Laren & Anthony are engaged and will be wed later this fall.  They currently live in the east coast so they flew in  for a few days to get all of their wedding planning done, along with their engagement photos =D!  Thankfully, we had a beautiful HOT summer day for their session at the Buckingham Fountain in Chicago.  Ok, maybe it was a little too humid, but that’s Chicago for ya… Laren & Anthony, thank you for a fun engagement session!  Andy and I had a great time with both of you!  Can’t wait to photograph your wedding when it’s about 30 degrees cooler (hopefully)!

xoxo Michele & Andy

Something that is unique about Laren & Anthony is the way they hold hands, in their own special way, that only they know how to do…

Congratulations to Patty & Dennis!  We had their engagement session at the beautiful Anderson Japanese Botanical Gardens. Patty wanted to have their session at a Japanese Garden so she “googled” it and found this location.  I never knew that there was such a place in Illinois.  Definitely a hidden gem in the city of Rockford, IL .  Dennis and I have known each other ever since we were little and I can’t believe he’s getting married!  They make such a cute couple =D.  We can’t wait to photograph their wedding in 2011!

xoxo Michele & Andy

More photos on Misha Media’s Facebook Page!

Below is their Misha Media Photo Booth!  Patty and Dennis held signs written in their native language (Tagalog – A Filipino dialect, and Korean) which means “I love you”

Congratulations to Mae Jane & Kenny!  What do you get when you mix LA + Chicago?!  Mae & Kenny!!  There’s that saying that you’ll never meet your future husband/wife at a nightclub, these two are the exception to the rule… but who’s rule is it anyway?!  Getting to know our clients is one of the most important things to us, and when we met Mae & Kenny, we were so touched by how sweet and loving they are towards each other.  Their excitement about planning their wedding and all of the hard work that they’ve put into it really shined on their wedding day.  I couldn’t wait to see their vision.  All throughout the week, we had rain and severe thunderstorms.  I really didn’t know what the weather would be like on their wedding day, but come Saturday morning, these two were blessed with a nice hot summer day.

Mae & Kenny, we hope that you had a fun and relaxing time in Fiji!  Thank you so much for sharing your day with us!

xoxo Michele & Andy

They did this same jump from their engagement session and it was fitting for them to jump on their wedding day.  Kenny, you rocked out the Jordan jump!  Loved the shadow that you casted while jumping!

Mae’s wedding gown was custom made by Franics Libiran.

Mae & Kenny got ready at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare and this was were their reception was held.

Mae’s gave Kenny a Movado watch for their wedding!

They wed at St. Mary of the Lake

4200 N. Sheridan Rd., Chicago

Moments before their ceremony…

Mae, you are a beautiful bride!

The photo on the right was the ceiling of St. Mary of the Lake… gorgeous!

These little ones were so adorable!

We had  a quick stop in front of the Cubs marquee… on game day… it was the Los Angeles Angels vs. our Cubbies!  How fitting… but let’s not talk about the result of the game…

As a California girl, Mae wanted to add a bit of Cali so we stopped by the beach…

Beautiful reception!  Loved the uplights!  Future B&G’s: really consider having uplights and draperies in your reception… it really makes a huge difference!

Cake by Oak Mill Bakery

Music provided by DJ JayFunk from Kiss FM.  He kept the dance floor busy all night long with great music and entertainment!

Immediately following their first dance, Mae & Kenny surprised everyone with a Jabbawockeez number… everyone loved it!

A special thank you to Erwin for assisting us the whole day!

And to other vendors for making the day a success!

Amy Dresser of Hyatt Regency O’Hare

Avis Limousine

Congratulations to Phyllis & Hector on their engagement!  It was a hot summer day when we photographed Phyllis and Hector at Millenium Park Chicago. Phyllis has a son named Nico and he came along for the session as well.  Although it was really hot, we had a blast photographing these three.  Here are our favorites!  Can’t wait to photograph your wedding in October!

Phyllis is actually sisters with Maria & Lisa! We never had the honor of photographing 3 siblings in one family.  Their family has welcomed us right from the beginning and it’s truly an honor. We love this family!  See you all soon in Italy for Lisa’s wedding!

xoxo Michele & Andy

Jackie & Kyle are engaged!  Kyle is Dana’s younger brother… These two are so in love, you can see it in the way they look and smile at each other…  So cute!  They drove all the way from Michigan for their engagement session and what a crazy weather session we had!  It was nice and hot at first and then pouring rain made us relocate to the Chicago Union Station.  Needless to say,  we had tons of fun!  Make sure you scroll all the way down on this blog post to see how much fun we really had!

Jackie & Kyle, thank you for being such sports!  We wish you guys the best!  Regards to your parents and siblings!

xoxo Michele & Andy

Just love this photo of Jackie & Kyle… So modern and has a “model” feel to it… You guys rocked it out!

aren’t these two cute?!

We asked Jackie & Kyle if they would “humor” us for this shot… Although they didn’t quite understand what we meant at the time, they really committed and made it work!  We’ve been wanting to do something like this for a very long time!!

So here’s to our first Misha Media E-Session Photo Booth!

Congratulations to Antoinette & Rod! It was torrential rain the morning of their wedding day and it looked like it was going to rain all day.  After getting ready at the Club Quarters in Chicago, it stopped raining the minute Antoinette stepped foot outside and the sun was shining!    We had a lot of time after the ceremony to photograph the bridal party, and all we were hoping for was no rain…and it worked!  All we needed was that small window of opportunity…  Believe it or not, it started pouring the moment we stopped shooting!  These two were blessed with one of the most beautiful spring days in Chicago.  Antoinette & Rod, thank you so much for sharing your day with us.  It was truly an honor to photograph your wedding!  Hope you had a fun and relaxing time in Greece!

To our faithful blog readers:  We hope that you like our new and improved blog!  Layouts are better, more photos, and much more fun to view!  We hope ya like it!  And as always, comments are welcome or even a “like” via Facebook is good too!

xoxo Michele & Andy

Beautiful dress and gorgeous flowers by Watters and Vale of Enna

Stunning Bride…

Make up by Tina Salazar

Handsome groom

Invitation by Designers Fine Press

They wed at the Madonna della Strada at Loyola University of Chicago… their alma mater… it was the perfect place to get married in since they met in Loyola!

Bridemaids dresses by Anna Elyse Bridesmaids

Antoinette sporting out her Christian Louboutin’s

Love this city… love that it’s windy… it makes for great photography!

The Reception was held at The Rookery in Chicago.  This venue is GORGEOUS!

Antoinette is very detail oriented.  She did many DIY details for her reception =D!

Favors by Voges Haut Chocolat

Antoinette & Rod had San Miguel beer for their reception.  For those of you who don’t know, San Miguel is the number one beer in the Philippines.  They had it imported as  a special surprise for their guests!

Did you see the groom’s cake?!  It’s a snowboard!  Made by Amy Beck Cake Design

A nice moment during their first dance…

A fun filled day with great collaboration from a team of vendors!  Special thank you to Nick for assisting!

Tara and Brittany of Lola Events

Music by Roberto Monastero

Catered by Jewell Events Catering

Video by Rogie of RAC Visual Imaging

It was a hot and muggy day when we started to photograph Erin & John at the Chicago Botanic Gardens.  But by the time we finished, it must have dropped 10 degrees cooler and it was actually chilly!  That is pretty much how Chicago weather is — so unpredictable!  We’ve photographed many times at the Chicago Botanic Garden before and it’s truly a beautiful location.  Andy and I actually had our own photos taken there along with our bridal party for our post ceremony location 6 years ago, so it’s very near and dear to my heart.  The challenge of photographing at a location that you’ve photographed before is keeping it fresh and unique.  We both try to forget images from the past and try to see it as a new location… So here’s our take on the Chicago Botanic Garden this time around…

While Erin was vacationing in Miami, John had surprised her with a ticket to meet him in Orlando and while they were in Disney World, he proposed to her during the Fireworks show at Magic Kingdom! Needless to say, she said yes in front of thousands of other Disney fans… oOo  Now that’s my type of engagement proposal!  Gotta love that mouse!  Erin & John, you are perfect for each other!  You make such a cute couple.   Thank you for a fun engagement session!  We can’t wait to photograph your winter wedding in 2011!

Join us for some Facebook Fun!

xoxo Michele & Andy

I love Daisies!  Just had to get this shot :)  Erin, I hope you like them too!

When Anna & Ron told me that they wanted their engagement session taken in Lightology, I was so excited!  Lightology was perfect for their session since photography is all about light!  So here are my favorites!  Anna & Ron, it was so much fun photographing the both of you and your cute little doggies! It was so much fun and a lot of laughs :) Can’t wait to shoot your wedding in September!

If you want unique, contemporary, and very stylish lighting, you have to check out Lightology!  215 W. Chicago Ave., in Chicago.

When you walk around the showroom of Lightology, they have these awesome quotes all around their galleries.  Loved them!

We couldn’t think of a more perfect place to paint with light!

Lightology also had this beautiful balcony overlooking the city.

Anna & Ron really wanted to incorporate their 3 dogs during their engagement session, so we went to a nearby park and snapped a few of these cuties!  This was our FIRST engagement session w/ pets!

I think “Oreo” had enough of the photo shoot… he stuck his tongue out at “mommy!”

Join Misha Media’s Facebook Page to view more photos from their session and to get more inside scoop on “behind the scenes” from their session!

Thank you Anna & Ron!  We had a blast! :)

xoxo Michele & Andy

Chicago brought them together… and Google connected us with them… but you’d think that we’ve known each other for ages even though we just met for the first time… It took us less than a minute to warm up to each other and we just jumped right into our session.    Seeing how Chicago had brought them together, it was only fitting that we photograph on the grounds of the Adler Planetarium where the best skyline shot of Chicago is…  Sadly, we won’t be their wedding photographers.  They already have a photographer back home in South Carolina where they will wed next year.  So at the end of their session, it was kind of sad saying good bye to them… But I do want to remind all of you blog followers that we do travel =D

Dat & Kim, thank you for such a fun session!  We wish you guys the best of luck and know that all of your hard work and sacrifice now will work out for the best in the end…

xoxo Michele & Andy

I can almost imagine how beautiful/handsome you both will be on your wedding day!

Please share some photos captured by your photographer :)

I’m thankful that we had clouds that day… All 3 of them!

“Show me tiger!”  LOL

Molly & Michael are high school sweethearts, but they actually went to the same elementary and middle school together!  So I guess it’s safe to say that they are elementary school sweethearts… they just didn’t know it back then :)    It’s so endearing to see couples go through so much of their lives together prior to getting married.  Don’t get me wrong, marriage is still going to be a lot of work, but I think they have a little bit of an upper hand, simply because they’ve been together a little longer than others…  Cheers to both of you!

Andy and I had a great time with both of you at your engagement session :D  Can’t wait to see you guys again in about a month for your wedding!

This image below just gives me that warm-fuzzy feeling!  Now that’s what you call a Love Hug!

’til next time…

Michele