She replied with a smile, "Good, he didn't want to leave me last night. We honestly don't like spending time apart. We just love each other so much."

Throughout the day the happy couple proved just that! Everyone could see how much these two adored each other. We could see it, as well, in the detail they put into planning their big day. Details like the ribbon on Erica's bouquet being from the dress she wore from their first date, or how they wanted to go to St. Henry's in Rosebush, which was the spot they first laid eyes on each other. They even had their reception at Buck's Run Golf Course, the same place, the same day of meeting, the two chatted the night away while participating in her cousin's wedding party. Everything came full circle. In Erica's words, "It was just meant to be!"

It appears to be just that... meant to be. And we feel so happy to have been able to capture their love story. 

Congratulations Erica & Dan!!

eLd-017 eLd-019 eLd-024 eLd-020 eLd-025 eLd-036 eLd-040 eLd-056 eLd-052 eLd-062 eLd-065 eLd-066 eLd-069 eLd-072 eLd-077 eLd-078 eLd-081 eLd-085 eLd-090 eLd-087 eLd-106 eLd-115 eLd-097 eLd-146 eLd-130 eLd-134 eLd-136 eLd-153 eLd-155 eLd-158 eLd-163 eLd-178 eLd-206 eLd-209 eLd-213 eLd-224 eLd-240 eLd-243 eLd-245 eLd-246 eLd-248 eLd-255 eLd-268 eLd-270 eLd-272 eLd-275 eLd-281 eLd-284 eLd-289 eLd-290 eLd-302 eLd-303 eLd-304 eLd-306 eLd-307 eLd-320 eLd-316 eLd-324 eLd-329 eLd-335 eLd-343 eLd-347 eLd-351 eLd-356 eLd-357 eLd-353 eLd-358 eLd-359 eLd-360 eLd-365 eLd-377 eLd-380 eLd-381 eLd-400 eLd-411 eLd-414 eLd-428 eLd-432 eLd-422 eLd-443

eLd-434 eLd-435 eLd-446 eLd-473 eLd-476 eLd-458 eLd-491 eLd-490 eLd-513 eLd-521 eLd-530 eLd-535 eLd-533 eLd-537 eLd-539 eLd-541 eLd-553 eLd-555 eLd-559 eLd-563 eLd-562 eLd-566 eLd-569 eLd-573 eLd-575 eLd-576 eLd-580 eLd-587 eLd-591 eLd-594 eLd-593 eLd-615 eLd-616 eLd-622 eLd-625 eLd-630 eLd-644 eLd-646 eLd-648 eLd-656 eLd-654 eLd-662 eLd-680 eLd-671 eLd-710 eLd-712 eLd-704 eLd-714 eLd-697 eLd-700

hZm-008-2

hZm-002-1

hZm-013

hZm-014

hZm-021

hZm-024

hZm-025

hZm-029-3

hZm-033

hZm-037

hZm-039

hZm-040

hZm-053-6

hZm-067-7

hZm-101

hZm-114-8

hZm-113

hZm-123

hZm-122

hZm-128-10

hZm-130-11

hZm-144

hZm-134

hZm-148

hZm-149

hZm-178

hZm-183-13

hZm-186

hZm-184

hZm-195-14

hZm-204

hZm-206

hZm-207

hZm-210

hZm-218

hZm-219

hZm-230-17

hZm-236

hZm-242

hZm-243

hZm-258

hZm-245

hZm-255

hZm-269

hZm-271

hZm-280

hZm-293-19

hZm-306

hZm-318

hZm-321-20

hZm-330

hZm-335

Bride with GroomsmenWedding Party at Nelson Park in Mount Pleasant, Michigan

hZm-385

hZm-346

hZm-373

hZm-378

Groom with bridesmaidswedding party in Mount Pleasant, Michigan

hZm-420

Bride Laughing

hZm-422

hZm-392

hZm-433

hZm-437

hZm-437-28

Buttons on bride's wedding dressNelson Park, Mount Pleasant, MI

Bride and Groom walking at Nelson Park, Mount Pleasant, Michigan hZm-443 Candid Bridesmaids hZm-458 Bridemaids walking Groomsmen walking hZm-463-31 Bridal Party at Buck's Run Golf Course hZm-467 hZm-469 hZm-471 hZm-475 hZm-479 hZm-480 Bride and Groom Grand Entrance at Buck's Run

Best Man Speech at Buck's Run hZm-492 hZm-495 hZm-500 Maid of honor speech hZm-502 hZm-508-34 hZm-509 hZm-525-36 hZm-527 hZm-528 hZm-546-39 hZm-552 hZm-560 hZm-558 hZm-571 hZm-555 hZm-569 hZm-572 hZm-577 hZm-586 hZm-590 hZm-596light hZm-597light hZm-616 hZm-618-48 hZm-617 hZm-621 hZm-627 hZm-631crop hZm-635 hZm-638-54 hZm-640 hZm-642 hZm-654-56 hZm-655 hZm-653

Let's fast forward to their proposal story, because it's definitely worth sharing! Lucas planned an amazing scavenger hunt across CMU for Emily, hitting all the spots that had significance to their relationship. She went back to the dorms, to the library, outside the UC and lastly found herself at the gazebo on campus, where Lucas was waiting for her. This entire time, Emily was thinking she was going to end up with a Pandora Charm to add to her bracelet, so she was pleasantly surprised when Lucas got down on one knee and asked her to be his forever.  All of the thought and planning done by Lucas to make that day so special, has ladies everywhere a little envious! Seriously, what a guy!

Their wedding on July 1, 2017, was just as perfect as their relationship. The weather cooperated (this has been a very wet Michigan summer). We began the day at Salon Blu before heading to the church. After the ceremony we made a quick stop at Central Michigan University before heading to their reception at St. Ives Golf Course in Canadian Lakes. We have so many favorites from their wedding! Make sure you check it out below and make it all the way to the bottom! Lucas and a few groomsmen gave an impressive performance of "Ice, Ice Baby!"

Mr. and Mrs. Logan, thank you for letting us capture your big day! 

-Dana and Dan eLl-1 eLl-22 eLl-28 eLl-32 eLl-16 eLl-35 eLl-38-2 eLl-47   eLl-59b eLl-60-12 eLl-72

eLl-85-13 eLl-88 eLl-97-15 eLl-102-5 eLl-106-6 eLl-113 eLl-114-8 eLl-115-9 eLl-129 eLl-132 eLl-131-17 eLl-133 eLl-134 eLl-149-19 eLl-154 eLl-159 eLl-163 eLl-188 eLl-190-25 eLl-192 eLl-249 eLl-193 eLl-212 eLl-259 eLl-263 eLl-270 eLl-284 eLl-285 eLl-302 eLl-306 eLl-308bw eLl-315 eLl-317 eLl-320 eLl-321 eLl-328-41 eLl-332 eLl-333 eLl-337 eLl-345 eLl-353 eLl-356-48 eLl-361 eLl-364-50

eLl-427-55 eLl-429 eLl-440 eLl-443 eLl-449 eLl-452 eLl-455 eLl-457 eLl-465 eLl-467 eLl-468 eLl-473 eLl-479 eLl-481 eLl-483-61 eLl-492 eLl-495-63 eLl-501 eLl-503 eLl-515 eLl-519-67 eLl-531-68 eLl-541 eLl-548 eLl-550 eLl-559-71 eLl-571-73 eLl-573 eLl-574-74 eLl-588 eLl-589 eLl-591-75 eLl-596 eLl-601 eLl-605-78 eLl-616-80 eLl-624 eLl-625 eLl-626 eLl-651 eLl-652 eLl-631 eLl-662 eLl-663 eLl-668 eLl-673-92 eLl-682-94 eLl-684 eLl-688 eLl-691 eLl-696 eLl-697-134 eLl-703 eLl-712 eLl-721 eLl-739 eLl-741 eLl-742 eLl-746 eLl-748 eLl-750 eLl-758 eLl-760-108 eLl-766 eLl-775 eLl-778 eLl-808 eLl-812 eLl-818 eLl-821 eLl-837 eLl-834 eLl-841 eLl-859 eLl-862-119 eLl-868 eLl-871-122 eLl-879 eLl-884 eLl-894 eLl-889

Hair and Make up: Salon Blu in downtown Mt. Pleasant

Wedding dress: Unique Bridal in Auburn

Bridesmaid Dresses: Renee Austin In Grand Rapids

Venue: St. Ives Golf Resort

DJ Entertainment: Sound Productions 

Their day was beautiful and full of emotion. Right from the first look with Erin's father, I knew this was going to be a wedding where I was going to wipe a few tears of my own away! Sure enough, my "allergies" acted up again during speeches and toasts. The amount of love and support Erin and Dominic have from their family and friends is outstanding. The speeches his brother and her sister and father gave before dinner made this very apparent. They have an amazing support system, which I'm sure will help as they start their lives together as MR. & MRS. in Washington state.

Erin and Dominic- you had an amazing wedding. Dan and I feel very lucky to have captured your big day!

xoxo Dana

Vendor Information

Venue: Tullymore Golf Resort

Dress: Renee Austin

Tux: Dunhill

Cupcakes: The Cupcake Connoisseur

Band:  Shimmy Pearl

There are so many moments on a wedding day that we look forward to each time we shoot a wedding. One of them being when the father gets ready to walk his daughter down the aisle. This moment captured below is one of my favorites. The wedding was at Dow Diamond Baseball Field on a crisp October day. With the ceremony taking place on the field, the wedding party waited to walk down "the aisle" in one of the dugouts.  In this moment, the bride is looking out onto the baseball diamond while her father looks down at her and smiles. I love that we can only see the father's profile revealing a glimpse of his smile. Even with just the glimpse, you can see pure love and joy in his expression. 

When capturing this moment I chose to turn off the strobe on my camera. I opened up my aperture to let more of the light flood into the tunnel and lens. The effect is dramatic, and that is what I wanted. In post-production, I made this photo black & white. I wanted to eliminate distractions and focus on the emotion and I think making this photograph black and white helped achieve this. Lastly, I really like the leading lines and framing in this image. The lines of the tunnel lead your eyes to the subjects. The negative space around their faces help emphasize the emotion being portrayed. 

Dana Parkhurst
Wedding Specialist
Guys and Dolls Photography
989-772-2167

This week I picked a shot from Bailey and Jesse's engagement session as one of our favorites. Can you tell why I picked it!? We timed the session so that it would end around golden hour. This way we could capture their romance in the beautiful, dreamy light.  We were lucky with the weather. It was a beautiful summer evening with clear skies. Sure enough as the sun was starting to set, I was able to capture the warm glow of a light leak over their heads into my lens. While it is a gorgeous photograph, what really makes this memorable was what Bailey whispered to Jesse as I was posing them. She said, "You're looking at me the same way you did the first time you kissed me." <3<3<3 Of course I instantly knew this photograph was going to rock! I love the emotion being portrayed in this photograph and the way they are looking at each other, but I'm also a hopeless romantic. I can direct, pose and correctly expose an image, but I can't make the emotion. This is 100% them!

I hope you all enjoy this one as much as I do! If you have anything to add, please comment below! :)

Dana Walsh
Professional Wedding Photographer
Guys and Dolls Photography
989-772-2167

Hello again! It's time for another blog post!! Just to give you a quick recap from last week, Dan and I are starting a weekly blog series where we choose one of our favorite images to discuss. Please feel free to comment with any of your thoughts. This week I chose a beautiful black and white bridal portrait as one of my favorites. It came from a Trash-the-Dress session last October. While it was a beautiful Fall day, it was pretty chilly out. Miss Rachael was a champ though. She eagerly went into the water and didn't complain at all! The images we captured were stunning, all because of her vision and her willingness to have a little fun! Check us out on the right, BEFORE we went in the water! Can you tell I do not own fishing waders!? The groom generously let me borrow his.  They might be a little big, but they got the job done (minus a small leak in the left leg, but hey, it was totally worth getting a little wet)! :P 

<< This is a photograph that stops me in my tracks, and makes me think about the meaning behind it.  Rachael rocked this session because despite wading through the cold water, pulling a 10 foot long wet veil, fighting the current and walking on slippery/sharp rocks, she makes it look effortless. Even with all this going on, she looks so serene and graceful. It's mysterious and intriguing. I can't help but to wonder what she is thinking about. I'd like to think that as she looks back to pull her veil she notices her ring and remembers her wedding day, which makes her smile. But, I think that's up to everyone's own interpretation. 

This photo is really beautiful in color, but I think it was meant to be in viewed in black and white. Sometimes color can distract from the meaning of an image. Instead of focusing on the bright oranges and yellows originally in this photograph, my eyes, go straight to her gaze and then follows her gaze to her left hand, which then follows the veil to the ripples in the water. There is really easy movement in this image.

I also really like the texture and crispness of the ripples around her. They fade to a nice bokeh around her face. I purposely used the 70-200mm lens to pull in the background around her. We were shooting in the afternoon so there was plenty of light coming through the trees. The long lens softens the light and creates a nice glow around her and eliminates distractions. 

It's not everyday you have a client that wants a fine art session, but we really enjoyed it, and we LOVE the turnout!

Dana Walsh
Professional Wedding Photographer
Guys and Dolls Photography
989-772-2167

Hello there folks!

We have been talking about doing a weekly blog series for awhile now, and after some deliberation about what we should write about, we decided to choose one of our favorite images and share with you what we like about it. We LOVE feedback and want to encourage discussion, so please feel free to comment on any of our blog posts! 

Onto our first featured pick! Drumroll please...

.

.

.

I chose this candid from the Odykirk Wedding at Buck's Run Golf Course this past June! I am completely smitten with everything about this photograph. Everyone has such genuine smiles. Can't you almost hear the laughter when you look at this picture? I heard a saying once, "You smile and the world smiles back." For the most part, it's true. It reminds me of my college days working as a cashier. I would have the rudest customers, and the negative energy would put me in a bad mood. All it would take was one customer to smile at me and say, "How are you doing today?" BAM. I'd smile back and feel a million times better. This photo has the same effect. You can be having a bad day, but you come across something like this, and it makes you come out of your slump.  How can you not smile (at least a little) when you look at this! 

The emotion in this photo definitely makes this image a winner, but I also really like the composition. The color, movement, and negative space all make this photo really successful. I usually like detail in the sky, but here I prefer the white sky surrounding the ladies. It brings my attention to their expressions.  I'm also really drawn to the colors of the bridesmaid dresses. Purple is my favorite color and these shades of lavender are exquisite. The wind, along with the girls walking toward the camera, create really effective movement (thank you Mother Nature for the blustery weather!!).  

These are all reasons I picked this photograph as one of my favorites. Please feel free to add anything I missed :)

Dana Walsh
Professional Wedding Photographer
Guys and Dolls Photography
989-772-2167
 

Thank you Taylor and Cory for spending the afternoon with me! 

xoxo,

Dana

bNj 028 bNj 001 bNj 003 bNj 036-2 bNj 040-4 bNj 065-11 bNj 044-6 bNj 071-15 bNj 074 bNj 077 bNj 089-22 bNj 105-26 bNj 107 bNj 116 bNj 119 bNj 102-25 bNj 132-33 bNj 135-34 bNj 143-36
bNj 156ef bNj 150ef bNj 159-40 bNj 161 bNj 170-43 bNj 177-45 bNj 188-48 bNj 202-50 bNj 228 bNj 218-55 bNj 222 bNj 237 bNj 241 bNj 236-58 bNj 257 bNj 264 bNj 269-61 bNj 271-62 bNj 277 bNj 278 bNj 275 bNj 286-66 bNj 288 bNj 294 bNj 292bw bNj 296-69 bNj 299 bNj 301crop-72 bNj 308 bNj 320-75 bNj 321 bNj 322bw bNj 324bw bNj 340-79 bNj 350 bNj 335-78 bNj 367 bNj 366 bNj 375-86 bNj 376 bNj 391matte bNj 410 bNj 421 bNj 424-99 bNj 434 bNj 435 bNj 440-104 bNj 432-102 bNj 429 bNj 449bw bNj 448 bNj 452 bNj 474bl bNj 496-116 bNj 494 bNj 501 bNj 481 bNj 503 bNj 489 bNj 513 bNj 509ef bNj 516ef bNj 527-122 bNj 529-123 bNj 531-124 bNj 544ef bNj 553ef bNj 562 bNj 564 bNj 569-131 bNj 585ef bNj 584ef bNj 591-138 bNj 600-139 bNj 601-140 bNj 602 bNj 606 bNj 610 bNj 618 bNj 629-145 bNj 630-146 bNj 631 bNj 634 bNj 636-148 bNj 642 bNj 651 bNj 653 bNj 656-154 bNj 657 bNj 664 bNj 680-161 bNj 696 bNj 693 bNj 724 bNj 729e-167 bNj 736 bNj 731 bNj 738ef

Bailey and Jesse, thank you for letting me capture your big day! 

xoxo,

Dana