texasweddingphotographer – Jess Jones Photos Blog

The Kidd’s

I wish every wedding could be like the “breeze” this one was. I’d say the hard part was that five-hour drive to Odessa! The day I drove up to Odessa for Jacey and Oliva’s wedding there was a huge thunderstorm in El Paso when I was trying to leave. The streets were flooded to the point where I wasn’t sure if I should drive through them or not! There were ice plates (whatever those are…) on the highway. Cars were backed up for miles! It took me about an hour just to get out of El Paso and on my way to Odessa. I really picked the perfect time to try to get out of town.

I arrived in Odessa really late at night and I immediately crashed in my hotel. I finally got to actually see the town the next morning and the first thing I noticed were the oil pumps bobbing up and down. They look like little dinosaurs to me bobbing their heads up and down.

Festivities started early Saturday morning. I met Olivia and her beautiful bridesmaids at Charm salon. Olivia was getting her hair done when I arrived. She looked pretty chill. Her bridesmaids were scattered around the salon. Some were having their make-up applied, some were getting their hair braided and the others were chatting and waiting for their turn. They had some delicious-looking donuts to snack on and lots of coffee!

I photographed the bride’s gorgeous dress at the salon along with her cowboy boots that she’d wear under her dress.

I headed to the church to photograph the groom getting prepped. I first met the groom’s mother Ronnie who was beyond helpful showing me around the church and giving me a bit of the day’s rundown. Ronnie also helped me coordinate all the family groups for family photos for which I’m very grateful!

We went to find Jacey in one of the church’s back hallways. What I found was a big goofball! Jacey was joking and had everyone laughing as soon as I arrived.

I photographed the groom with his groomsmen (and groomswoman) out in front of the church. They all wore a beautiful shade of gray with purple accents and of course cowboy boots. They went back to resume their card game.

The bride arrived at the church with her bridesmaids in tow. She scrambled upstairs to the room where she would step into her dress. It took two bridesmaids working together to fasten all those buttons. The dress was stunning and fit Olivia like a glove. She did a little jig when she saw herself in the mirror for the first time.

The bride’s mom met her in the hallway while we were taking bridal pictures. She marveled at her beautiful daughter in her wedding dress.

It was just about time for the ceremony and I found Jacey and his parents down in the back hallway saying a prayer before he’d meet Olivia at the altar. Guests were filing into the sanctuary. Jacey entered with the pastor and beamed as he waited for Olivia to walk down the aisle. The violinist played and the guests rose to watched Olivia as she was escorted by her father down the stairs and up the aisle to meet her groom. Jacey grinned from ear to ear as he saw Olivia for the first time walking towards him.

Her father kissed her on the cheek and took his seat after he gave the bride away. The ceremony began and the pastor led the two lovebirds through the marriage vows. Olivia and Jacey said their I do’s and sealed their new union with a sweet kiss. They turned to face the crowd and sauntered back down the aisle hand in hand.

The newlyweds entered the reception and the groom’s father opened the dinner with a prayer. The guests dined on some delicious looking BBQ with all the fixings with some sweet tea and lemonade to wash it down. Dinner definitely had me dreaming of Georgia.

After dinner, the bride and the groom shared their first dance. Followed by Olivia’s dance with her father and Jacey’s dance with his mother. The bride and groom made their way around the room greeting guests and hearing their blessings on the new couple.

Olivia and Jacey each smashed cake in each other’s faces and then tossed the bouquet and garter to some eager catchers.

The Texas Longhorns and Texas Tech battle it out in the background of the reception. I mean, we’re in true football country. Fortunately, for Olivia, the Texans won! Maybe next year, Jacey?

The reception didn’t exactly end with the bubble exit, but it fits better in line with the story that way. 🙂

Here are the highlights from The Kidd’s big day.

Venue: Golf Course Road Church of Christ
Dress: University Bridals and Formals
Hair and makeup: Charm Beauty Salon
Tuxes: Men’s Wearhouse
Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal
Flowers: Donna Kidd (flowerlady12@hotmail.com)
Cake: Liz White ((575) 631 – 1708)

Check out the whole wedding gallery here.

Rock n Roll Bride Sneak Peek

Pink dress? Check.
Party bus? Check
Smoke bombs? Check
Black Diamond? Check
Crystal skulls? Check

Have a peek into the fabulous wedding of David and Elissa!

Once all the photos are edited, you’ll be able to view them here.

Thanks for viewing!

Jess

Nancy + Andy

The vibe of this wedding definitely didn’t start like it ended! And it ended with a bang!

I began the day at Nancy’s house as she got ready for the day without all the hustle and bustle that normally occurs during wedding prepping. It was just Nancy, her mother, father, brother and niece that helped her get ready. Her mother, Gracie, helped the beautiful bride put on her wedding dress from White Lace Bridal Boutique in El Paso. Her train was long and the top of her dress was full of rhinestones and sparkles. She wore beautiful blue shoes with a crystal pendant on the tops.

The first time her father, Jose Silva, stepped into the room to see his daughter after she was dressed was full of quiet emotion. There wasn’t a huge outburst but you could tell by the look on his face that he was holding back tears. Nancy hugged her father as Nancy’s brother entered to see the final results.

The finishing touches were applied when her father and brother put on Nancy’s earring and her mother helped with her beautiful diamond bracelet.

Nancy’s niece, Naomi, helped Nancy put on her sparkly white flats so that she could comfortably and stylishly, walk around. Then she helped her put on her garter that was adorned with a blue flower.

A few of Nancy’s bridesmaids showed up at the house to help with last minute details. After everyone was prepped and ready to go, Jose, Nancy’s father, helped her into the black Charger that was waiting to take her to the ceremony.

We caravanned to San Antonio de Padua Catholic Church, where Andy and the groomsmen were already waiting. Another wedding had just finished up and that party was right outside the church taking pictures and and mingling. The priest was preparing for Nancy and Andy’s ceremony.

Their ceremony quickly got underway not long after we arrived. It was a traditional catholic ceremony. There was a simple guitar player at the side of the sanctuary playing soft music between prayers. Both Nancy and Andy’s parents along with the wedding party sat in the the front rows behind the couple as they prayed and took communion. A couple of members in the wedding party participated in the ceremony by reading scriptures. The maid of honor, draped the ceremonial lasso around the couple for unity and the best man presented coins to the bride and groom for good luck.

The newly-weds completed their prayers and were announced husband and wife. They marched out of the sanctuary followed by their family and friends. I caught Andy as he wiped his brow as they exited the church. Following the ceremony they spent some time in the church’s foyer greeting friends and family.

After the ceremony, it was time to load up and head to take pictures of the wedding party. We went to Memorial Park and I began lining up the bridesmaids in their blue lace dresses. The groomsmen arrived and made a bee-line for the snack truck. Andy was kind enough to bring Nancy and bite of hamburger and a blue slushee to re-energize. I managed to squeeze the whole wedding party under some shade and snapped a few fun pictures of them before everyone melted in the heat.

I took Nancy and Andy to their own photo spot at the El Paso Rose garden. As we walked through the garden, I snapped pictures of them dancing and enjoying each other’s company among the pink roses with the appropriate titles.

It was time for us to head to the reception, the Mariachi trio was playing at the door as Andy and Nancy entered the EPIC rail yard. The reception area didn’t need much decorating, because the place is so awesome already, but they had some roses and succulents scattered throughout and painted blue vases on tables that tied the decor together. There were beautiful carved wooden elephants that greeted everyone as they signed the guest canvas. Trains were passing by the windows right out side the receptions room. They weren’t loud, I don’t even remember hearing them over the DJ’s music.

Dinner was served and it was the groom, Chef Andy’s, own recipes. A delicious herbed chicken served with perfectly seasoned veggies and mashed potatoes. People lined up to be served and then hit the bar for refreshments.

After the announcing of the wedding party, I quickly grabbed Nancy and Andy and ran up to the rooftop and took a few more awesome pictures of the couple in the setting sun. The buildings of downtown El Paso stood off in the distance and the Franklin Mountains were directly behind them.

Nancy and Andy shared their first dance, followed by heartfelt father/daughter dance and Andy’s dance with his mother, Gloria who cried as she danced with her son.

I think the coolest part of the night was when the DJ pulled out a huge bin of those long colored balloons. Almost everyone was out of their chairs swinging balloons in the air to the music. The colors of the lights and the balloons accompanied by the awesome music really got the party started! (I’m sure the open bar helped too 😉 )

I had never seen a reception with such a cool party atmosphere. It was definitely REALLY fun. Young and old alike had a blast dancing and swinging the balloons through the air.

I have to give the DJ, Rhythm and Dance Factory D.J. Service, some props because they did an amazing job keeping the party going and their lights were amazing! They were an awesome team.

Another part of the reception that I thought was really cool, was when the DJ had Nancy and Andy make a bridge with their hands as they stood high up above their guests in chairs. The party single-filed under the Diaz bridge and snaked around the room until the song ended.

After the dance train, it was time for the garter and bouquet toss. The bride tossed the bouquet from high up on her chair to her single ladies and the groom flung the garter into the small crowd of single gents, but not before he wore the garter on his head.

At midnight, it was Nancy and Andy’s actual 10 year anniversary of being together, so they shared that moment together dancing and then invited the other couples to join them on the dance floor. Everyone had some dance skills. Must be in the El Paso water.

I left the reception with everyone still partying into the night.

Cheers to Andy and Nancy!

Vendors
Flowers: Angie’s Flower-Erika Pegueros-dreamweddingselpaso@gmail.com
Cake: Angie’s Flower-Erika Pegueros- dreamweddingselpaso@gmail.com
Hair: Sol Hair Illusions, Lupe Solis, https://www.facebook.com/solhair.illusions
Wedding Dress: White Lace Bridal Boutique, http://whitelaceboutique.com
Bridesmaid dresses: Bridal-Novas, Silvia, https://www.facebook.com/Novas-Bridal-Wear-Evening-Wear-Collections-165539690153896/
Tuxes: The Tux Shoppe, Chito Aguilar, www.elpasotuxshoppe.com
Mariachi: Mariachi Trio-Los Aventureros, David Martinez, www.facebook.com/triolosaventureros.com
DJ: Rhythm & Dance Factory DJ’s / Pro DJ Rentals, https://www.facebook.com/RDFactory/?surface=rese

Justin+Alicia+White Sands

I couldn’t be more pumped to shoot Alicia and Justin’s wedding at White Sands, NM. White Sands is one of the coolest places that I’ve visited since being in the Southwest and I was thrilled when the opportunity came up to shoot a wedding there.

This wedding was unique, because of a couple reasons:
1. Alicia and Justin
2. It was on June 20th (the first day of the Summer Solstice)
3. It was also the night of the full Strawberry moon

I thought it was super cool that Justin and Alicia came down from Washington state to have their wedding ceremony in White Sands. They’re a unique couple who have been together for a long time and finally decide to tie the knot. They reside in Tacoma, WA and are a fun, laid back adventurous couple.

They rented gorgeous house in Las Cruces, NM and stayed their for the long weekend with their closest friends and family. I arrived to the smell of some delicious looking food and celebratory tequila shots being thrown back. Everyone was super cool and it looked like they were having a really chill day.

Alicia’s best friends helped with her hair and makeup which turned out beautifully. Her blond hair was curled and her friend’s braided a few tiny braids throughout for a boho accent. Her makeup was very natural and true to Alicia’s non-fussy personality.

The bride’s mother, Flora, help lace up the beautiful white, lace dress the was made by the ahhh-mazing designer, Grace Loves Lace. Alicia looked like a boho princess as she danced and flipped her skirt around the room. Her mother in law, Pamela, gave her a gorgeous turquoise statement necklace to wear with her dress.

When it was time to head to the ceremony, we all hopped in the car and caravanned about an hour to White Sands. The Organ mountains were a beautiful site along the way.

The ceremony was as unique as the couple. It took place on top of a giant soft, white, sand dune under the bright blue sky. Their family and friends circled up and joined hands and their friend performed the non-religious ceremony. There was a tribal drum, family in a circle and there was supposed to be sage lit to cleanse the ceremony, but alas, it was too windy. It was a sweet ceremony. Alicia and Justin held hands in the sunset and shed a few tears throughout the ceremony.

Afterwards, friends and family shared hugs and well-wishes for Alicia and Justin. We took a few more pictures as the sun was setting over the sands. I couldn’t let them leave without grabbing a silhouette shot of the newly wed couple on top of a sand dune in the orange and blue dusk light. And it turned out to be one of my favorite shots ever!

We headed back to the house to catch the after party celebration. I had to stop along the way to take some shots of the Strawberry moon that was rising from behind the mountains. It looked larger than your typical moon and it was bright orange!

Back at the house, the newly-weds started off the celebration right by, what else? But jumping in the pool…wedding gear clad, of course!

After they dried off, it was time to toss the bouquet and garter, Justin tossed the garter in living room as the single men gathered and scrambled for the garter behind him. Alicia, took to the balcony to toss her bouquet from the second floor to her bridesmaids down below.

The guests casually dined on a delicious steak dinner. And just before I left, they group popped the champagne as parents of both the bride and the groom shared toasts to the new couple.

What are awesome and laid back wedding it was and I’m so glad Alicia and Justin chose me to be their photographer.

Here’s a couple shots from the day. Cheers!

Enrique + Mary

I thought Mary and Enrique would be getting married in Vegas, so when she contacted me to shoot the wedding I was thrilled that they thought of me again. I photographed their engagement session last year in the unbloomed cotton fields of Santa Teresa, NM.

At 107 degrees, Mary and Henry’s wedding day was definitely one of the hottest days of the summer! And for that reason, most of the photos were taken inside of the El Paso Country Club. Mary arrived and put her dress on shortly before the ceremony as her bridesmaids helped her get ready. We briefly took some bridal photos around the clubhouse and out on the golf course. Mary carried a gorgeous rhinestone bouquet and wore the cutest sparkly Betsy Johnson wedding heels. Her hair piece and make up were perfect. She truly looked stunning.

Enrique and some of his groomsmen arrived to the venue. Enrique surprised Mary with a new Pandora charm as she greeted him. A couple of the bridesmaids helped the groomsmen pin on their boutonnieres, which were of course flower brooches with rhinestones.

All of the gorgeous bridesmaids looked super cute in their gold toned short bridesmaid dresses and sky-high heels!

The theme of the wedding must have been “Bling”! And that theme continued throughout the reception area where the tables were covered with beautiful silver and sparkly center pieces. Oh and they had an ice sculpture with their initials “M+E” carved into it!!

Guests arrived and took their seats as the wedding party waited to enter the ceremony. The ceremony was conducted in both spanish and english for all guests to understand. The mothers of both the bride and groom lit the candles to start off the ceremony. The bride’s son Ossie, was a big part of the ceremony. He didn’t want to leave Enrique’s side…that is until he got antsy and wanted to sit with his grandparents.

The beautiful ceremony included a string quartet which performed classical music throughout the ceremony and into the cocktail hour. Guests mingled with delicious looking cocktails and hors d’oeuvres in hand. The bride and groom bounced around from guest to guest chatting and hearing from friends and family their blessings for the future.

As sunset approached (and the day had finally cooled down), I took Mary and Enrique outside to the beautifully manicured golf course to shoot some portraits of the couple. The light from the setting sun was just perfect. The couple showed off their comfy converse sneakers! (Mary’s were bedazzled with beautiful crystals!) The couple looked happy in a quiet moment together and teased each other as I captured their moments around the course.

Mary’s son, Ossie, caught up when he saw that mom and Enrique were leaving him out of all the pictures! He sat still for a moment to take a couple cute pictures and then resumed playing in the sand trap of the golf course.

Back inside, the guests were entering the beautifully decorated reception area. Mary changed into her goddess-like reception dress with head piece to match. The DJ announced the newly wed couple’s entrance and they were seated at their own table complete with a “Mr. and Mrs.” sign and their initials projected over head in the beautiful lights. The DJ did a wonderful job with the lighting and the fun atmosphere that was starting to elevate the party. Mary’s father said grace over the meal and the Mexican Trio band played festive, but romantic tunes as dinner is served.

Please enjoy the pictures from Mary and Enrique’s gorgeous wedding.

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