I have to start this blog post about Lauren and Ryan’s Chicago wedding at Lacuna Lofts by saying that Lauren has left the two kindest reviews I’ve ever received—one for their engagement session and one for their wedding—and sent close to a dozen of the sweetest texts I’ve ever received in my life (photography related or not). Since you can’t leave human beings Google or Facebook reviews the way you can for wedding photography businesses, this blog post is my chance to rave about her and Ryan. So buckle in! 

I haven’t blogged their engagement session in New York City yet (*adds to off-season to-do list*) which means I need to start this post with where our story started, almost exactly a year before their wedding day! I guess it started even before that when Lauren first reached out to me; in her initial message, she told me they either wanted to hire a Chicago photographer who they’d fly out to NYC for their engagement session or a New York engagement photographer who would fly out to shoot their wedding in Chicago. I’d never been to NYC before, so as you can guess, I was SO excited when a few days later everything was all official and my flight to NYC was booked! And then it just got better from there!! One of my very favorite memories as a photographer was drinking mimosas with them in their apartment at 6:00 AM and talking for hours before heading out to take photos; also taking one shot together as we headed out the door for some liquid warmth!! 😉 As Lauren said in her first review, “We had our engagement shoot, had to say goodbye for now, and I knew we found the right photographer. I was sad to say goodbye because Marissa made our shoot so comfortable for us that she feels more like a close friend.” I felt the exact same and it made me that much more excited for their wedding day in Chicago to come!

Once the big day came, I was of course 0% surprised when it was filled with so much love, joy, and a nonstop packed dance floor. I always like to include my favorite moments from a wedding day in a blog post so here’s my top three (okay fine four) for their day: 

1. Watching the two of them do a special dance with their grandparents to get the dancing started for the night! They didn’t tell their grandma and grandpa about it, so it was a surprise to them when Lauren and Ryan went to pull them onto the dance floor. Also, speaking of dancing, I credit 50% of the dance floor being electric all night to Lauren and Ryan and their friends and family being a blast and 50% to the band being INCREDIBLE. During Ryan and his mom’s first dance, everyone started clapping at one of the high notes and I was legit confused why because for that first half of the dance, I thought it was a recorded song, not the band singing it LIVE!!! 

2. Slipping away from the dancing for a quick 5-10 minutes of photos around Lacuna Lofts. I can’t stress how cool this venue is!! It’s an old artist’s loft so there’s tons of cool pieces of artwork and murals and signs all around the place, and they even had an artist custom make an awesome piece for the bar with two glasses toasting with the words SHELL YEAH!

3. After taking said photos, watching Lauren and Ryan literally run back to the dance floor to all their friends and family.

4. Staying with my second shooter after we were off to celebrate with Lauren and Ryan! This meant we were there during last call and got to hear Lauren come on the mic telling all the guests where the after party would be and finishing with “I fucking love my husband!!!” 

Couldn’t have said it better myself! I love these two so scroll on down to see all the beautiful moments from their day and the vendors who made the magic happen!

Reception Venue: Lacuna Lofts

Ceremony Venue: Holy Family Parish 

Photographer: Marissa Kelly Photography

Videographer: Smiling Toad Productions 

Hair and Makeup: Beaute Luxe

Flowers and Lighting: Juliet Tan Floral Design

Catering: LM Catering

Music: Bluewater Kings Band

Transportation: Premier Trolley and Limo // Windy City Limousine

Day of Coordinator: Exquisite Events Lake Geneva 

Suit Rental: The Black Tux

Dress: Kleinfeld (Allison Webb)

Invitations and Signage: You’re Invited Design Co.

Late Night Food: Lou Malnati’s