Wedding Pictures of the Year 2008

Hello and welcome to my Wedding Pictures of the Year 2008 blog post! What an amazing year. I went coast to coast doing weddings from Florida to California. 

A huge thank you is in order for all the brides, grooms and their families who chose me to photograph their weddings! Great wedding pictures come from trusting relationships. 

Click here to see a slideshow.
Wedding POY 2008.
Cheers, Kent

WPJA-10th in the world!

Hello, remember earlier this year when I judged 15th in the world for 2007 by the (WPJA) Wedding Photojournalist Association? Currently in the 3rd Quarter judging for 2008 I am ranked 10th in the world and 1st in Colorado.
WPJA.
With one quarter to go, I am hoping to finish this year in the top 10! Please wish me luck as this a big order.
Cheers, Kent

Kristen and Joe's Magnolia Hotel Wedding

Hello, last Saturday I photographed Kristen and Joe's wedding at the Magnolia Hotel in downtown Denver. Jane Knauf with Magnolia Hotels did a great job of helping Kristen plan her wedding from Washington D.C. providing great service start to finish.
Magnolia Hotels
Click here to see a short slide show.Wedding
At noon I met up with Kristen and ten of her gal pals at Crush hair salon in LoDo where David Reed was doing her hair including putting her veil in place.
Crush
The ceremony was held in the lower level of the main hotel while the reception was held in there beautiful ballroom across 17th Street.
After the ceremony, the couple, bridal party and family members walked up the street to the Supreme Court House for pictures as it is one of the more interesting buildings in all of downtown Denver.
A good friend, Kathleen Davia, of Gateaux made a tasty cake for the event.
Gateaux
Cheers to the happy couple who are probably playing Rock Star in Steamboat Springs as I write this.
Kent Meireis

Jenny and Joel's Golden, Colorado Wedding

Hello, last Saturday I photographed Jenny and Joel's wedding at Calvary Episcopal Church in Golden, Colorado.
Calvary Episcopal Church
Nicole Iverson with Swank Stems decorated the chapel with flowers, candles and much more to look and feel like we were in the French Quarter of New Orleans.
Swank Stems
Click here to see a short slide show.
Wedding
The reception was held at Rolling Hills Country Club where Kathie Baratta and her staff did a wonderful job.
Rolling Hills Country Club
Michelle Gillette of Dramatic Events kept the events running on schedule from start to finish.
Dramatic Events
One of the big highlights of the evening was having the band Funkiphino, a 12-piece group from Boulder perform.
Funkiphino
They rocked the club until midnight when Jenny and Joel made their exit as guests lit the path to their limo with giant sparklers.
A special thanks to everyone involved for making this a wedding to remember.
Cheers, Kent
PS. My good friend and fellow wedding photographer, Melissa Rich, helped me with this wedding and I can't thank her enough!
Melissa Rich

Comment from bride and her mother

Here are a few comments from Carrie and her mother Mary after seeing the pictures from her wedding in Santa Barbara.
Cheers, Kent
Wow!! I am totally speechless! Oh my goodness Kent, the pictures are absolutely stunning! I can't wait to see more! Thank you again for everything, the day was magical and you truly captured all the best moments!!
Thanks again, you truly made my day!!!!
cheers....carrie
Wow Kent, again I am speechless! They are absolutely amazing! So many of them I didn't even realize you were there capturing the moment, wow! Now I know what everyone else was talking about!!
Thanks again Kent, I know everyone must tell you this but you have a truly amazing eye and I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to have you fly out to capture our memories!! You're the best!!
cheers....carrie

I don't think it's possible to express how happy Carrie is with the photos. They are fabulous. I particularly love the black & whites. My particular favorite (of all my favorites) is the one with her skipping on the beach & Scott "grounding" her. A perfect expression of why their relationship works. Thanks again for your part of this tremendous week-end. Mary

Sarah and Shaun's Hotel Boulderado Wedding

Hello, last Saturday I had the pleasure of photographing Sarah and Shaun's wedding at the Hotel Boulderado.
Hotel Boulderado.
What a classic Boulder, Colorado location for a fun wedding. Click here to see a slideshow.
Wedding.
Cheers, Kent Meireis

Tisha and Previn's Wedding

Hello, last Sunday I had the honor of photographing Tisha and Previn's wedding in her grandmother's backyard in west Denver.
Previn is the son of my good friend and fellow wedding photographer John Hudetz. Hudetz
Going into this wedding, I new it wasn't going to be anything short of amazing. There were multiple cultural themes represented as Tisha is part Jewish and part American Indian plus they both embrace eclectic cultures.
Click here to see a slideshow of their wedding. Wedding
The dress and overall style of the day was Celtic/Renaissance including a Celtic Bluegrass Band.
This was truly a fun wedding and Tisha and Previn along with a assortment of family members and friends planned a wonderful ceremony/reception/party. They even had a keg of mead!
Cheers, Kent Meireis
If you would like to learn more about their wedding check out their website. Wedding website

Karen and James Wedding

Hello, last Saturday I photographed Karen and James wedding with my good friend Melissa Rich. Melissa Rich
Their ceremony was held at the Good Shepherd Catholic Church here in Denver.
And their reception was at The Brown Palace Hotel.The Brown Palace Hotel
Click here to see a slideshow of their wedding day.
Wedding
It was a pleasure working with both Karen and James as they were an exceedingly nice couple.
Cheers, Kent Meireis

Elise and Mark Bisbee Wedding

Hello, on June 27th I photographed Elise Simonds and Mark Bisbee's wedding at the Church of the Good Shepherd followed by their reception at Cherry Hills Country Club. Church of the Good Shepherd.
Cherry Hills Country Club.
I photographed the wedding with my good friend John Hudetz. Hudetz.
Please click here to see a slideshow. Wedding.
I actually enjoy photographing church weddings as much as outdoors weddings. Both situations offer different opportunities to find meaningful and unpredictable images. Both Elise and Mark were great as they were totally camera unaware allowing me to capture very natural pictures.
Thank you so much for letting me do what I do best.
Cheers, Kent

Danelle and Michael's Wedding at Phipps Mansion

Hello, last weekend I had the pleasure of photographing Danelle and Michael's wedding at the Phipps Mansion. Phipps Mansion.
The ceremony was held about 11AM in a garden area on a beautiful, blue sky summer morning followed by a reception/luncheon on the patio. Click here if you would like to see a slideshow of their wedding. Wedding.
At the end of the ceremony I made a group photograph of all the guests, and enjoyed having plenty of light to catch everyone mingling before and after lunch.
Thank you Danelle and Michael for choosing me to photograph your wedding!
Cheers, Kent

Bend it with Beckstead

Hello, last week I spent three intense days participating in a wedding/fashion photo workshop called, Shoot with Beckstead. Shoot With Beckstead. Last year American Photo Magazine named David Beckstead one of the top ten wedding photographers in the world.
David Beckstead.
A group of about 15 wedding photographers mostly from the Denver area, lived and breathed Beckstead's style, both in a classroom/studio situation and photographing models on location for 14 hours a day! Beckstead is known for his use of composition, color and light. On the first day, after getting pumped up listening to David speak and viewing a few slide shows of other shoots he's done from around the world, we drove up to Georgetown and the Georgetown Loop Railroad. Georgetown Loop Railroad.
At each location David would quickly look around for scenes that had dynamic lines, patterns, colors etc. Then we would photograph for about 15 minutes before changing locations. I don't normally use models, preferring reality over fiction, but this was actually great portrait practice using creative compositions. Usually I draw on emotion, action and occasionally architecture.
After lunch we worked our way around the Georgetown Historic District before heading out of town to an old graveyard, and believe it or not, an I-70 underpass, because of the cool lines and light. That night we edited our images down to 30 to share with the group in a critique session lasting eight hours.
The second evening we went out to practice low light night fashion using available light and/or video lights. The last day we did a shoot at Centennial Airport with two WWII planes. We went from a night shoot/low light situation to a bright, hot midday location. Each provided different challenges and opportunities.
Cheers, Kent

Jennifer and Mark's wedding at Cordillera

Hello, last Saturday I photographed Jennifer and Mark's wedding in Cordillera with my good friend John Hudetz. John Hudetz.
It started at The Lodge and Spa at Cordillera where Jennifer was getting her hair and makeup done. Lodge and Spa at Cordillera.
Then Jennifer and I rode with Carolyn Moorman, of Artisan Events, to The Club at Cordillera for the ceremony and reception. Artisan Events.
The Club at Cordillera.
The first thing I noticed upon arrival at the club was Desiree Kelly of The Makery setting up a 7-tier cake using a ladder. The Makery.
It was a beautiful sunny spring day high in the mountains above Vail for their outdoors ceremony followed by the reception in both a tent and the Timber Hearth Grille.
If you would like to see a slideshow click here. Wedding.
Cheers, Kent

Emily and Eric's Estes Park Wedding

Hello, last weekend I had the pleasure of photographing Emily and Eric's wedding at Saint Malo Chapel in Allenspark, Colorado. Saint Malo. Their reception followed in the MacGregor Ballroom at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. The Stanley Hotel.
I photographed the wedding along with my good friend and fellow wedding photographer, John Hudetz. John Hudetz.
You couldn't ask for two more beautiful locations! Emily and Eric had a blast and enjoyed every minute of their day as you can see in the pictures.
One of my favorite details was the Spanish guitarist, Piatro, who played at the ceremony as well as at the reception. Piatro.
If you would like to see a slideshow click here. Emily and Eric.

Saint Vincent dePaul/Red Rocks Wedding

Hello, on May 17th I photographed Lisa and Evan's wedding with my good friend and fellow wedding photographer, John Hudetz. John Hudetz.
Lisa and Evan's wedding at Saint Vincent DePaul Church in Denver was a traditional catholic ceremony. After that things got strange. The couple had planned their reception at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, before the venue booked a concert for the same night. And it wasn't just any concert - it was a violent rap band called Insane Clown Posse. Insane Clown Posse. Most of the fans paint their faces to look like the band members. Lisa and Evan decided to go through with their reception plans even though they aren't fans of ICP. Red Rocks.
A group of somewhat friendly concert-goers actually joined the couple in a photo while we were involved in a portrait session at the Trading Post. That produced a few shockingly different wedding photos.
We then drove to a remote part of the park for some pictures while hiking and climbing on rocks. Once we finally made it to the reception, I was blown away with how perfect the space was. The 30,000 square-foot visitors center turned out to be a great location for a Colorado experience, with breathtaking views and gourmet food! You couldn't even hear the concert music from inside the visitors center. Wow, what a wedding to remember!
Cheers, Kent
If you would like to see a slideshow click here. Wedding.