Oh, Florida.  Land of the palm trees and fresh oranges and no-see-ums.  It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.  I was delighted to return to you for Nikki and John’s casual and intimate beach wedding.

Here’s the story.  Nikki and I go way back.  Like, our mothers were friends in high school.  We met when WE were in high school, after she moved back to Wisconsin from Georgia.  Thanks to the magic of Facebook, we got back in touch with each other years after graduation.  Fast forward a few years later.  She’s a volunteer firefighter.  So is John.  They met during a fundraiser when the guys from John’s station showed up to support Nikki’s station.  Then, she started dating John.  They got engaged.  She asked me to drive up to to Minnesota to take their engagement photos.  It was awesome.  :) I knew right away that they had a relationship that was pretty special.

But… it gets even better.  They knew they were getting married on the beach in Florida, but hadn’t decided if they were bringing along a photographer or hiring someone there.  John knew how much Nikki wanted me to shoot their wedding, so he contacted me secretly to make arrangements… he wanted to surprise her… with me!  I thought that was one of the sweetest things.  Anyway, back to Sanibel.  :)  Nikki and John stayed at The Sundial.

Loved the light in this room!  Nikkie’s maid of honor is a makeup guru (Hi, Kate!) and her sister is great with hair (Hi, Amanda!).  So this was one lucky bride!

Stunning.  Just… wow.

Amanda cleans up pretty well, too!

They didn’t want to see each other before the wedding, so we arranged for this shot.  Pretty fun, eh?

I love the simplicity of this ceremony.  It was small.  Intimate.  In front of a gorgeous scenic landscape… the gulf of Mexico.  The colors were so muted and lush.  Lovely.

She is gorgeous when she’s tearful!  I, on the other hand, am not.  At all.

And this is when it started raining.  We were a bit worried – there were some pretty thick clouds.  So all of their portraits were shot in overdrive mode.  Quickly.  :)

P.S.  I’m still catching up on blogging weddings from 2011.  I promise they are on the way!

Hello everyone!  I will be out of the office from Thursday, February 2 until Monday, February 6th.  During this time, I’ll be shooting Nikki and John’s gorgeous Sanibel Island, Florida beach wedding.  If you need to reach me, email will be best (rebecca@studionoveau.com) but it may take a day or two for me to respond.  But I’ll do my best to get back to you right away!  Have a great week.

Follow the link below to see more!

It’s not a secret that I looooove traveling.  After spending 5 years in the US Navy, I was able to travel to some amazing places and see incredible things.  Now that I’m settled back in small-town Wisconsin, I appreciate having a career that allows me to continue traveling.  Destination wedding photography isn’t always easy (dealing with customs, traveling with gear, unusual weather conditions, etc) but I still enjoy being able to visit new places.

Photo above: Cancun, Mexico.  Below: my first Hindu wedding; Boston, MA.

In the next couple months, I have some trips planned around the country and even to Europe.  So I’m going to mention some estimated dates/locations and if anyone reading this blog wants to schedule a portrait session or hire me for your wedding while I’m visiting, just contact me for details.

Sanibel Island, Florida (February 2-6)

Ireland  (February 14-20)  We’ll possibly be visiting past clients Krista and Paul in London during this timeframe, too.

Conway/Little Rock, Arkansas  and Memphis, Tennessee (March 15-20)

Minneapolis, MN (April 19-23)

Plus, I have family near Las Vegas, Nevada and Denver, Colorado so traveling to these locations is likely in the upcoming year.

Photo above: Any guesses?  It looks like Ireland to me, but it’s actually Winona, Minnesota.  Below: Hayward, Wisconsin.  (Way up in the northwoods!)

Above: Puerto Moreles, Mexico. Two images below: Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Above: Baltimore, MD.  Two below: Dominican Republic (Dreams Punta Cana)

Above: Banff, Alberta, Below: Lake Louise and Lake Moraine (near Banff), Canada.

Below: Las Vegas, Nevada.  P.S.  Do you see Elvis in this photo?  Originally, I Photoshopped him out.  But I kind of like the version with The King.  :)

This last one was taken in Memphis, TN during the Genesis Workshop. Shooting there was such a treat – I’d love to return to photograph a session or wedding there!

The second half of the session was taken along the highway from Arizona to Vegas. Exact location: side of the road, look for the tall trees.

This time we stayed at the fabulous Chateau Frontenac in Vieux Quebec. This is probably my favourite hotel of them all. What I find truly fascinating about it is some of the people who have stayed there, like Kings and Queens (Grace Kelly), even Alfred Hitchcock filmed the movie I, Confess there. We walked around the hotel picking out scenes from the movie and trying to figure out where Hitchcock would have sat while directing them. This is the 6th Canadian Fairmont we have stayed at thus far, so we are well on our way to our two year goal of staying at all 21 destinations over the next 2 years. It was a short trip. Actually it was too short so we are planning another trip to Quebec City for new years!

So excited to watch the fireworks over this beautiful city.

Happy New Year everyone!

Erika & Ryan

We hiked to the top of the fort for a amazing view of the Frontenac.

Quebec City is the best for night time photos. Every building is so creatively lit. Makes for some romantic cityscape photos.

I love this photo.

This is a time-lapse of a few vantage points around the hotel. Its short but pretty. If you would like to have us photograph you in Quebec City or Montreal in 2012 send us an email to email hidden; JavaScript is required to book your destination photo shoot or so we can put you on our list and send you the dates and times of when we will be in each city next.

We look forward to photographing you!

You may be interested in:

1. 

   Sarah & Jeff – Mont Tremblant, Quebec
2. 

   Chris & Winnie- Engagement – Montreal, QC
3. 

   Shelby & Derrick – Old Montreal, Quebec

Wedding freedom.

And as a photographer, what more could you ask for?  Show up on time … hang out … document.  Just you and the couple.  No rigid schedule.  No aunt of the bride asking you to do oddball pictures.  Just the 3 of you talking … laughing … hanging out.

And this elopement was sick.

Rebecca + Melissa own One Shot Coffee in the Northern Liberties section of Philly.  Its an amazing place.  In fact, I was meeting clients there well before I was asked to photograph their elopement.  I was super pumped when they asked me to photograph them.  So after our meeting we hatched out a loose plan.  Wake up early on a random Thursday in NYC.  Head to the Highline walk.  Get married overlooking the city.  Walk around.  Eat.They are rad women, and I’m super excited to call them friends.  I honestly wish I could have stayed with them all day.

Sound good?  I think so.  I’ll have more of that in the future please.

So here is the “hybrid elopement” of Rebecca and Melissa:

Kelly & Wayne, who you know from the blog post of their engagement photos from earlier this week, came from Singapore to Canada, with just 2 close friends and were married in a small ceremony over looking Niagara Falls, in the Konica Minolta Tower. We had such a great time running around Niagara Falls taking photos. I love the first shot. For years, every time we drove past these arches in the park beside the falls I always made a mental note to take a photos of a couple in there one day. I am so happy with the result.

Congratulations Kelly & Wayne!! We cannot wait to show you the rest of the photos and your wedding and engagement albums! Thank you for choosing us to capture you Canadian destination wedding.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

You may be interested in:

1. 

   Kelly & Wayne – Niagara-On-The-Lake Engagement
2. 

   Nick & Caitlin – Niagara-on-the-Lake Engagement
3. 

   Quebec City in winter