Jessica Lemmons Photography Blog, Longview Washington (Wa.) photographer.

John and Ingrid were such a beautiful couple!  They were married in a lovely rustic lodge in Grey’s Harbor Washington right on the river.   Their wedding was full of little touches of sentiment that made the day all the more special!  From a song that her brother wrote to sing for them during the ceremony, to the heartfelt vows that they wrote for each other, to all the whimsical details surrounding them…..it was beautiful!!!   I enjoyed spending the day with both of them, and especially appreciate Nate being willing to assist me with shooting during the day (and driving….I dislike driving….and his car is WAY cooler than mine!)   Thank you John and Ingrid for having us be a part of your special day, and best wishes to you both in your new life together!!!

These two are adorable!  I met up with them early last month for their engagement session in Rainier Oregon.   It was wonderful getting to meet them and I’m super excited to say I will be photographing their wedding next year!  Can’t wait, and thank you for having me as your photographer Kyle and Courtney!

Jesse and Becky had a GORGEOUS wedding at the Monticello Hotel here in Longview.  I adored the way they decorated the  ballroom there – I worked at the hotel as a teenager waitressing and I can honestly say I’ve never seen it done up this nice  before.  It was perfect!  The couple was great to work with, especially Becky – she was so laid back and relaxed her entire day, it was a joy to be around her!   Pre-ceremony I took them down to the lake in Longview for their couple and group photos.  I was so glad for sunshine – it made the photos just sparkle.  :-)

I have to give a huge thank you my friend and fellow photographer Elena for helping me out – some of the photos below are from her and she did an awesome job!  Thank you Elena, and thank you Jesse and Becky for having me as your photographer!

And my favorite of the day :

Several months ago Deva e-mailed me and asked me to be her wedding photographer, being that she lived over 5 hours away we did all of contracts and booking via mail and phone, so my first time ever meeting her was the day of the wedding.  When I walked in to introduce myself to her while she was getting ready, she immediately bypassed shaking my hand and said “I just want to hug you!  Thank you so much for being here for my wedding!”   From that moment on, even though it was our first time meeting Deva, Terran and their families, we were treated like honored guests instead of hired help.   I felt so welcome being there, and even though I got dreadfully sunburnt (I forgot that Walla Walla has a LOT more sun than Longview) I had an amazing time.

Their wedding was a beautiful affair – but it always is when you have two people totally and completely in love with each other like Terran and Deva are.

I also want to give a huge shout-out to my awesome assistant Nate (I think I may have forgotten to thank him for the last several weddings….rude!) he once again did a wonderful job as my second shooter!  I especially appreciate him doing the drive over to Walla Walla – his car has a much better stereo than mine, and it’s faster, and looks cooler…..and I don’t have to be the one driving!  So…..for all of the above Nate, THANK YOU!!!

Deva getting ready and some detail shots.

Their first look and the “formals.”

The ceremony:

The reception:

(side note here – Deva’s father owns a restaurant in Walla Walla – this equaled for the MOST delicious food at a wedding…ever!   They were very generous and offered us a meal…..and I just wanted to keep eating and eating, it was SO good!!!!!!  I’m getting hungry just thinking about it!)

Happily ever after…….  

A few weeks back Brian and Allie tied the knot here in town at the Expo Center.   I was so excited for Allie to get married – her and I have been friends from WAY back, we were waitresses together after high school, and she played a big part in my husbands proposal to me over 5 years ago.   You might recognize the two of them from their e-session.

I had SO much fun with them – their wedding was so gorgeous, joyful and full of happy tears throughout the whole day.

I had a blast with you two!   Thank you for having me.  :-)

The details:

The gorgeous bride:

The lovely bridesmaids:

and….handsome groom and groomsmen:

Their adorable little family:

The ceremony:

Husband and wife:

I have to say, this was probably one of my favorite parts – the maid of honor shared a somewhat embarrassing story (it was GREAT!) and Allie’s reactions to it had me cracking up!

Congrats guys!   I’m so happy for you two to start this new chapter of your lives together!!!

Shawn and Jessica held their wedding on his families property in LaCenter,  it was the PERFECT setting!  Right on the Lewis River, with gorgeous open shade, plus a giant airfield next to where the ceremony was, which was an awesome location for their photos.   I had a blast working with them, and SO appreciated having my assistant Nate there to help out with everything.    Thank you so much for having us Shawn and Jessica!   Lots of blessings to you guys in your new life together!

David and Cynden came to me last year to book their wedding.   We all sat there and chatted for a few minutes when out of the blue, David asked me if I used to drive a red Celica (I did!)  turns out we knew each other from YEARS back.   I didn’t recognize him at first, but as soon as he said his full name it took me way back.   We had both hung out with the same group of friends for a period of time…..lots of fun times!    Oh the crazy things I did as a teenager….wow!  When I got around to photographing their wedding last weekend I was not surprised at all to see a few familiar faces in the crowd.

Their wedding was at the Lewis River Golf Course in Woodland – one of my all time favorite places to work.   The venue is stunningly beautiful, set right on the bank of the Lewis River and surrounded by gorgeous greenery.     My second shooter, Nate, did an amazing job working with me and I was so happy to have him there.  Thanks Nate!  And thank you David and Cynden for having me as your photographer!  It was a pleasure.  :-)

We grabbed a few detail shots before Cynden got ready:

Then we headed outside to let David catch his first glimpse of his new bride:

Then we grabbed some of the two of them alone:

Then it was on to formals with everyone in the party:

Since we were on a golf course it was only fitting that we get a shot on the course:

Then it was time for the ceremony:

Then it was on to the reception:

Last but not least, my favorite shot of the day:

(thanks to Nate!)

Mike, Shannon and I went to Portland a few weeks back for their engagement session.  I seriously LOVE shooting this girl!   You might remember her from these sessions – Shannon’s senior photos,  Trash the Dress Part 1 and Part 2, and then two months ago I photographed her in her sister’s wedding here.  I’m so excited for these two to get married!  They are a such a sweet couple, they even took me out to dinner after the session at a Mongolian Grill (YUMMY!).    Congrats guys!   Can’t wait to photograph your wedding!!!

Nearly two weeks ago I had the honor of photographing Nick and Samantha’s wedding – this isn’t the first time I’ve photographed either of them, you might remember Sam and Nick from their e-session, or Sam from Trash the Dress – part 1 or part 2.  They have been amazing to work with for sure!

Before I go into details about the wedding though, I have to give a HUGE thank you to Nate Yaro for shooting with me.  My husband has been shooting with me for awhile now, but two days before the wedding he had to be hospitalized.   Nate was amazing and said he would help me with just two days notice…..Nate shot with me all last year.  It was a huge relief to have someone who knew what they were doing and knew my routine, shooting with me that day.  Of course I was worried sick the whole day about my husband, so I have to give an extra special thank you to him for helping me keep my mind on the job which normally is no problem, but with a husband in the hospital it was a little harder than normal.   So thank you Nate – It was a huge, major blessing having you there to help. Also – several of the photos shown below are from him….he did awesome!  :-)

So….on to Nick and Sam – we started out the day at Samantha’s parents home getting ready for the day –

While I was busy taking pictures of the girls, Nate headed over to where the guys were getting ready and grabbed some photos of them.

Then it was on to formals -

We had hoped that the rain would hold up for us so we could do some outdoor photos, but the weather didn’t cooperate.  Fortunately though, the wedding was going to happen at Fathers House in Longview, which my office shares a parking lot with.  The office building I’m located in was built in the 20′s and the current owner of the building has kept with the vintage theme in the building’s decor.  So….we decided to hop across the parking lot and take advantage of the crazy carpet and decor outside of my office suite, and the fun furniture in my office for an indoor shoot.

Then (amazingly!) the rain went away and the sun came out, so we decided to run across the street for a quick shot of the wedding party outdoors -

Then it was time for the ceremony -

Nate captured this one with his wide-angle lens.

And then we headed over to a beautiful reception at the McClelland Arts Center

Of course I have many, MANY more photos, but I could go on with this wedding all day, and this is, after all, a preview so I will stop here and make them wait for  the rest.  :-)

Thank you Samantha and Nick for having me as your photographer!  Congratulations on your new life together!

It’s been awhile since I had time to blog about my clients, but I’m working at getting back into the swing of normal life again!

Allie has been a friend of mine for quite a few years, I’m so excited to see her get married!  I’ll be photographing their wedding this June and I couldn’t be happier for these guys.   I seriously can’t wait to be a part of their special day!  Thanks guys!  Enjoy…..