Megan & Steve’s Sweet Elk Grove Pavilion Wedding

Nov 27

Megan and Steve met the “old-fashioned” way – on Bumble – and had their first date at Dave and Busters. They fell for each other because of shared interests and hobbies like Lego and found joy and love in being their nerdy selves together. When the time came Steve proposed to Megan while playing the song “Kiss the Girl” in the background as a nod to her love of The Little Mermaid and their fairytale adventure truly began!

I first became friends with Megan when we attended Meadows Christian Fellowship together, and I was always struck by her creativity and loyalty to her friends. When I heard the good news that Megan was getting married I was so happy for her, and then truly honored to be asked to be a part of this wedding. It was so great getting to know Steve at their engagement session last Spring, as Megan has said he “loves her well” and it filled my heart seeing my friend with someone who is attentive, kind and deeply caring.

When Megan and Steve’s wedding day arrived I was excited to work with Conrad and Ryan to capture all of the unforgettable moments. We arrived at Megan’s childhood home and loved discovering cute pics of little Megan all over, and I had a lot of fun photographing their wedding details – my favorite was Steve’s cool wedding band that GLOWS in the dark! When Megan got dressed into her gorgeous Avery Austin gown she transformed into the most beautiful bride, she looked like she was floating all day in her stunning lacy ivory dress.

Once we arrived at Meadows Christian Fellowship Megan and Steve chose to do a “First Touch” before their ceremony. She snuggled behind him and they quietly exchanged letters they had written for one another before praying together, it was such a sweet and meaningful moment. Before Megan walked down the aisle she was preceded by her “Flower Aunts” (who later made an epic appearance on the dance floor!) Steve stood in awe as Megan made her entrance and walked arm-in-arm with her Dad towards her groom. It was really special to have one of our former grooms and Megan’s close friend John officiate the wedding, he did a great job with the traditional ceremony (and also made sure to land a few jokes at Megan’s expense!)

After taking some pictures of the newlyweds with their families we made our way to the Elk Grove Pavilion for photos with Megan and Steve’s wonderfully kind and supportive wedding party. When we finished with the group we loved making a little faux-sunshine on this gloomy day with the help of our off-camera flashes and the early Fall colors before heading inside for the reception.

Megan is incredibly creative and hand-made a lot of the beautiful details for their wedding day. She took months to hand-dye and arrange wooden Sola flowers for their bouquets, boutonnieres and arrangements. She embroidered sweet flowers on the edge of her veil reminiscent of her gorgeous sleeve tattoo. She hand-painted the striking signs showing guests where to sit during the reception. She baked their wedding cake. She assembled the coolest impromptu Lego sculpture in the room during dinner. It was remarkable to see the work that Megan put in to make her wedding extra special and memorable!!

During dinner we were thrilled to have the opportunity to sneak away with Megan and Steve for pictures in the carousel room, we can’t think of a prettier or more romantic spot for some photos after dark! When we returned the dance floor soon opened for one of the most unforgettable nights of dancing that we have ever experienced – let’s just say that dance-screaming to “Come Sail Away” with Megan’s family was one of the highlights of our 2024 wedding season! This was just the best day, we are so grateful to have been a part of it!