Michele & Jeff Wedding | First Church of Christ | East Liverpool, OH | Salem Golf Club | Salem, OH Wedding Photography

We have a gorgeous wedding on the blog for you all today! Usually in our minds, we do not associate organized people as easygoing and laid back people, but that’s exactly what Michele was as a bride. She was very well organized & knew just how she wanted her wedding day to go, but she was also fun, calm, & adventurous! Jeff is her perfect match & wanted to do whatever it took to make her happy. They were both a blast to work with & the wedding day (though a complete wash-out weather-wise) was fantastic. I met the bride & her girls at Michele’s & Jeff’s place where Michele enjoyed some frisbee with Maverick out in a squishy, muddy, saturated yard. She’s a country girl!
Country girls can clean up well! 🙂 The ladies got pampered for the day at Luxe in East Liverpool.
Sparkly wedding shoes!
Riverview Florist crafted the bouquets. Isn’t Michele’s gown stunning?! Just wait until you see her in it!
Michele, on top of being organized & laid back, is so sweet & thoughtful. She made all of her bridesmaids cry with her heartfelt notes & gifts for them.


Josh was with the guys as they all got prepared for the day’s events. That’s always one of the best aspects of having two main photographers for your wedding day: we can be more than one place at once! 😉
We adored all of the Christmas-y aspects of decor. It was a very cheery, warm, & bright occasion.

Who was the happiest girl in the world that day? 🙂
Now THAT is a statement-making veil!


First Church of Christ in East Liverpool was a pretty venue.


They were all smiles the entire ceremony.
Michele’s mom, Robin, looks pretty darn happy to be gaining Jeff as a son.

I love photos of parents watching their children get married. You can see the melding of pride, love, & a tinge of sadness in their eyes. I’m sure it’s a bittersweet moment to watch your daughter or son embark on the next phase in their life.








Because of the constant downpour, we took all of the bridal party photos in the church. The ladies had fun with this one.
Like I said, Michele is adventurous & so laid back. We all ventured to Beaver Creek State Park to take some bride & groom creative photos with Maverick despite the pouring rain. Michele didn’t mind if her dress got a little wet & muddy . . . can you say “BEST kind of bride ever?!”
Maverick is the cutest Best Dog!





The rain was creating a mysterious & romantic mist on the creek so we took advantage by getting rained on for a few seconds. The photo below right was Michele’s dad’s request: his baby girl in her muck boots on her wedding day.
The Salem Golf Club looked dressed for the season with its pretty wreaths.


A cozy sweetheart table by the fireplace for the newlyweds!


Das Dutch Haus made the beautiful, sparkly wedding cake.
The Best Man speech was short & sweet.

Michele’s sister, Melissa, made everyone cry with her Maid of Honor speech. She listed off duties that Jeff would get to take over for her in order to be the husband Michele needed him to be, & she said she was certain he’d be perfect for the job.





Their first dance was sweet & romantic.






Everyone who is best friends with their sister knows exactly what this feels like:
Michele shared a special dance with her mother. She told everyone a little story before their dance began. Michele has been in graduate school earning her PhD for a few years & each night as she drove home from classes, she would talk on the phone with her mom sharing about her day & her life. Every once in a while, her father would answer the phone and get a turn to talk, & Michele could always hear her mom in the background saying, “This is my time to talk to Michele.” 🙂 So Michele decided that at the wedding reception, both of her parents would get a special dance, as they both mean so much to her life.




Then the dance party kicked off!

This is what happens when “The Fox (What Does the Fox Say)” starts playing.

Finally, near the reception’s conclusion, the rain subsided so we took advantage of that for a couple of minutes.



Then everyone said goodbye to the newlyweds with a sparkler sendoff! Tip for brides: buy sparklers that have longer burning times than standard sparklers (some are available here), consider using a blow torch to light all of the sparklers at once so you don’t have to rely on lighters (some guests’ will burn out before other guests’ are lit if you use lighters), and have a bucket of water and a fire extinguisher nearby for safety. Obviously, you’ll want to check with your venue prior to purchasing sparklers, as some venues will not permit sparklers on site.
Michele & Jeff, thanks for choosing us as your wedding photographers! We had a great day & loved ending our 2013 wedding season with your big day. It was fun!

Blog Readers: are you engaged? Are you interested in having Josh & Danielle shoot your engagement photos & wedding day photography? Awesome! Call or email us. 330.651.4849 or info@menningphotographic.com

See our other recent work & some fun stuff about us as a married couple here:
Twitter | Facebook  | G + | Pinterest

Follow