Jordan and Joel’s wedding felt a bit like a hometown wedding for us. Not only was this couple THE most laid-back couple we’ve ever met, making for an easy-going day, but we had so many common elements entwined throughout. Jordan and I semi-grew up together, since our brothers were good friends. It was so fun to hang out with her family! I also knew their wedding coordinator, Marvelyn Smith, from my own childhood friendship with her daughter. Jordan and Joel actually met in Marvelyn’s culinary class back in high school – I knew the wedding day was taken care of with her in charge!

I could have spent hours shooting bridal details and getting ready portraits when we arrived. Empire Mills has one of the best bridal suites with lots of natural light and neutral colors and pretty brick. Plus, Jordan and her bridesmaids were so relaxed and having so much fun, I just wanted to keep hanging out with them! However, I was not disappointed to finally hold an umbrella over Jordan’s head and walk her to see Joel for the first time, because they just looked so perfect together.

“Where I come from rain is a good thing.”

This was certainly true for Jordan and Joel’s wedding! Every bride’s biggest fear and the most common midnight text messages I get on wedding weeks is – “what do we do if it rains?!” Jordan wasn’t worried one bit, though, and rolled with it even though it rained most of the day! Evan and I placed emergency umbrellas at every door so no one would get stranded in a pop-up shower and we took advantage of every dry minute we could get throughout the day. The good news is, if you have to have a rainy wedding day, Empire Mills is the place to be! With lots of overhangs and porches, you can’t even tell it’s raining in most of their portraits! When it really started coming down and we wanted a bit more variety, we wandered inside one of the big buildings. Being a “natural light photographer,” I don’t typically shoot many portraits indoors, but I am SO glad the weather pushed us inside for a few minutes. We found a gorgeous room full of exposed brick and a beautiful old baby grand piano and shot some of our favorite pictures of the day!

After the ceremony, we took the couple back outside for a few “veil photos” and enjoyed all the little photographic spots Empire Mills has to offer. Then we went in to enjoy a super fun reception with even more little throwbacks to our own wedding day. Jordan and her dad shared their daddy-daughter dance while her brother, Jeremy, sang from stage. This was so fun to watch, because Jeremy actually sang for Evan and my first dance on our own wedding day! He is an exceptional singer and stage performer, and everyone was glad that he shared the stage a few times with the Diane McIntosh Band. The music and dancing and food was all phenomenal and we were sad to see it all come to an end!

Congratulations, Jordan and Joel, and thanks for sharing your wedding day with us!

VENDORS: Venue: Empire Mills | Coordinator: Marvelyn Smith | Florist: JL Design | Cake: Cecilia Villaveces Cakes | Caterer: Hallie Jane’s |  Band: Diane McIntosh Band | Hair + Makeup: Three Blondes and a Wand | Wedding Dress: BHLDN | Bridesmaids Dresses: https://www.showmeyourmumu.com | Men’s Wear: https://www.menswearhouse.com