Fall Black Tie Hilton Garden Inn Southpointe Wedding

Hello, Hello!  Brace yourself for impact…ALL the “Hannah” is coming at you in this one!  So, let’s just get all my usual excitement out of the way, shall we?!…Ooooo my goodness ME! AHHHHH!! I’m a squealing machine, I tell ya!  I’ve got all the Hannah energy for this one! You all know how I love when things come full circle…and when I see lots of familiar faces at weddings…and when it’s a big, elegant, ballroom wedding WITH black tuxes (my FAVORITE)…and all the details amazing…AND all the story points are good for the blog.  Well, this wedding had ALL of that wrapped up in one giant wedding goodness package! Yep!  That’s right!! Mackenzie and Tyler are now the Maltonys.  It was amazing…it was beautiful…it was just “UGHHHHH…SO DANG GOOD”!  I’ve got all the feels in a great, great, big way! Enjoy!

So, I met Mackenzie and Tyler almost two years ago at the Billick/Stiffler wedding (Hi, Meghan and Nate!) and they weren’t even engaged back then!  Nate Stiffler and Tyler are cousins…so, of course, I was honored this couple trusted me to be their wedding photographer.  Additionally (and you’ll remember this from their engagement session which you can see HERE), Tyler is a photographer himself…so it was extra special that he trusted me!  ALSO, Tyler’s sister and future brother-in-law (Hey, Mikala and Jordan) also hired me for their early 2022 wedding.  Meghan’s mom was there too (Hey, Lisa)…and Nate’s mom too who is Tyler’s aunt (Hey, Lisa) and their immediate families…OooOo and by the way, Ashleigh went to school with Mackenzie and her sister Kyla and lots of other guests at this wedding.  She even picked them up for practices when they were young.  Yep!  SO, Ashleigh already knew the bride, the maid of honor AND the mother and father of the bride.  Ooo yea…and THAT…is just the beginning and all the connections at this one.  So, you can already probably imagine my excitement going into this day!  OoOO and one last thing, my loyal blog readers will remember the absolute timeline chaos the Billick/Stiffler put me through (we still laugh about it two years later).  “Run” was the theme that day….WELL, it must just be a thing in this big family because Mackenzie, Tyler and I created a good timeline…BUT it was a fast paced timeline…to the tenth power!  So, yea…we went into this one with a good bit of excitement and it was a great thing too because we were moving FAST so that adrenaline was pumping.  First stop for the morning was the location where Mackenzie was getting ready.  I’d actually arrived about 20 minutes early but had to call Tyler for confirmation on the location as I drove past the building… twice! HA!  Once we finally got there and with just a few minutes to spare from our start time, the bridal party was moving upstairs already.

So, I snapped those and upstairs we went!  Mackenzie wanted to get some shots of her opening Tyler’s letter and gift.  Just look at the scenery!

Then, we went RIGHT into detail shots!  I always struggle with earring shots…but not at this wedding!  I loved them so much!  We took all these beauties in about 10 minutes! WOOOO!  We had to get to Tyler, STAT!

Ooo yea!! And Kyla had a gift for her sister too.  Their mom, Marcy, was peeking out the window getting all emotional…so even though she said not to…I took a photo…because she’ll want these memories later!! Yep!

Before I left, we snapped a photo of all the ladies in their robes!

We were there less than 30 minutes when I texted Tyler I was coming for him!  We met up with him and all the guys at his parents’ house!  I’d been to this location for their engagement session (which you should go back and read because the story is amazing).  You know what I love about this group of guys (groomsmen)?  They aren’t shy!  Tyler welcomed me.  Nate said “hello”.  Jordan came up and introduced himself as one of my future grooms and ALL the groomsmen I’d photographed years ago re-introduced themselves and greeted me.  I mean…I LOVE IT SO MUCH.  So, Tyler handed me all his details and I literally photographed these in his mom’s window by the pet bed.  SEE?!  I mention that specifically because everyone is always freaking out about locations…but location does NOT matter.  Angle and lighting is everything…seriously, I take photos in the most random spots and that’s OK!!  I LOVE groom details too…and again…it’s just these guys, I tell ya!  It only happens a few times a year.  I got to do Nate’s a few years ago.  Tyler gave me AMAZING details.  JORDAN, don’t let me down! HA!  Just look!

Another good example – these were taken in Tyler’s parents’ dining room RIGHT by the dining room table and in a room stuffed with about 15+ people!  That’s right!! You’d never know though, right?! RIGHT?!

Tyler’s mom, Leslie, is the sweetest!  She wanted to have a little moment with her son before he got married…so I encouraged LOTS of moments!  You all remember that tractor?!

Bring in the groomsmen and the dads!  Let’s get ready to do this!

We were only there about 20 minutes (crazy, right?!)…and in that time I’d done groom detail shots, gift opening, card reading, mom and son photos, tractor photos (seriously, you all remember the tractor from the engagement blog, right?!)…and more!! That’s right…20 minutes….now, RUN!  Ooo yea…and we took Mackenzie’s dad, Ron, with us too! We had to move things around in the car and then we stuffed Ashleigh in the back!  I tried to drive my very best…not “it’s a fast wedding timeline” fast like I usually do…which ironically did happen later and Ash had to yell at me! HA! So, back to the first location we went!  We left Ron outside and ran inside to get those MUST HAVE getting ready shots!  Mackenzie was on the ball and already in her dress!! That didn’t stop us from getting those Hannah Barlow Photography window shots though.  Ashleigh always nails these shots and I think they are some of her favorites!  This is a mix of her photos and my photos!  Mackenzie looks like a princess, I tell ya!  Also, this is another great example of not letting location get the best of your nerves.  We took these in a child’s dinosaur bedroom! For real…and you’d NEVER know!  My goodness, she looks like a princess!  If I ever do my Hannah Barlow Photography Christmas float with a Disney theme (for real, I had planned it all out but then COVID happened), these two are going to have to come and star as one of the Disney couples!

Marcy got in there too to have her moment and this is one of my favorite mother/daughter photos EVER!

Then, the gals got a “first look” at the bride!  They got all emotional too!

…and then dad (Ron) got to come in and see his beautiful daughter!

…and after those tears, he squeezed both his daughters…who are twins, by the way!  It warmed my hear to pieces that he took a moment to lean and hug both girls separately! AHHHHH!! #truedadmoment

AND…that was about 20 minutes of photos (I can’t believe the amount we took)…OFF TO THE CEREMONY we go! RUN! RUN! RUN!  After we did get settled, I got to see (and hug) lots and lots of familiar people!

Then, it was time for the ceremony! Tyler had that “nervous excitement” that gives me all the feels!! I knew both their reactions would be amazing!  Mackenzie’s dad walked her down the aisle but the closer they got to Tyler, the more he had to hold back the tears!! Also, the excitement on Tyler’s face…I just can’t even with this group!! AHHH!!  Huge shoutout to Ashleigh for ALWAYS catching that “open door” moment for me!

OMG!  Look at the “thumbs” up…I just can’t! I can’t!

Then, there was this little moment between Tyler and his VERY soon to be father-in-law and then you can see how dad just handed her off like, “Here you go! You two are going to be GREAT!”

It was a beautiful ceremony!

Mr. & Mrs. Maltony, everyone!

Then, we went RIGHT into family formals.  When I had a Zoom meeting with Tyler and Mackenzie earlier in the week, I told them to channel and remember Meghan and Nate’s family formals back in 2018 (which were historically some of my quickest photos with the most in quantity for family formals I’ve done to date)…and then I told them to think even faster! HA!  We did it though and a HUGE shoutout to every.single.person who was present and ready.  It truly takes teamwork and we did it!  When I got married, I still had SO many grandparents there…Mackenzie and Tyler are much the same!

…and there was a very special surprise too!  Tyler’s grandfather gave him his own wedding ring and NO ONE knew about it.  That’s right…so while his grandfather’s finger is now lacking the ring…it just moved over to Tyler’s hand.  This photo…it just gives me ALL the feels.

Look at this big, combined family!

Then, we were off to the Hilton Garden Inn in Southpointe!  It’s SO crazy to me that we were already here on this day.  It felt like it all happened SO fast!  When Mackenzie first got engaged and contacted me about photographing her wedding, she hadn’t even chosen a reception venue yet.  I had racked my brain and emailed her all my ideas and boom…this is the one she chose!! I hadn’t shot a wedding here before but I did attend a wedding years and years ago!! It’s just beautiful!!  Ash and I took a backroad to try and beat the bus to buy ourselves like 5 minutes!  We even got stuck at a train crossing (and you all probably saw in my IG stories how annoyed I was… HA!).  There was no time to waste!  RUN!  I texted the couple and told them I was heading to the venue and then I’d meet them at our photo location!

We spent MAYBE 10 minutes there photographing those details and then we were back in the car to go do all the formal photos!  Did I mention how big this bridal party was?!  It’s definitely at the top of my “largest bridal parties I’ve photographed” list…so yea, we still had to do all the individuals…group shots…AND bride and groom shots.  RUN, Hannah!  30 minutes…45 minutes? I’m not sure how long it took.  It’s a big group but not one of them complained and they were all great sports.  Honestly, every single one of them seemed to like (or at least not mind) having their photos taken…and they are all SO photogenic! AHH!  Call me one lucky wedding photographer!

Ooo Heyyyyyyy….three Hannah Barlow Photography grooms right here!  Gosh, this makes my heart SO happy!  You all have NO idea!

…and two Hannah Barlow Photography brides!! WOOOO!

Beautiful ladies…for real though!

I love a good group of men who are willing to put up with my shenanigans and requests and give me all the shots…including the “GQ Shot”!

Also, this was the scariest part of the day.  Tyler asked for some photos with both his sisters.  Brea behaved herself.  Mikala (photographed above too) is my future bride and I told her, “NEVER AGAIN” after this…I thought for sure someone was going in the water…pants would be ripped…dresses would be ripped…I don’t know but I’m pretty sure I yelled, “No! ENOUGH! STOP!” HA!  Meanwhile, she’s all calm and says, “I would never drop him!” but I was honestly more worried about the time that it would take to sew something…or dry off! Bahahahaha!

OOoo my goodness ME!  When I saw Mackenzie earlier in the day, I told her my daughter was going to FREAK.  I was that little girl who dreamed of her wedding day since I was REAL little.  My daughter is much the same.  And it’s a bonus for her that she gets to see real life weddings on my computer week after week after week.  Of course, my daughter goes for the real sparkly dresses and the brides who like to look like elegant models (princesses in her book).  She also likes a black tux (and it’s hilarious when she sees weddings with brown men’s dress shoes or men who don’t wear jackets…she “just can’t understand” and it always cracks me up).  SUCH opinions for such a small lady!  And I was right, I had to literally kick her out of my office to get these photos finished!  Can you blame her?  Just look!

Then, it was Tyler’s turn!  His mom had pulled me aside earlier in the day and asked for just one particular watch photo.  I made sure to get that right away so we could check it off our list!

THEN, we took them allllllllllll.  WHY does everyone I photographed this day look like they just popped out of a magazine?! WAAAH!!! I love it so much!

I needed a lot of space for this bridal party.  I’d actually drove up the day before because I was REAL nervous I wouldn’t have enough room to stretch them out and I wanted to scout a location since I knew I’d be short on time.  I also wanted to find fall foliage because that was a request Mackenzie had asked for earlier in the week!  We had to hike up this hill.  It cracked me up.  The guys had more issues in their slippery shoes than the ladies in their heels!  BUT they were troopers and we made it!

That’s a lot of people but they look sooooo great!

I’m cracking up.  Jordan apparently knew he wasn’t going to be seen…so he worked with what he had and threw his hands up with a peace sign!

Then, chaos ensued when we busted out the masks…and hand sanitizer…and took COVID photos.  This was our last set though!

But we did IT! WOOOO!! Again, teamwork…everyone had a part in all those photos (and this was just a very very small helping of them).  Alright.  Cue the music! DO IT! I wish I could attach a song RIGHT here and RIGHT now!  It’s time, everyone!! Bride and groom wedding photo greatness coming your way…

In 3……

2…..

1…….

I mean…HOW do you even pick?!  HOW?!  This gallery was hard to sort…because there were so many great ones!  It WAS easy to edit (I mean…look at them)…BUT it was hard to pick again what to blog!! AHHH!! It’s a great “issue” to have, right?!

We had about 10 minutes left…that’s it!  They wanted fall foliage?  I found a little spot with just a few trees!  Angles and lighting are everything…you KNOW I always say that!  My photos are the real red ones…Ash took the others.  The couple never moved and look at this variety!  They are stars!  STARS!

Tyler knows photography and he knew the struggle we were having with that BRIGHT sun!  You can do it…you just have to be REAL mindful of it!  If he stood beside her, he casted a big Tyler shadow on Mackenzie!! So, I was yelling, “LET HER GO FIRST….LET HER GO FIRSTTTTTTTT.”  And this is just a little behind the scenes.  If you look REAL closely (below) you can see that she’s about one half a step ahead of him coming toward me and THAT is what made these photos perfect.  I mean…the fall foliage helps too…let’s be honest here!

Angles…alll the angles.  In real life, it’s still pretty green out there for October! HA!  The sky….I NEED skies in my life.  People wonder why I use flash?  This is why…I NEED to see the skies! HA!  Isn’t is just beautiful?!  No filters needed! NOPE!

And just like that…we were off again and off to the reception!  I know I had already taken my “insurance shots” but I can NEVER ever not take all the photos again….it’s the water in the glasses for me!! I don’t know but that condensation and the way those glasses pick up the light makes me happy!

For the second time…Mr. & Mrs. Maltony!

Can we just talk about that “The Maltonys” sign?!  GAH!  I kept wanting to get it in the dance photos!

Ooo yea!  And do you all remember Maggie?!  She SANG and played their first dance song! That’s right!! AHHH!! This wedding had all the details!! ALL of them!

At so many weddings, people talk over the first dance…and it makes me sad.  NOT at this wedding!  Nope!  Look at all the guests engaged in what’s going on!  I’m telling you…these families…they’re keepers!

Tyler 100% got “the look” when he attempted to shove RED cake in her face….TYLER…NOT THE DRESSSSSSS!

So, announcements had been made.  First dance was done.  Cake was cut.  Then, I found these bracelets and I LOVE this so much!! I was soooooo hoping this happened at one of my weddings this year!! I mean, I’m sure it takes no guessing which color I would be! HA!  So, we took a photo to prove it!

Then, we all sat down for dinner and Ashleigh was doing the side eye for a sunset.  I THINK she loves them just about as much as me!  She even texts me on non-wedding days when there’s a good sunset…photo included, of course!  This is what it looked like to our eyes…and Ashleigh is always kind enough to take this photographic evidence!

THIS is what I told the camera to do! WooOoooo!! I’m telling ya!! I created monsters in all my couples hype-ing up the sunsets! HA!  It’s becoming a Hannah Barlow request now at every wedding…and I do love it so much! Wooo!  I also love that every single one is unique.  I do NOT photoshop these!! This is the real color that day!  This day was just orange and blue!

Then, we ate dinner and I went back around to do some creeping.  I like to take some photos of guests mingling at every wedding!  I loved finding the two dads there having the BEST time!

Then, it was time for the father daughter dance.  Marcy was off to the side holding back her tears and I creeped right up behind her to see what she was filming!

ANDDDDDDDD it all comes full circle again.  I took this photo (below) and saw Tyler’s dad doing the same.  AHHHHH! Run, Hannah, RUN!  I had to get that one too, of course!

Then, it was time to party!! WOOOO!

I mean…I just can’t even with these groups!  Yes…that’s Meghan and Nate (2018 Hannah Barlow Photography wedding couple) and YES…that’s a tattoo with their wedding date (and I THINK it’s in his writing)! The guy behind them was definitely wondering what the HECK I was doing! HA!

The amount of people that were still on the dance floor for the anniversary dance at 50 years…was absolutely heart warming.  Even the DJ said he had chills!  These two couples beat 60 years!  One of their many tips of advice were…live in different rooms! HA!  The fact that my husband and I are SO happy and sleep in separate rooms in our 30s? Well, I knew we were doing something right! HA!

Now, it’s definitely time to party.  I knew…just knew there would be no lack of dancing!

OooOoo HEY THERE!  That’s Mikala and Jordan!  They’re going to be A OK in front of my camera here soon!! My goodness…they’re all beautiful people…inside and out!  They also had some photo bombers and you’ll probably recognize them!

SooOooo much fun!  Didn’t matter who you were…you were out there dancing!

There was a “get low” moment…and then Ash and I both noticed the DJ laying on the floor! HA!  Is that Nate Stiffler beside him!?

That’s how we left them…with a packed dance floor BUT not before Meghan and I busted a move together.  She said she wants to renew her vows.  I told her I’d need to be a guest that day…sorry not sorry!

I’m telling ya…THREE HBP couples and hopefully more in the future!! This warms my wedding photographer heart to pieces!  Let’s keep adding on to this photo year after year after year! AHHHH!  Can you just imagine the blogs?!  As if they aren’t already long enough! Jeesh!

I do NOT want this one to end.  I joked (but I wasn’t joking) with Mikala that she’d have to start texting me.  I got so used to Meghan texting me years ago (and we still text all the time) and then Mackenzie started texting me AND Tyler too (which I kind of love so much when the grooms are into it).  NOW, I need another wedding from this family to blow up my phone!  For real!  BUT…you know what I say…ALL important wedding matters need to go through email but the rest of it can come right to my phone!  For real, our text threads get long!  We have a lot to talk about!  It’s too hard to find important stuff quickly on a fast wedding day and we ALL know this family likes to make me work for it! HA!  I just don’t know where to end this one.  I so looked forward to this wedding all year.  I knew it’d be fast paced but I knew it’d be an amazing experience because I’d be with amazing people who like to have their photo taken and look SO good in front of my camera.  I also knew the photos would be amazing but I didn’t know they would be THIS amazing!  WAAAAAAHHH!! Why does it have to be over?!  I’ve only got maybe 8 weddings left for the year?  2020 was awful at some points BUT so much good came out of it too!  There were many points we didn’t know what would happen with this wedding given it was a large wedding happening in Pennsylvania but we did it and have the photos to prove it!  Mackenzie and Tyler…thank you for having attention to detail.  You’re the first couple I’ve had a group text thread with and I love that so much!! There were no questions from me going into this wedding.  Everyone was so prepared.  Everyone was on the ball.  You two are both beautiful on the inside and out and it makes total sense given your friends and families!  I appreciate you all from the bottom of my wedding photographer heart.  THIS is how you do large, elegant weddings!  It was pure perfection!  Thank you for continuing to trust me to be the person to capture these memories for you!  I hope to spend years and years and more weddings with your families…if you’ll let me! 🙂

CONGRATS ONE MORE TIME TO THE MALTONYS!

__________

Bride’s Gown – Haley Paige from Bridal Beginning

Bridesmaid Dresses – David’s Bridal

Men’s Attire – Men’s Wearhouse

Jewelry – Jared

Hair/Makeup – Legal Hair and Day Spa

Wedding Coordinator – Alexandra Jordan (Hilton Garden Inn)

Florist – Washington Square Flower

Videographer – Wllflwr Media

Cake – Isababy Cakes (Cupcakes too)

Catering – Hilton Garden Inn

Transportation/Limo – Shamrock Limosine

Save the Dates – UPS

Invitations – Bride’s Uncle

Programs – Groom & Mother of the Groom

Favors: Sarris Candies

Photo Booth – Sound Waves Event Group

DJ – Loyalty Entertainment

Getting Ready Location – Borelli Cellars