I’ve photographed weddings on short notice before, but when Kevin called me at lunch on a Thursday in late February and asked me what I was doing the next night, I didn’t expect I’d be photographing the sweetest, most intimate wedding ceremony in downtown Chicago at the top of the Sears Tower.
We met Jamie and Kevin at the Chicago Palmer House Hilton for some pre-wedding photos of the two of them and then headed to the Adler Planetarium museum campus for photos with the evening Chicago skyline followed by a quick trip to the financial district for a romantic dance in the street.
Both previously married, Kevin and Jamie tried to coordinate their wedding a number of times but plans kept getting put on the back burner for various reasons. So earlier that week, they decided to just go for it and arranged for a quaint ceremony in one of the sky boxes atop the Sears Tower Skydeck. Surrounded by their closest family and friends, the couple said their I dos against the backdrop of city lights 103 stories below. It was an honor to be their wedding photographer and despite the last minute notice during a chaotic week, it turned out to be one of my all time favorite weddings to photograph. 103 stories high, I’m sure it is a wedding story that Jamie and Kevin will be telling their grandchildren some day.
It is worth noting that even though we spent only four hours with the couple, we were able to accomplish a great deal including four big city locations that required some time for driving. We photographed the ceremony and group formals after the ceremony. The style and quality of photography was more important to Jamie and Kevin than tangible prints or more hours of coverage. Many of the couples we work with have the same approach, that is, they’d like to have beautiful photos to remember the day rather than comparing apples to oranges with coverage time, prints and albums that come in other photographers packages. A good, experienced wedding photographer can provide more value and service in four hours than a mediocre or novice one can with twelve. It’s worth any couple considering before they make their decision on who should document the biggest day of their lives what style, quality and professionalism will bring in terms of long-term value to the memories of the occasion.
