Karmyn and Jordan's Wedding at The Grand Black

A New Years Weekend Wedding

Karmyn and Jordan got married on December 30th at The Grand Black in Licking Missouri. This wedding was planned very fast. Crazy story about how they eventually arrived at this particular date. I can't include all the details but I'll give a short summary 😉. I met Karmyn and Jordan at a surprise proposal for another couple. They were not even engaged yet. But we immediately connected with a love of music and conversation. I saw them again at the Metropolitan weddings show in August of 2022. When they got there, they excitedly shared their wedding date and my heart dropped. I had just booked a wedding on that date no less than an hour ago. Praying that they would be able to move their date up, at least one day, I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. By luck, they were able to move their wedding date up to Friday. Time went by and I received a message from Karmyn saying that they were going to have to change their wedding date again! She wanted to know if I was available December 30th of this year and I was! Everything seemed to be working out the way it was meant to be.

On the day of their wedding, it rained in the morning. The skies were gray. Alex and I drove in from Springfield and as we pulled up, the skies were slightly dark, but you could tell that the sun would part as time went on. We walked into the venue and out walked Jordan. He gave us a giant hug. We chatted for a while. We probably could have chatted all day, but we had to say hi to Karmyn. In the bridal suite, Karmyn was busy getting ready. Her bridal suite was one of the best I've seen. A large room with multiple mirrors, an adjoining bathroom, a sofa bed, a spiral staircase that leads up to the second floor in order for the bride to make her entrance into the ceremony down a grand staircase. A perfect setup. I gathered up all of her special wedding day details. She had white Vans shoes, a necklace, earrings, rings, an invitation, and a bouquet. I headed outside to take some photos of the special items and told her I would be back. After details, I returned her items and made my way to photograph Jordan.

Jordan and his groomsmen were all waiting and ready in the ceremony space. I joked that I only needed Jordan and told the groomsmen they were free to hang out. We dragged Jordan outside and peeked around the venue. It was a little muddy so we decided to stay on the gravel. Maybe later we would brave the grass once it had a chance to dry. Before we headed back inside, I had him sit on one of the rocking chairs to do some mock shoe tying shots. Jordan, you nailed it 😉. We headed back inside and Jordan was free to hang out with his groomsmen. This is when Alex and I parted. Alex went to take candids of the groomsmen and I went to photograph Karmyn. It was time for her to get in her dress.

Before heading back into the bridal suite, I met Karmyn's mom. Funny story. She looked so official. Her hair was done and she was in a professional outfit. I thought she was the owner of the venue! Shortly after we introduced ourselves, we instantly connected. Karmyn's mom is a process coordinator. My background is in Speech Pathology for the schools and we were both very familiar with our roles. I could chat with special-ed staff forever! They are amazing people. We joked it takes a special-ed team to pull a wedding together within one month. 😂 But really, true story. Special education staff within the school districts have to have amazing organization skills to do their jobs. After chatting for a minute we headed into Karmyn's Bridal Suite. Her mom enlisted the help of her dad to get the dress down and everyone hid in the corner while Karmyn got into her dress. Karmyn's dress was absolutely stunning. It fit her like a glove. It had a sweetheart neckline with lace and a flowy train. She had several people help her with different components of the process. One to help with the back of the dress, one to put on her veil, and another to help with the shoes. She was a stunning bride. I snuck a few bridal portraits in right after she got ready. My brain was trying to do creative things but I might have had trouble implementing them in real life LOL Sorry about that Karmyn. I tell you what, the the bridal portrait I took from the spiral staircase is one of my favorites from this entire year. It looks like it should be in a magazine. I just love it!

The next part of the day was going to include the first looks. Karmyn wanted a first look with her dad and then a first look with Jordan. We set her dad on the front porch of the venue and I had Karmyn sneak out through the side door of the bridal suite. Once her dad saw her for the first time, there were tears in everyone's eyes. I took a picture of her and her parents together but I made sure to tell them that I would take another one later as everyone was crying happy tears. Heading back inside we went to put Jordan in the right spot. Hiding everyone away so we could do their first look on the balcony. Jordan read a letter from Karmyn and Karmyn read a letter from Jordan. After the readings were complete, Karmyn walked out of her room to see Jordan for the first time. We took a few photos and then Alex and I left them to share this special moment together.

What I love about their wedding day is that tons of time was built in for them to take in the day, relax, and be with their guests. If a timeline is too tight, it feels like you're jumping from one photographic session to the next. Almost like you're just getting your picture taken all day long. But Karmyn and Jordan made sure to build in that extra time and it made the day feel perfect. Once they had some time together, we decided to drag the wedding party outside and brave the cold. These two had a wonderful wedding party. They were so go with the flow and were willing to try all the fun pictures that Karmyn envisioned on her big day. The one that got the most smiles was when the groomsmen picked up Jordan and Karmyn tried to pull him out of their arms. Laughter filled the air. After wedding party, everyone headed back inside to take a break as guests arrived for the ceremony.

Guests filled the room. Alex and I sat in the front row waiting for the wedding to begin. Shameless plug here, we hopped up so fast when we realized the wedding has started. I caught Jordan and the officiant walking down the aisle and I don't think either of us have ever moved so fast in our lives. 😂 The processional had begun. Family followed by wedding party. As the flower girl made her way down the aisle dropping petals, anticipation filled the room. Next thing we knew, Karmyn and her dad were standing at the top of the grand staircase. They began to walk down the aisle. I flipped my camera around to photograph Jordan as he saw his bride for the first time at their ceremony. She would become his wife in a matter of minutes. They arrived at the altar and her dad shook Jordan's hand and took his seat with Karmyn's mom. They exchanged rings first, participated in the sand ceremony, and sealed their marriage with a kiss. Karmyn's dad stood up to give a final blessing and the couple was presented as husband and wife to their guests. The ceremony was done and they were all smiles as they made their way back down the aisle. After the ceremony they stood near the main entrance to have a receiving line. Guests lined up to give their congratulations to the couple as well as many, many hugs. Family photos followed the receiving line and I snuck in a few photos of Karmyn and Jordan before their reception.

Karmyn and Jordan chose to have bar-b-cue for dinner and it was delicious! Personally, I think the macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes were a big hit! Although, once the kids at the wedding found the Ring Pops, that might have been the ultimate food hit. Alex's favorite thing at this wedding was coffee and marshmallows 😂. It was a new discovery for him. Since guests were still lined up to get food for dinner. I took advantage of this time and stole Karmyn and Jordan outside for one more set of photos. I wish I could have kept them outside all night because the sunset at their wedding was to die for. The skies flamed purple, hot pink and orange. But the time I did get them out, I took my favorite photo from their wedding day. They were standing in front of the venue and the sky was blue mixed with some purple and pink wispy clouds. It was a showcase image for sure. Heading back inside they had speeches, cake cutting, and dances. We ended the night with a fun petal toss photo. Karmyn and Jordan, thank you so much for giving Alex and I the opportunity to capture memories from this big day. It was the best way to end 2022. We wish you both the best! By the time you see this post, I hope you had an amazing time at the Packers game 😉 We're hoping for a Chiefs Packers Super Bowl 🙌