Beautiful swiss park banquest hall wedding

It was a sweltering day. Warmer than the usual days, especially since we had a freak storm that week. My daughter and I drove to Swiss Park Banquet Hall which happens to be only about 10 minutes away from home which is a pleasant coincidence. Lots had changed since the last time I shot at Swiss Park. Having photographed the wedding of the owner’s son I was quite familiar with the layout. I photograph often in this beautiful little venue Swiss Park banquet Hall in Whittier.

We started in the very air-conditioned bridal suite, thank goodness. We photographed the details of the wedding dress, fun blingy bridal sneakers, earrings, rings, and flowers in the reception area of Swiss Park banquet Hall. Her dress was absolutely gorgeous and she had a regal diamond crown. Taylor did her own makeup and did a really good job.

The girls adorned muted pink/desert rose and burgundy bridal colors. All the girls had on two colors but different dresses and all looked beautiful. Prepping their hair and fixing their makeup all of them hurried about while Taylor was getting her hair done. The girls delightedly anticipated Taylor’s first look with her wedding dress. As she entered the room the girls squealed with happiness and she looked like a radiant princess.

Right after the girl’s first look we went out and took photos of the girls around the ground at Swiss Park banquet Hall in Whittier. This wedding venue is really nice because it’s small so you don’t have to walk around a lot and there are a few little spots that are really pretty for photos. Although I would say that you have to be a photography expert to shoot in this particular venue since the parking lot is literally right next to the photography area. Although I thrive and challenges like this.

We photographed the bridesmaids and Taylor by herself. One of the favorite spots that I like photographing in is right on the corner at the end of the wedding venue there is just a little hidden Oasis. The Sun comes right through that area and it looks absolutely magical. I took some of my favorite photos of Taylor in the spot. Since it was such a warm day, in the high 90s, one of the boys came out and brought Taylor an umbrella and a wooden small hand fan. It was very considerate.

After photographing the bridesmaids and the bride we took the boys out for the same route of photos. We shot Alex and the groomsmen all around the grounds and all the same areas. I like the cohesive look of the same locations in a wedding album.

Finally, when we were done with the creative photos we came back to photograph the details at the reception. The tables were topped with a beautiful ruched satin burgundy cover and there were topiaries on each table bundled with beautiful red pink and white flowers along with baby’s breath. Each table setting had a special gift from Taylor and Alex as love and thanks. Taylor added her favorite sugar scrub and Alex added his favorite steak rub.

Finally time for the ceremony. Luckily about an hour before the ceremony, a beautiful breeze swept through that area of Whittier and it cooled the blistering day into a manageable time. The cool breeze felt so nice.

The ceremony was beautiful, speckled light washed the site and looked fairy-like. It was all gorgeous. It was a warm day in Whittier for a wedding but everyone looked good.

At the ceremony site, the classic white gazebo was adorned with beautiful flowers and baby’s breaths and two columns with the same topiaries as we’re on the table. Guests chatted happily while they waited for the bride to walk down the aisle. The isles were adorned with four 3 ft white columns mounted with flowers on top. Flowers were blush, red, magenta, and white baby’s breath.

The ceremony went beautifully. Taylor and Alex read their vows to each other. It was emotional and there were many tears amongst the guests.

I was like a ninja behind the bushes trying to get all the best angles.

After the ceremony we photographed some family portraits and then afterward of course we photographed all the creative formal photos. We were not shooting at the best time of day but we made time later on around sunset to get more creamy beautiful photographs. The best time of day to photograph the creative formals is always right around sunset but we always do our best to get some beautiful photographs backlit whenever it’s not possible to photograph at the best time of day. It is not always possible to make the schedule work for the photography time to be at the right time of day so the nice thing is that we are very technically and creatively act and are able to shoot at pretty much any time of day.

After the ceremony, they went to the grand entrance. Right after the grand entrance Taylor and Alex did their first dance. I recognized their first dance song from a Wes Anderson movie.  It was the acoustic version of Everlong by the Foo Fighters.

At the reception, they had a table in remembrance of the family that were not able to be at the wedding. With a little sign that said we know you would be here today if heaven wasn’t so far away. They also had a gift table adorned with little gold votives and a pretty happily ever after guest sign-in area with little wooden hearts. A sign read… Please sign a heart and drop it into the frame so we will never forget our loved ones who came. Guests were to drop in the hearts in a happily ever after glass frame. They even had a little station with white flip-flops for those who couldn’t stand their heels anymore! Dinner was served. Dinner was a succulent chicken breast with a mushroom gravy a side of mashed potatoes and mixed steamed vegetables. So much laughter and chatting could be heard in the background. Everyone was having a great time. After dinner, Taylor danced with her mother at the same time as Alex danced with his mother. It was so beautiful.

We then got to my favorite part of the day, the sunset creative wedding formals. I only took the bride and groom away for 15 minutes but it was more than enough to take some beautiful couples’ photos. I even did a quick bridal portrait of Taylor against a wall of lovely orange flowers.

We came back in straight into cake cutting and speeches.

Alex and Taylor thanked everyone graciously. Beautiful speeches were given by Stephanie the maid of honor and Dennis the best man. Alex’s mom said a few words and Taylor’s mom, Michelle…gave a gorgeous emotionally stirring speech. After the speeches, we did the dollar dance.

Finally, at the end of the night, we finished with the bouquet and garter toss. Literally, the girl who got the bouquet was so ecstatic she was screaming it was hilarious.

I want to thank Alex and Taylor first and foremost for hiring me for the wedding, especially their mom Michelle who found me on the Swiss Park Banquet Hall’s Yelp page and said that my work was above and beyond everyone else’s. I love all the different ways that my clients find me.

To top off this amazing day the bride and groom hired a taco truck, not a taco guy but a full taco truck to feed the hungry guests stepping out into the parking lot. And the tacos were amazing! A huge thank you to everyone that made this day possible. It takes a village to compose flowers…bake cakes…set up chairs and tables and linens and everything else!