + joyful romance that they share.

Meet my great aunt Jan {she is Aunt Jan to me}.  I have always enjoyed her and her tender spirit, she is this truly amazing woman who has always poured out her heart to take care of everyone around her.  Growing up, I loved visiting her with Mom; it really didn’t matter how many months or years went by between our visits, her house always felt welcoming, filled with love, laughter, lots of yarn, and coca-cola.  :)   I will never forget how much I valued sleeping over as a little girl.  The beds were always perfectly made, sheets were crisp and clean (this is something that matters to me, believe it or not), and the rooms were perfectly decorated; everything in its proper place.  It felt like a luxurious B&B stay, except I knew the conversation that awaited me in the living room was going to be personal.

Anyway, I am reflecting on how wonderful my Aunt Jan and her presence in our family’s lives has been because although she has given love so freely to everyone in her life, I’ve never seen her so full of love, love received.  She is alive and glistening with happiness, just as she has always deserved.  Ged has completely changed her life.  She freely gushes about him, but she doesn’t even have to… it’s written all over her face.  I can’t believe how smitten she is with him, it’s adorable.

Earlier this month they celebrated their engagement at the farm in Wisconsin with family and friends.  I was lucky enough to steal them away for a few minutes and we had a mini mini engagement session.  As I edited through these couple of images I just had to laugh at how cute they are.  I actually really enjoy taking my maturity down a notch when I am around them, I make obnoxious kissy faces at them; they blush, we laugh, and all seems to be right in the world.

Enjoy a peek at their love story.

How cute are they, right?!  Thank God that they have found someone that can make them laugh as hard as they do together.

I think this is a good reminder for us to wrap up with the ones we love and tell them what they mean to us today.

Love to you,

Kate

I have always loved a girl that can kick it in jeans and sneakers.  :)

Helllllo gorgeous!

I secretly have been searching high and low for a necklace just like this for about a year now.  Chloe, I love your taste!

Her eyelashes are every girls’ dream.

This was as sassy as Chloe would get with me.  It makes me laugh; she’s just too sweet.

This is a favorite of mine, she is fabulous.

Sometimes us girls just have to spice it up and dance a little…  :)

I have many favorites of Chloe, but this one definitely takes the cake for me.  She’s especially striking here.

This session was a complete blast for me, I loved photographing Beautiful Chloe.  We often get requests for senior sessions, families, and maternity sessions. After my session with Miss Chloe, I am only more excited about photographing these types of sessions.  I do believe that we all need pretty images, regardless of our stage in life.

For more information on our portrait sessions, email us at kate@katebotwinskiphotography.com or use the contact form on our website.

Enjoy this perfect Minnesota weather friends,

Kate

The Flemmings had a beautiful ceremony in the forest at Bluff Creek Golf Course in Chaska, MN.  The guests walked a short pathway into the woods where trees towered over the pretty white chairs, and flower pots lined the walkways.  The reception was also held at Bluff Creek where guests enjoyed dinner and incredible handmade party favors.  So many pieces of the wedding day were chosen by Emily + Jared to represent and remember the loved ones they have lost. The couple is very close to their families, and their family love shined throughout their wedding day.

Emily + Jared got ready for the day in separate hotel rooms, and had their first look at each other in the courtyard of the hotel.

The handsome groom waiting for his girl to meet him outside. {have I mentioned how much I love being able to capture these precious moments?!}

This is how Emily greeted Jared- unlike any other first look that we have photographed, she made him wait a little longer than usual to turn around.  So cute Em.

Bluff Creek offers many beautiful backdrops for photos, my favorite may be the walls of green summer leaves.

This is how guys “love” each other.

My favorite images from the day are always created during my alone time with the bride and groom. Enjoy.

I am STILL baffled at how much time and energy Emily and her mom put into creating the wedding invitations, programs, and guest favors.  A-mazing ladies!

Jared + Emily opted to pour light + dark sand in place of a unity candle.

Sam wanted to get this image of them.

The reception site on the golf course.  Emily decorated it to fit their taste, and gave it a lot of personality.

I found out that Emily’s mom stitched each flower onto these name cards, and my jaw dropped.  A supermom, if you ask me.

She also stitched these adorable boxes as party favors, m&m’s and chocolate star candies filled the boxes.  They were Emily’s late grandmother’s favorite candies.

I loved stealing the newlyweds away from the party for a few kissing photos, since we were already outdoors, it was an easy request.

Emily’s favorite, favorite food is ice cream.  We even had to grab ice cream in the middle of their engagement shoot for some adorable photos.  So at the reception, Jared + Emily had an ice cream sundae bar!!  (which rocked)  They had buckets of toppings (all perfectly labeled) and their relatives helped the guests get started by serving ice cream.

E + J shared their first dance at the sunset, perfection.

A beautiful couple…

Congratulations to Emily + Jared Flemming!

I wish you all a happy weekend.

Love,

Kate

Anyway, this is my little sneak peek at Chloe’s session, one of the first frames I shot of her.  I can’t wait to share the rest!

Kate

We are in the middle of our busiest time of year right now, and our office is overflowing with yummy packages!  One of the products that just arrived is this custom designed image box, which I am on my way to ship out to Kirsten + Ross.  We have said it before, and we will keep saying it: there is no better way to see your images for what they really are than when you have them printed and displayed in the form of a high quality piece of art.  This could be one of our image boxes, professional prints, coffee table books, luxury albums, or gallery wrapped canvases.  The box is a fabulous piece that looks great on a coffee table or living room shelf, and it perfectly holds 4×6 memories from the wedding day.  The box serves as a great way to protect the prints and show off the wedding day images before the luxury wedding album arrives.

The back of the image box…

The box comes attached with a black ribbon which allows for easy removal of the prints.

This pretty image box is a great add-on to any package, and is also a popular item for parents of the bride + groom.

Enjoy your day everyone,

Kate