Eric and Laura- DC Wedding Photographer

From the moment Eric opened the door, the calm, excited smile on his face told me instantly that it was going to be a great day. He and Laura had planned the perfect wedding day for their family and friends to celebrate their relationship at the gorgeous Hotel Monaco in Old Town Alexandria (a location I had been DYING to shoot at!) Eric and Laura live in Chicago, so I didn’t have an opportunity to meet them before the wedding, which typically makes me just a little nervous, but not with Laura and Eric. They are two of the most genuine, welcoming people and I remember walking around with them before the ceremony and thinking how incredibly lucky I was to know them and be the one to photograph their day. I had the unique opportunity to be the only one with Laura as she was getting ready, and I felt like we were just old friends as I helped her zip up her dress. Best job ever? Most definitely.

I got to hang out with the guys for a while before Laura arrived at the hotel, and I love these first two of Eric hanging out with his guys getting ready:
Laura’s gown suited her perfectly! Eric and Laura knew they wanted to really take advantage of the the amazing backdrop that Old Town Alexandria provides and prioritize their portraits so from the very first time she and I talked on the phone she knew they wanted to do a first look. For those of you that have never heard of a first look, Laura and Eric opted to see each other before the ceremony, which allowed them to have a solid hour for portraits of the two of them, take advantage of the great light, they had 20 minutes to just hang out before the ceremony, and they were able to join their guests for the cocktail hour! These next few pictures really show off why a first look can be such a sweet moment for the couple: moments like this are exactly why i love when a couple opt to do a first look! this is definitely a favorite from the day :0) i LOVE the joy you can see in their faces! and he got to tell her right away just how stunning she looked :0) I could have taken pictures of just the two of them allllll day :0)
these next ones are definitely some of my favorite portraits- i loved this gorgeous blue door and the texture of the stone.. add a gorgeous couple and i’m a happy girl :0) one of my favorite things about Alexandria are all the fun doors painted bright colors! Eric really wanted to include a couple different ones since thats such a trademark of the area, and this was probably my favorite one we found :0) isn’t she one of the classiest brides you’ve ever seen? laura, you are GORGEOUS! another favorite! they had SUCH a fun bridal party :0) fun fact: Eric and Laura were actually legally married, so this was just the big celebration for all their family and friends! they had such a sweet, intimate ceremony where they exchanged vows and promises to one another, swapped rings as a symbol of those promises, and sealed it with a kiss! LOVE this one of them coming back down the aisle!
can’t handle all this cuteness…
goodness gracious i love EVERYTHING about this! look at his little belly button! :0) you can tell Laura has such a special relationship with her nephew :0)  first dance sweetness: love this one during the toasts:
They had the BEST 80’s band play during the reception! and Eric’s dad was a dancing machine! ;0) Hope you had a fabulous honeymoon! Thank you so much for letting me celebrate with you! Here’s your slideshow :0)