A beautiful affair transpired last Saturday – it was filled with love, affection, beautiful things and joy. It was also filled with less-than stellar lighting, gusting wind, flooding rains and all kinds of crazy elements!! However, I can honestly say that no amount of weather or darkness or mayhem could possibly spoil the beauty that encompassed this gorgeous couple’s wedding day.
These two met up with me for their engagement session last year, and I knew even then that their wedding day would be incredible. Not because of the flowers or the decor or the bridesmaid dresses, all of which were beautiful, but because they were crazy in love.
Simple, real, raw, emotional love. It’s so easy to photograph. These two seem perfectly matched and I can only imagine that their marriage will hold many years of sweetness.
The day began with a swirl of activity as everyone, all 14 wedding party members, got ready. The girls had hair and makeup while the boys drank their morning away in the sunshine. Yes, sunshine, that only stayed for a short while. ;)











The bride and groom had a first look before their pictures, and it was such a sweet moment. And then we spent just a few minutes before the ceremony getting these…





And one of the girls on their way to the ceremony, taken by my talented friend and second shooter, Chelsie Moreland:

We then left the beautiful ranch where their day began, and headed off to this gorgeous church for their ceremony – the same church where I exchanged vows with my husband 6.5 years ago. =)
You know you are loved when you fill the entire church, along with the balcony, with all your family and friends joined together to celebrate your marriage. It was more than evident that this couple was surrounded by people who support them, love them and want to see them blissfully married years and years from now.
This first one was also caught by Chelsie, and I loved it:




The photo above is one of my favorite shots of the day – the look on her face is priceless in every way. LOVE. Okay, so after this incredible moment, we had decided to hold off on more images until just before the sun went down; I’d envisioned a field with backlighting and the gorgeous yummy glow. A girl can dream, right? But as the sky turned black and the clouds rolled in, we took advantage of those few minutes before the most unbelievable storm blew in. But before the flooding rains descended, we got some of these…









And at this point, it started raining and we casually decided to get back in the car and find a porch. Little did we know that the MOST CRAZY STORM OF THE YEAR was about to begin. Seriously, crazy, flooding rains, hundreds of guests shoved into one room, a blowing tent, wet cake, and well, wet us. =) And so there we were, trapped under a tiny little cabin porch, waiting out the storm…




And just before making a mad dash to the car…


It’s supposed to be good luck to have rain on your wedding day, and if there is any truth to that, these two are in for many loooooong years of happiness. =)
And some detail shots that were thankfully caught before the sun disappeared for the day…





At the end of their beautiful day – rain or shine – the dust settled, the rain ceased and they danced the night away…(and did I mention they have some moves??!)

I just want to thank this sweet couple, their family and my fabulous assistant, Chelsie, for making this day such a success. Chelsie spent the entire 11 hour day with me, between commuting and shooting, and I was so, so thankful to have her with me. Grateful to you girl!
And Amanda and Luke, may you have a lifetime of happiness together!!! I hope you love your sneak peek!
Click Here to Become a Fan on Facebook!
Vendors: (click link to view site)
Venue: Eaton’s Ranch
Flowers: Babe’s Flowers
Dress: Special Occassions
Officiant: Fr. John Meyer
Ceremony Venue: St. Peter’s Episcopal Church
Hair by: Kitt Laidlaw with Hair West
Cake: Val Green
Second Shooter: Chelsie Moreland
And leave this couple some love in the comment section below!!!





















































































































Melanie says: Breathe..sweetie these are awesome!! on 09.3.10 @ 3:52 am
Mike Roberts says: Beautiful photography. numerous memorable images. Well done. on 09.3.10 @ 10:21 am
Kellie says: Alissa, These are just gorgeous! You did a beautiful job capturing the love on this day! I love every image!!!!! on 09.3.10 @ 12:43 pm
Mimi says: What a beautiful photo story of a beautiful day! Sweet newlyweds! on 09.3.10 @ 1:17 pm
jennie says: Oh, Alissa! You did such a great job - only a pro could handle everything you were given that day :) i can't wait to see the whole set - i'm so glad you were the one in charge of getting the photos of this very special day for our big family! on 09.3.10 @ 4:17 pm
Katherine says: The pictures are wonderful. What a great time had by all. I can't wait to see all of the photos! on 09.3.10 @ 6:07 pm
Jason Mundy says: Beautiful pics! on 09.3.10 @ 6:22 pm
Marisa says: Amanda is beautiful in every photo :) Really captured all the emotion, love and excitement of the day! on 09.3.10 @ 6:24 pm
Kim Eberhart says: Amanda your are so gorgeous! The pictures look amazing. on 09.3.10 @ 6:34 pm
Amanda says: Alissa and Chelsie, great job! And I forgot to tell Alissa, the cake is by Val Green of Sheridan...who also did a great job! on 09.3.10 @ 6:57 pm
Yvonne says: You are too stinking talented! These just blow me away! on 09.3.10 @ 7:42 pm
Karen, Mother of the Bride says: Choosing a wedding photographer is such a leap of faith, especially when your only daughter is the bride; however, our choice of Alissa and her wonderful sidekick Chelsea, could not have been better. As Alissa noted, there was a large cast, dicey weather, venues removed from each other, and all the usual fun of a wedding day. As the pictures amply prove, they were all handled beautifully and with aplomb. Can hardly wait to see them all when this peek is so fabulous! Many thanks... on 09.3.10 @ 8:02 pm