I’ve known Brandon for many years.  At one point in time, he was even my roommate so when he asked me to photograph his wedding with Kelly, I was truly honored.  I have never seen him happier than he has been since Kelly came into his life.  On October 22, 2011 in a beautiful outdoor ceremony at Tamaron Country Club, Brandon and Kelly were married.  Brandon’s Grandfather performed the ceremony.

When I arrived at Tamaron, I began taking photographs of the Main Dining Room where the groom and the males in the family and bridal party were gathered.

Then I went upstairs to the Bridal Suite to say hello to Kelly and take a few photos of the girls getting ready.  When Kelly was in High School, her family hosted an exchange student from Japan who flew in for the wedding.  She also helped the girls get ready.

After a few photographs, I headed downstairs to see what guys were doing and grab a few more shots.

Then it was back upstairs to check on the bride’s progress.

Once everyone was finally ready, we headed outside for some pre-wedding photographs of the wedding party, starting with the bride.

Then it was time to hide the bride away and bring out the groom for more pictures.

Before we knew it, the guests began to arrive and the guitarist, Tim Oehlers, began to play.

The groom was anxiously awaiting his bride.

The moment everyone was waiting for arrived and the ceremony began.

After going through the receiving line, the wedding guests went inside the country club for cocktail hour, while the bridal party and their families headed to the front nine for formal photos.

After all of the group shots were taken, the bridal party went back to their hidden hang out while the newlyweds and I took a walk to capture some more romantic images.

It quickly became time for the happy newlywed’s grand entrance into the reception.

When the bridal party got settled into their seats, Chad from Premiere Karaoke got the party started with the toasts to the happy couple from the Maid of Honor and the Best Man, followed by a prayer from Rev. Shearman before dinner was served.

During dinner, Kelly’s 14 year old cousin performed a beautiful song for the couple.

While the guests were finishing their dinners, I was able to capture a few candid shots before the rest of the festivities began.

After dinner, it was time to cut the cake.

It was now time for dancing, beginning with the bride and groom, then Father-Daughter Dance followed by the Mother-Son dance and then the Anniversary Dance.

After the formal dances were out of the way, Kelly had a bit of a surprise for Brandon and the wedding guests…a belly dancer from the dance group she is in.  The crowd went wild!

Then the guys had to show the crowd their dancing skills, which quickly led to the dollar dance.

Everybody dance!

Ok, not everyone wanted to dance, but they found ways to entertain themselves.

Of course the bride and groom tossed the bouquet and garter.

After all the formalities were out of the way, the bride and groom were finally able to enjoy their wedding reception.

As the night was winding down, I took the opportunity to take a few final photos before saying goodbye to Kelly and Brandon as they were leaving for their hotel room in Detroit.

Congratulations Brandon and Kelly!  May you have many more special occasions to celebrate together!

For more information on wedding photography for your wedding, please contact me at:

I got to the church a little before noon and began taking pictures of all of the church decorations and the programs.

Then I went to check in on the groom and bride to take some photos of them getting ready.

The bride and groom gave gifts to one another which evoked quite a bit of emotions for each of them and represented their lives together.

Tony had help from family and friends making the book for Angela.

And this time, Tony truly gave Angela the key to his heart.

Angela gave Tony a watch with a memorable inscription.

I took a few more pictures of everyone getting ready.

With the guys being ready, it was time to head into the sanctuary to take photos of the groom with the guys in the wedding party.

Then it was back to check on the bride and take more photos of her putting on the finishing touches.

Before we knew it, it was almost 2:30 and time for the wedding to begin.

The music began to play and the groom waited in anticipation for his first look at his soon to be bride walking down the aisle.

After a few quick pics outside the church, it was time to go back inside to finish taking the formal photos of the families and wedding party.

Then it was off to Perrysburg and Perry’s Landing for some more wedding party and romantic photographs.

When we finished at Perry’s Landing, the bridal party got back into the stretch from Total Image Limosine and headed to the reception at the Knights of Columbus Hall in West Toledo.  While the bridal party was making their way there, I headed in and got some photos of the reception decorations and the beautiful wedding cake from Eston’s Bakery.

It was finally 6pm and time for the bridal party’s grand entrance!

After the bridal party was introduced by DJ Adam from Decorative Sound and seated at the head table, the celebration went straight into the Maid of Honor and Best Man’s toasts to the newlyweds.

The buffet style dinner from Premier Catering was delicious.  Having the buffet line gave the newlyweds a chance to mingle with their guests who were still waiting to eat.

After dinner came the cutting of the wedding cake.  Angela gave the hint that there would be a little bit of a battle when it came to feeding each other the cake.

Then Tony confirmed that there would be a cake fight!

All is fair in love and cake war, but in the end, love won and everyone enjoyed the delicious wedding cake.

We moved right into the dances, beginning with the bride and groom’s first dance.  Then we went to the Bride and her brother followed by the groom and his mother dancing.  These dances evoked many more emotions for everyone.

Then it was time for everyone to join in the dancing and celebration!

The final formalities of the evening were the bouquet and garter toss, followed by the Ohio State-Michigan themed Dash for Cash.

And the winners were…..from the wedding party?  Do you think that it was rigged?

I sure hope Tony let Angela win the Dash for Cash to keep him out of the dog house after the cake incident!  Well, that and the fact that I’m a buckeye fan!

Everyone danced the rest of the night away!

While the rest of the wedding festivities were going on in the main reception room at the hall, my Kurt’s Kustom Green Screen crew was in another room taking fun photo booth pictures of the wedding guests.

Each guest got to take home a 4×6 print of their finished photos as a souvenir and we also printed one copy for a scrapbook for the bride and groom.  The guest then got to sign and decorate the pages.  They absolutely LOVED this idea, and so did the bride and groom who got to take it home with them that night!

The reception ended at 11:30 and there were a lot of last minute photograph requests.  By the time the night was over, Angela and Tony had almost 1400 photos to remember their wedding!

Congratulations Angela and Tony from Kurt Nielsen Photography!  May you have many more special occasions to celebrate!

For more information on Kurt Nielsen Wedding Photography or my Kurt’s Kustom Keepsakes Green Screen Photo Booth, please visit my websites, or contact me at:

1.  Bring your mom, fiancee, mother, soon to be mother-in-law, maid of honor, bridesmaids, or anyone else that is helping you plan your wedding.  This way, they can also see who you talked with and can better help you plan when it comes time to make those important decisions.

2. Go early.  By going early, you will get there before most of the other brides to be.  Plus, this will give you longer to look around and talk with the vendors.  Since this is a two day event, you can even come back to the vendors to talk again on the second day to answer any questions that may have arisen after speaking with other vendors.

3.  Visit with as many vendors that you can.  Even if you already have a vendor for something, visiting with their colleagues can give you more ideas for your wedding planning.  By visiting all of the different kind of vendors and taking the informational packets or fliers that they have can give you a more realistic sense of what to expect as to their services and prices.  This in turn will help you better with the budgeting for your wedding expenses and the types of services you want and can afford.

4.  Make up self adhesive address labels.  Most of the vendors will have give-aways or contests that require you to fill out an entry form.  By having this pre-made, it will save you time and your hand won’t cramp up!  Make sure you include your name, address, phone number, email address and wedding date on these labels.   When you are at the bridal show, you can just stick these labels on the entry forms.

5.  Bring a camera and notebook.  You can take pictures of the vendors you speak with, decorating ideas or items displayed at their booths.  A notebook will help keep you organized and you can write down any questions or comments you have about the vendors or what they offer.

6.  If you have a phone that has a camera on it, make sure you download the bar code scanner or QR code app.  Many of the vendors will be using this technology for their bridal show specials, including me!  Having it already on your phone or ipad will save you time.

7.  Bring your checkbook or credit cards.  Many vendors, including me, will have special discounts for booking that day, so it is best to be prepared.  There are thousands of weddings in and around Toledo every year, and most vendors book quite a few brides from these bridal shows.  In order for you to get who you want for your wedding day, and to save money, it’s a good idea to book them early.  Booking at a bridal show like this one, will do both.

8.  Bring your calendar!  If you can’t book at the show, or want to check out everything before you commit, it is a good idea to at least schedule a wedding consultation with the vendors of your choice.  This will at least hold your date until the consultation (for most vendors).  However, you may not be eligible for the bridal show discount if you don’t actually book at the show.

9.  Know your wedding budget.  It is a good idea to have some sense of what you can afford to spend on the biggest ticket items in your wedding budget.  This includes (but isn’t necessarily limited to) your Reception Venue/Caterer, Photographer, DJ or band, Videographer, Planner, Florist, Dress and Cake.  Prioritizing what is most important to you is also a good idea.  Always remember, for any vendor, do not go by price alone.  Quality of their work and their customer service is also very important and should be a factor in your decision.

10.  Wear comfortable shoes!  There is a lot of standing and walking involved in attending a bridal show.  There usually isn’t much room for sitting down and relaxing.

11.  Eat something before you go!  Yes there will be samples from some of the cake vendors and catering companies.  But that is all it is, samples.  Don’t expect to have an entire meal.  It is also a good idea to bring a bottle of water with you to keep you hydrated.

12.  As I previously stated, there will be hundreds of brides searching for their wedding vendors just like you.  As much as I would like to, I cannot do a complete wedding consultation with each and every one that comes to my booth.  I will, however, answer any question you may have as best as I can given the situation.  That is why it is important for you to be prepared.  Have any questions for your vendors written down so you can ask them at the show.  Research their websites, read their reviews and ask your friends about their experiences before going to the show.  By being prepared, it gives you the advantage of knowing what you are really looking to gain from going to the bridal show.  If you want to spend longer time talking than the show will allow, you can always set an appointment to meet with me or any of the other vendors.

13.  Don’t be pressured into booking someone that day.  Yes, if you book you will get the discount they are offering.  However, if you are unsure at all, or want to comparison shop before booking, be sure to go with your gut instincts.  You can always come back at the end of the day to the vendor(s) you really like.

14.  Be prepared to carry a lot of things.  It’s probably a good idea to bring a tote bag with you.  The show may provide you with one, but it may not be big enough to carry everything you receive from all of the vendors.  Having a second bag (that a friend can carry) to put all of the vendor information from the vendors you are really interested in can save you time when sorting through all of the information you received at the show!

15.  Avoid bringing small children, especially those with strollers.  With as many people that will be attending and the numerous vendor booths, small children can easily get split up from you and the strollers will prove hard to navigate through the aisles.  It will also be a long day for you and if they become cranky, you may not get to see as much of the show as you were hoping to see.

16.  The first question you should ask each vendor is “are you available on [insert your wedding date here]?”  This way, if they are not available on your date, you can move on to the next vendor and save you the time to spend with those that are available.  However, be sure to take their handouts in case they have a cancellation.

17.  Have fun!  Planning your wedding is one of the most special events you get to enjoy so be sure to do just that!  Enjoy the day!

After the bridal show, make sure you go through all of the information as quickly as possible.  That way the information stays in your mind for the vendors you spoke with.  If you don’t book your vendors at the show, set up appointments with the ones you really liked as soon as you can.  Keep in mind, you are not the only one getting married and the hundreds of other brides will be doing the same.  The ones that were available when you spoke with them may no longer be available.  Booking a consultation with them will allow you more time to see their work and ask more questions.

Also be prepared for the vendors that were at the bridal shows to contact you with some sort of follow up.  Bridal shows usually give their vendors a list of all of those in attendance.  Some vendors send follow up information and some do not.  The same is true if you sign up for information on the many wedding websites.  It is a good idea to prepare yourself for information overload for your wedding planning!

For a sneak peek at my bridal show discount, visit my special bridal show page on my website!  Good luck and Happy Planning!  Make sure you stop by my booth at the Premier Banquet Complex and say hi!