Jeff + Leah | Savage Love in the Desert

And here we are, as promised-  a perfectly gorgeous, cloud-free, 83 degree Monday in the Red Rock hills of Las Vegas celebrating the ever-photogenic Mr. and Mrs. Savage.  I was so excited to have some spare time before having to board my flight back to rainy Seattle, especially when the weather and couple were so divine. 

Quick (but important) side note: Monday was also the day I partook in The Bobbie, AKA the most amazing sandwich I've ever eaten in life, and I am DEAD SERIOUS. If you've never been to Capriotti's Sandwich Shop, go.  Now.  You need not wait for your next bachelor party, Final Four or New Year's Eve bash to have a reason to hop the next SWA flight to McCarran International Airport.  This sandwich is your reason. Seriously. You can thank me later.

OK, enough talking. I'll only add that Jeff and Leah are the most gracious, wonderful, kind, and appreciative people you could ever meet.  I consider myself lucky to know them and even luckier to have been chosen to share not just one of their most important days, but several of them.  Thanks you two, from the bottom of my heart.  Loveyameanit. 

Now please, enjoy.
xoxo,
a

Leah + Jeff | What happens in Vegas...

... ends up on my blog.

Over Halloween weekend I had the extreme pleasure of heading down to Sin City for Jeff and Leah's wedding celebrations.  Friday was night golfing, reception party on Saturday, Halloween Sunday, and a quick desert photo shoot Monday (which I'll post separately) before heading back to the Emerald City.  It was a bit of a whirlwind, so already we know this is going to be a photo-heavy post.

I arrived in Vegas Friday afternoon and was met by Leah's wonderful sister and brother-in-law who drove me over to Leah and Jeff's place, told me I'd have the house to myself for the weekend and that I'd be driving the couple's convertible VW beetle.  Bummer, I know.  Meet us at the golf course this evening, here are the directions, see you there.  That was that.  Tooling around at night in a golf cart with Leah was a blast and I was really great to meet more of the family before the official Great Gatsby-inspired reception the following day.

Saturday morning I got up, made a b-line to Starbucks and after some shopping, a shower, and wardrobe change, headed over to the stunning residence where the reception was being held.  Like I said, the  theme was inspired by The Great Gatsby and Leah pulled out all the stops with her beautiful platinum hair, bright red lipstick, and drop-dead-gorgeous dress.  The entire affair was delightful.  Cocktails by the volleyball sands, sweets by the infinity pool, mashed potato bar (that's right I said mashed potato bar!) by the tennis courts. There were toasts and a lovely slide show, and everyone stayed deep into the night.

Sunday they had a BBQ for those who were still lazing the day/night away and although that evening was Halloween, I think the previous 48 hours of pure party pretty much zapped the crazy out of everyone because no one wanted to leave.  :)

So it's now that I leave you for just a moment to enjoy my first two days in Vegas before I move on to the fun that was Monday.

Back soon...
xoxo
a

Stephanie + Mike | This Magic Moment

Before I get into the beef and tots of it all, allow me a quick preface. While editing photos for this post I (clearly) had a difficult time narrowing down my favorites, and by the time I took a step back to see what'd I'd be posting I had nearly 50 images. Yikes. It was just too hard to give you the feel of this amazing day without sharing so many images. I mean, magic?!  Magic is not a story you can easily tell in a single photo, and this wedding was indeed magic.

Stephanie and Mike are awesome. While I'm quite certain I say that a lot about the couples I photograph, however in this case I proof. Rustic Whidbey Island, mason jars, wheat boutonnieres, an old truck, a ceremonial step stool, ice-cream sundae bar, magic tricks, homemade jam (which was INCREDIBLE by the way), candy loot bags... I could go on and on but their photos tell it much better than I.

One more thing before I leave you. I'd like to send an extra special big awesome thanks to Michael Budd, their wedding magician.  He not only entertained us all during the reception, but he also taught Stephanie and Mike the trick they chose to do instead of a traditional First Dance (see below).  Michael is not one of those lame Criss Angel types or an uber-creepy Copperfield knock off.  He is the real deal.  Simple, amazing tricks done within two feet of your face.  Michael, you rocked our faces off (I heard that phrase today and just had to throw it back out into the universe!).  Anyone on the look out for a magician, look no further. And if you're not currently in need of a magician, find a reason to be.  He's THAT good.

Abracadabra... Stephanie and Mike!

xoxo,
amy