European Photography Adventures: Paris with Paul & Suzanne

We got back to Paris from Spain completely exhausted--ready to crash. We had one more wedding in the line up and wanted to be completely fresh for it. Lucky for us we had some visitors, Lisa and Heidi (Mom and sister) that came from the states to hang out with us for a couple of days. It was so good to see them! More on that later...  Oh yeah, and we had a chance to really hang out with some of the coolest wedding planners ever, our friends Anne and Nancy.  

Also, more on them later...

So, our final European wedding was that of the beautiful Irish couple, Suzanne and Paul.  I don't know when we've laughed more, or been hugged and squeezed more than we were at this wedding.  Imagine a crowd of the friendliest, happiest, loudest people--and then double it--and you'll get an idea of this couple's wedding celebration.

Some of the pictures below are from the night before the wedding at a bar in Sainte Germain, and some from the wedding day.  I wanted to give you a taste of the love going on with these people.  We literally have hundreds that look just like this.  Such a wonderful family!!!

The wedding day started off in Suzanne and Paul's right-bank apartment.  Paul spent hours on the phone trying to find one with a view of the Eiffel Tower for Suzanne, who loves it so much.  You can see the reflection of it in the dress picture and, yes, that's the tower in the shoe shot, right out on their balcony.

Amazing!!!

It was, to say the least, one of the most stunningly beautiful weddings of the year.

Sainte Clotilde, the wedding chapel in Sainte Germain. 

The Bride arriving to the chapel with her lovely bridesmaid sisters.

Inside Sainte Clotilde during the ceremony.

So here's a funny story...

As the ceremony ended and Kevin walked down the isle in front of the couple to get these big grand shots of them coming out to the front of the church, I stealthily hid behind some columns until they were far enough down the isle that I could dart behind them and crouch down (so as to not be in Kevin's shot) and get the grand shots of them going out into the sun.  

That was the plan, anyway.

What really happened was this:  I slipped, my feet literally coming up and over my head, and slid about three feet behind the couple (thankfully, unbeknownst to them) to the horror of poor Nancy, the wedding planner, and the orchestra, who had front row seats.  

The best part was that Kevin and I, while laughing our heads off about it, found this shot:

 

Yeah, that's my foot, as I was sliding into third base.  I think the lesson here is simple.  Don't wear platforms on super shiny floors while shooting a wedding.  Obviously.

Anyways...

The Newlyweds.  I love the hats!!!

After the ceremony, we took Suzanne and Paul around Paris to get some shots in the city.

Probably our favorite shot of the day.  That dress was glorious.

On Pont Alexandre III (We loooooove this bridge).

The reception was held at La Maison des Polytechniciens, a very difficult venue to tie down, as you have to either be an engineer or be related to an engineer to even be considered.  Anne and Nancy, of Fete in France, did an amazing job on the details of this wedding.  When we walked into the reception hall and saw what they had put together, we were speechless. 

It was even more amazing in real life!

The dining room, appetizer course, cocktail table vases, table settings, wedding cake.

First dance in the blue room... DRESS!!!

The Maison had a downstairs club-type room where everyone finished up the night.  Such a cool space!
 

All in all, a beautiful, breathtaking, hugely fun, very cool, and unforgettable wedding.  Thank you Suzanne, Paul, Anne, Nancy, and all of the wedding guests and family... we had a wonderful time!!!