matthew whitlock | photography

Katie & Jack's Wedding at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart

What a BEAUTIFUL day. So far as wedding days in November in South Bend go, the weather for Katie & Jack was as near to perfect as a photographer could imagine. Everyone was happy and joyus, and the fact that their wedding ceremony was at 9am didn't seem to bother anyone - it was wonderful to be surrounded by so many people, and all of them wishing Katie & Jack a joyous and wonderful start to their new lives together. 

Thanks to the Zakas family, the Rutledge Family and all of their friends for making me a part of their very special day!

Here's the link for their teaser slideshow; And be sure to register for the Full Gallery!

Lexie & Michael's wedding day at the University of Notre Dame

I'll freely admit - I'm biased towards the month of October when it comes to weddings. I love the fall color, the crisp weather and the beautiful Indiana blue sky. I got married in October myself for just those reasons!

Knowing that, it should come as no wonder at all that I had an amazing time today capturing Lexie & Michael's wedding day at the University of Notre Dame. When the fall colors hit the campus, Notre Dame is hands down one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.

Check out the teaser slideshow and be sure to register for the full gallery!

Ceremony: Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Reception: South Dining Hall, Notre Dame
Flowers: Yellow Rose Florist
Entertainment: In-Tune DJ Service 
Catering & Cake: Catering by Design

Wedding Day Ruminations

I've been photographing weddings now for nearly 9 years, and some days it still awes me the ammount of time, effort, planning and coordination that goes in to planning a wedding day.

There are so many moving parts to a wedding day: Photographers, Lodging, Entertainment, Decor, Flowers, Cake, Food, Ceremony venue...the list goes on and on and on. And since planning my own wedding nearly 8 years ago I've gained an immense appreciation into the skill it takes to pull off a succesful event.

With the knowledge of just how much has to be coordinated, occasionally I will step back in awe that all of the involved vendors actually show up and fulfill their promises. Please don't take any of this to mean that I expect any of the awesome people I'm privledged to work with week  and week out wouldn't deliver exactly what they've promised (and in most cases we ALL do our best to go above and beyone for our customers); it just amazes me that everyone showes up. 

And in the end, we're all doing it for you. I understand that this is our job, but we all take it very seriously. We know how important your wedding day is and we want to make sure that we can in some way contribute to making your day more memorable, more joyous. It amazes me that so many people are willing, nae, WANT to put in that little extra bit in order to make your day truly special. 

In the end, I suppose it's a bit humbling. 

This rambling rumination started out as a reflection on how astonished I am at how a wedding day comes toghter and it seems that it's transformed into a thank-you. To all of my Brides and Grooms over the last 8 years: Thank You. Thank you for your trust, your faith and your willingness to include me in the collection of other amazing people entrusted with making your wedding day awesome. It's been a blast. 

To my future Brides & Grooms: Thank you for putting your faith in me - I can't wait to work with the awesome collection of people you've to insure your wedding days are amongst the best days of your lives.  :)

What a great weekend!

I got two great thank-you emails over the weeeknd that I absolutely HAVE to share - 

I occasionally do pet portraits for Northern Lights Sled Dog Rescue. Having great portraits of the dogs really helps people connect with the animals and get these beautiful dogs adopted into their new "forever homes." On Sunday, I got this email from the president of the rescue:

"...wanted to thank you SO MUCH for the beautiful photos you took at Kris J's!!!  I will tell you we had a potential foster for Harrison who thought he might be "too old" -- 'til she saw your photos!  He is doing great in foster!

 

We so appreciate you taking time to do this for us!"

This is just one of the photos I delivered for Harrison:

It's amazing to know that my photo helped a dog that needed a home and a family to love get a chance he would not have otherwise had. 

 

I often get thank-yous from, Brides, Grooms and parents after photographing a wedding, but this email was from one of the Groomsen at Friday's wedding - A truly unique missive in my experience these 8 years shooting weddings.  :)

"Good Morning,

 

I was a Groomsmen in the Obering-Van Hoegarden Wedding this past weekend, and wanted to share my thoughts on how the photography session went.

 

At each wedding I go to, I undoubtedly take away something that will forever remind me of what that day was all about.  Music, food, venue, or other...something always sticks out to me where I can say "That was so and so's wedding!"  After seeing Matt work and being a part of this photo session, I can say that I'm certain I will never be a part, of or see better wedding pictures in my lifetime.  The experiences during Matt's shoot, from location to the overall fun we were having as a wedding party is unmatched.  The pictures I've already seen are fantastic and I can't wait to see the rest.   Matt's ability to capture the people, places and things that make up such a  special day are fantastic!  Keep up the great work!

 

Sincerely,

 

Stuart"

Every wedding I shoot, I put everything I've got in to making the best photos possible, and the biggest smile I can get is when that effort is recognized and appreciated. Thanks, Stuart, you really made my day!  :)  !!

Heather & Anthony's Wedding at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Notre Dame, IN

Perfect lighting combined with a very relaxed Bride & Groom crossed with a bridal party game for nearly anything makes for an incredibly happy photographer and for a huge stack of awesome photos. I'm ridiculously excited to get to work editing Heather & Anthony's wedding photos - things could not have gone better today, and it was the best day for playing with my Infrared camera I've had (literally) in years.

Thanks to the Van Hoegardens, Oberings, Heather, Anthony and all of your friends & families for making us a part of your wedding day!

Be sure to check out the teaser slideshow and to register for the full gallery!

Wedding Ceremony: Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Cake: Rascia's Creative Cakes
DJ: In-Tune DJ Service
Reception: Morris Park Country Club
Florist: Lilly Lane

Location Defeat Results In Creative Victory

The goal for the start of our eSession yesterday was to start at Buckingham fountain in Chicago - a goal that was defeated by the park being closed for Lalapalooza. 

We decided to hike up the road to Millennium park and ran across a couple of small, shady and very beautiful parks - both of which made me happy for the forced detour! Providence was certainly on our side yesterday - thanks Christine & Dan for being so flexible and enthusiastic for the alternate locations! I can't wait to get to work on editing your photos!

Now I'm re-focusing for Heather & Anthony's Friday wedding at Notre Dame. It seems our local heatwave may have finally broken and I'm stoked to get outside for some portraits later this afternoon!

Maggie & Dex's Notre Dame Engagement Portraits

I had a great time out at Notre Dame with Maggie & Dex shooting their engagement portraits and can't wait for their wedding to come around in June 2012!

Thanks Maggie & Dex for spending your afternoon with me.   :)

Shea & Kyle

I am humbled by my job. I get to spend my weekends with wonderful people who are filled with the joy that comes with experiencing one of the most important days in their life. Today I documented Kyle & Shea's wedding and I was part of an amazing team that helped them to produce an amazing day.

I'm extremely excited about the photos I've captured and can't wait to get to work editing the photos. My thanks go out to Shea, Kyle, and all of their friends and family that invited us in to participate and document their very special day.  :)

Click here to take a look as some early favorites from the day and be sure to register for the full gallery!

Event Planning, Decor & Flowers: MerryMe Events
Wedding Ceremony: Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Reception: Gillespie Conference Center at the Hilton Garden Inn
Entertainment: Deja Vu Band
Hair: Emerald Cut Salon
Makeup: GlabGlam
Videography: B&C Digital Media Productions 

Notre Dame Spring Game Gallery

I've wrapped up my edits from Notre Dame's spring football game and I'm pretty pleased with how I shot the game on Saturday. I even got a few photos that were fun to play with and stylize a bit:

If you're a Notre Dame football fan, I think there's a lot to feel positive about coming out of Blue Gold weekend. This fall's football season should be a good one! Check out the full gallery of photos on my website!

Notre Dame Blue Gold Game

Despite the awful weather, I had a great time shooting the Blue Gold game at Notre Dame Stadium this afternoon. This photo is just a quick teaser - there will be more to come on Monday. I had to post this one because it's easily one of my favorites from the game. 

This was the first touchdown scored in the game, a scramble by Sophomore Quaterback Andrew Hendrix. He was right at the goal line and pushing for those last few inches for the TD. I just LOVE the intensity in his face.