Fall Wedding in Bridgeport and St. Clairsville, Ohio

All hands on deck!  This wedding was unbelievalby easy and sweet and everything we want weddings to be! Yep!  You loyal blog readers know what this means…it’s going to be a LONG one!  Uh huh!  So, grab a snack or a drink or a cocktail…do whatever you do when you’re gearing up for an oooey gooey wedding blog because Ashley and Brandon’s fall wedding last weekend took place in Bridgeport, Ohio and then St. Clairsville, Ohio and it was amazing!  Enjoy!

Give the new Mr. & Mrs. Snider all your Hannah Barlow Photography love!  Their wedding blog is live!

Last Saturday, it had called for rain.  That really seems to be the trend for October this year for weddings, right?  BUT…it didn’t end up raining.  Nonetheless, it was a lot colder than we had anticipated! Yep!  Ashleigh (not to be confused with bride “Ashley” which ended up being a thing all day long) and I grabbed breakfast and then drove over to St. Jospehs Church in Bridgeport, Ohio.  I’d never been here before so I was pleasantly surprised by the easy layout and the nice, white walls!  Pretty, isn’t it?!

Then, after we took those, we went and found the ladies.  Ashley had called me a few times the previous week to sort out all the details and every time I saw her name pop up, I had an “uh oh…something may be wrong” moment but then I’d hear her sweet, calm voice and breath a sign of relief.  2021 has been notorious for the “what can go wrong will go wrong” so I’m always on edge anymore when my phone rings a day or two before the wedding…not with Ashley.  She was ready and she trusted me 100% and was extremely organized and on the ball!! So, let’s do this!

The morning had arrived and makeup was started!

Brand new Hannah Barlow Photography color palette alert! AHHHHHH!! If this doesn’t just put you in the fall mood, nothing will!

That’s Breanne.  She was both hair stylist AND second videographer for the day!

Introducing the ladies!

Ooo hey there, Brandon!  I met up with him right before the ceremony and got to spend some moments with him and his mom while we got all those groom finishing touches complete!

I’m SO glad I took him outside to do those last minute “getting ready” photos because I did NOT know about these cuff links and I just happened to stumble upon them when I asked him to play with his watch (which he actually didn’t have) BUT we found the cuff links! Wooooooooooo!!!

Then, I raced back around so we could catch Ashley getting ready with her momma!

Alright!  Story time!  If you know me (or you’re a loyal wedding blog reader), you KNOW I take Catholic ceremonies and mass VERY…and I mean…VERYYYY seriously.  While I know it’s important to get those ceremony photos, I also understand this isn’t about me or the photos.  It’s actually about a religious ceremony and the marriage and I know I’m a guest in this church.  So, what do I always do before Catholic ceremonies?  I go and find the Priest and have a conversation with him about the rules and how he’d like me to behave and act.  Ashley had already given me a heads up that Father John Mucha had some strict rules and I needed to abide by them.  No problem here.  I’ve worked with many Priests who have strict rules and some even have gone as far as giving me a tour of where I can and can’t stand.  Again, I totally understand and never take offense to this.  So, off I went this day to find and meet Fr John!  My Ash and I introduced ourselves and while he originally asked that I not photograph the ceremony anywhere but the loft in the back, I promised and gave my left kidney (kidding, of course) to not be a distraction.  So, he allowed me to sit in a pew by a guest and take photos while Ash went up to the loft.  Wooooooo!!  That’s exactly what we did and I appreciate his negotiation SO much!

Thanks, Fr John!  I see many more successful weddings in our future!

Of course, I still had to go up and test the loft.  Not that Ash couldn’t do it…but you know me…worry wart…control freak…you pick one!

…and here comes the bride.  Deep breaths, Brandon.  Literally, he was taking deep breaths and it was AMAZZZING!  I can’t wait to see it on video!

Look at his friends/groomsmen.  AHHHH!! Always my favorite!  Also, that’s Fr. John, of course!

Once I turned, I saw that Ashley was taking deep breaths too!

HUGE shoutout to the gentleman that saved my seat for me.  It was a PACKED house! PACKED!  I slid right in there and glued my butt to the pew.  If you’re a Tik Tok fan, I was also singing “Don’t be suspicious…don’t be suspicious!”  I made myself laugh.

Just so you can all see…Ash and I tag teamed this and I’m so proud of us! My photos are from down below from the pew and hers are from up top!

…and again!

…and some more!  You’d think by this one below that we were talking and planning…nope!  BUT I am getting an Apple watch this Christmas so we can actually communicate in 2022!

Alright.  Enough of that!  Here’s the rest of the ceremony!  And OoOO man.  If I didn’t think my arms burned before at other Catholic ceremonies…this was INTENSE getting that first kiss.  It was about 0.0000005 of a second long!  Got it! Whewww!  AND I WAS IN A PEW!

The new Mr. & Mrs. Snider, everyone!

They had those ‘just married’ vibes coming out that door!

Another kiss for the crowd outside!

Then, it was time for family formals.  Boy ooOO boy…when I say it was an easy day…it was EASY!  Even family formals were easy!  That never ever everrrrr happens!  So, in celebration…here are the two immediate families together!

…and a group hug!

Then, it was off to St. Clairsville, Ohio for the formal photos or bride, groom, and bridal party.  Ashley wanted a “field”…so we found a field! Wooo!  OoOo my goodness ME!  I have no words…just feast your eyes on this beauty!

AND these beautiful ladies!  Holy perfect color palette and details!  I just can’t! AMAZING!  Also, that train? Weeee! I’m still in wedding photographer heaven! Yep!

Full bridal party celebration…3…2…1…GO!

Ooo Brooks!  He’s their fur baby and they were so afraid he wouldn’t behave himself.  It was super duper muddy, I’ll admit!  So, Ash (my Ashleigh…see the “problem” we had all day..HA)  stepped in and held him so he wouldn’t get dirty until we were ready for him.  He was a PERFECT gentleman.  AND if you saw my IG story (make sure you follow me because I’ll be posting it again at the end of the year), I was making all kinds of rooster and dirt bike noises and he was here for it!  Look at him go!

Then, it was Brandon’s time to shine!

These men may like to have a good time but they were here for formal photos and made it easy peasy for me!  Thanks, guys!

Bridal party photos are done!  Let’s celebrate!

…and now…bride and groom formals and we took an obnoxious amount!  Ashleigh’s shots are all the ones where she is hiding in the bushes…or weeds…per her usual!

Some of my ABSOLUTE favorites here below! GAH!

Don’t let that color fool you!  Black and white was JUST as dreamy!

I just…I just…you can’t get much better than this.  Also, I can’t wait for you all to see the video from Better Together Moments.  I haven’t seen it yet either, of course…BUT Ashley and Brandon are just perfect together.  There was no struggle for posing…they just moved through everything and it just felt “right”…and amazing…and these photos show it! AHHHH!  Ok.  I’m done with the Hannah squeals…maybe.  If you’re new here and haven’t met me, my apologies.  It’ll probably help to understand all this blog craziness if you talk to someone who knows me! HA!

You can’t make those looks up!  Nope!

Walking out of the field and ending it with a dip!

Time to head to the Carnes Center in St. Clairsville, Ohio to catch all those details!  Ash and I just kept “ooooooo-ing” and “ahhhhhh-ing” over all this.  It was so fresh and new for our wedding photographer eyes.  Well done to all who were involved in this wedding planning!

DJ Daner introduced the new Mr. & Mrs. Snider for the second time!

First dances…with “The Sniders” in the background.  LOVE!

They started out their cake cutting real sweet and then they smashed it!

…and while we were doing that cake cutting…I noticed the sky.  RUNNNNNNN!! And run we did!  It was 100% worth it to lay in a parking lot with acting cars moving for these shots!

Now DANCE!

Couples always think the creepy kiss is crazy but just look!  It works!  Smile before you kiss…while after you kiss!! HOLD IT!

…and dance some more!  Because this wedding was perfection!

Back to the party we went!

…and they partied the night away!

…I didn’t leave without my selfie, of course!  But boy ooOOo boy…2021 weddings are giving me wrinkles and making me look tired! HA!  Only six more to go!

It’s always difficult ending blogs like this.  Ashley and Brandon have been such an easy couple.  I could probably count on one hand the number of times Ashley reached out and asked for anything.  Their wedding lined right up with that.  I tell couples all the time “the less you worry and the more you plan and trust your vendors…the better your wedding day experience”.  We could write a book after this wedding on “what you should do when planning a wedding…”.  I’m on wedding photographer cloud nine over here and it’s an amazing feeling going into a double header weekend!  Thank you, everyone, for being amazing!  And thanks for asking us (and trusting us) to be your photographers!

Thank you all for reading too!! Have an amazing Thursday!

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Vendors

Bride’s Gown – Sorelle Bridal

Bridesmaids’ Attire – Kennedy Blue

Men’s Attire – Men’s Wearhouse

Shoes – David’s Bridal

Hair – Breanne Tomalonis

Makeup – Summer Emory

Salon – Classic Couture

Florist – Kroger, Mount Dechantal

Videographer – Better Together Moments

Cake – Tina’s Sweet Celebrations

DJ – DJ Daner, Advanced Entertainment

Catering – Nancy Z’s Catering

Invitations – Zazzle