Jaryn & Brian’s Wedding in Philadelphia

I'm back from my trip to Philly!!! I don't even know where to begin... my sister's amazing wedding, fun times in Philly and New York, etc.... I flew into Philly on Friday with Havilah on good ol' Southwest.  I thought I told myself I would never fly Southwest again but I couldn't resist the incredible deal I got on airfare.... we arrived just in time to make it to the hotel, check in and get to the church for the rehearsal.  It all went really well and then we went to an awesome Spanish tapas restaurant by South Street for dinner... it was soooo good and the paella was to die for! We stayed at the Loews Hotel, where the reception was being held.  When I checked in I got a box (pic below) with breakfast treats and other goodies to munch on in the morning since there was no organized breakfast.  Saturday was the wedding and I have to say - even from the eye of a wedding photographer, it was out of this world.  I didn't get to take photos the whole time because the tables had turned, and I was IN the wedding as a bridesmaid... but I did manage to snap a few between holding my bouquet, walking trying to walk in my heels, eating and dancing. It rained for just a little while in the morning and stayed kind of overcast but it was actually a blessing in disguise for great photos!  I was really excited to be in the wedding because I've never been in one... and especially because it was my sister's wedding! My other sister was a bridesmaid too, and it was really awesome seeing my entire family all dressed up (it was black tie). I left the "real" photography for the day up to Ryan Estes, hand picked by yours truly. 😉  Ryan is an awesome photographer from Philly.  I really like his work and I think he is extremely talented, creative and has great technical skill, not to mention being super nice and from what I hear, easy to work with.  (I knew that I didn't have to worry about taking pics every second of the entire night because he'd have it covered, whew.) So what was so great about this wedding?  Well, first of all it was in Philadelphia... which was cool to be out of my element and back home in PA.  Secondly, Jaryn's dress was gorgeous... it was frigging amazing... (and I'm no girly girl!).  The dress was Kenneth Pool.  And the designer was Austin Scarlett (from Project Runway)!!  The train was long and flowing and it had beautiful bead work along the top of the bodice and the bottom of the train.  The church was very old in the Italian market neighborhood of Philly and the inside was mostly marble.  The reception was held at the Loews Hotel in downtown Philly, just a couple blocks from City Hall.  The grand ballroom was HUGE (at least 24ft ceilings), lit in shades of purple, and Jaryn and Brian's names were projected onto the wall.  They got an award-winning dance band -- Jellyroll, who have even played at the White House!  All in all, and having nothing to do with the fact that this was family -- the wedding was AMAZING!!! Here are some photos!  Check out Ryan Estes' blog for more (not sure when the actual post will be there but check his site)!! Will be posting more photos from my trip back east later this week, stay tuned!