Caroline and Lee are dear friends of mine, so shooting their wedding, and getting to witness and capture all aspects of their day, was a complete joy and honor! In fact, I knew Caroline before she met Lee, and I have to say, ever since they met, I’ve never seen her happier. Her eyes light up everytime he comes up in conversation! They make such an incredible couple. Needless to say, I was looking forward to their winter wedding for quite a while!
Early in their planning, Caroline found her dream wedding location in the Westin hotel in downtown Columbus. Their ballroom is beautiful and historic, and unlike anything else you’ll see in Columbus. It is one of my absolute favorite places to shoot!
They had all their wedding events at the Westin, which made the day super easy and fun. They both got ready there, so I was able to jump back and forth between them easily. We had a first look on the second floor balcony with just the two of them, and then we invited the wedding party to head outside for some portraits. It was the middle of February – cold, snowy, but sunny! We could not have asked for a more beautiful winter day. The wedding party toughed through the cold temperatures before we headed inside for a few pictures inside the ballroom, all set up for the ceremony. Then we headed back outside, just myself, Caroline and Lee, for some beautiful couples portraits as the sun began to set. It was perfect timing for that warm light!
We then gathered in a conference room with Rabbi Rick Kellner from Beth Tikvah for the Ketubah signing and Bedeken, followed by the wedding ceremony in the ballroom. Even though Caroline and Lee had seen eachother before the wedding, there was still plenty of emotion in the room as Caroline walked down the aisle escorted by her parents. Lee’s children Sydney and Jared even joined them under the chuppah for a blessing.
After the ceremony, the room was quickly flipped for the reception. After family pictures, I would have expected Caroline and Lee to be completely pictured-out at this point, but they asked if we could take pictures of them in the completed room before cocktail hour was over, and I was like, of course!! Those were some of my favorite pictures of the day – just married and taking it all in.
The reception was so much fun – a very lively hora, followed by lots of dancing! And a dessert bar with the most fantastic cinnamon rolls ever! Mazel Tov to Caroline and Lee, I had the most amazing time with you on your big day!
