Classic, Timeless Pittsburgh Wedding Photography

WEDDING RECEPTIONS AT PITTSBURGH CENTER FOR THE ARTS

Are you an out of town bride, planning your wedding from afar? Â Ever wonder what your potential wedding ceremony or reception space looks like?

Pittsburgh Center for the Arts in Shadyside is aÂ unique and eclectic space where you can have your wedding reception or ceremony. Â It is the big yellow building is on the corner of Shady and Fifth Avenues in Shadyside. Â It is very close to Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Calvary Episcopal, Shadyside Presbyterian, Heinz Chapel, and St. Paul’s Cathedral, to name a few neighborhood churches.

One of the huge bonuses that this space has to offer is that Mellon Park is right next door! Â Mellon Park is the perfect place to go for wedding and bridal portraiture, or even an engagement session!

01- Wedding Receptions at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

The entrance to the reception desk and main entertainment area…

02- Summer Wedding Reception at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

This beautiful staircase lends itself to awesome bridal portraits…

03- Wedding Receptions at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

….and it’s also where you will cut your wedding cake in front of all your guests….

04- Wedding Receptions at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

This is the dance floor and where cocktail hour is held….

One of the rooms has a large bar area in it….

The reception area is under the big white tent….

The lanterns hanging from the ceiling look beautiful at night!

If you are interested in having your wedding at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, I suggest contacting Joy Sato, their Director of Special Events. Â Her email is: jsato@pittsburgharts.org Â She is so nice and great to work with.

Check out these links if you are planning on having your wedding ceremony and/or reception at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts!….

Hosting your event or wedding at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

Rates and Policies for weddings and events at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

AND!… If you plan on having an outdoor wedding ceremony at Mellon Park, you’ll need a city park permit! Â The permit is $125, and you’ll contact Andrea Shultz at PCA for this. Â Her email is: Â andrea@pittsburgharts.org

Don’t forget to tell them Alisa from Weddings by Alisa sent you! 🙂

BEST OF 2013: SHORT WEDDING RECEPTION CENTERPIECES

I’ll never get tired of walking into an untouched wedding reception room. Â It is so fun to see everything perfectly set up for the bride and groom….and it’s fun to photograph it, too!

Here are some of my favorite short wedding reception centerpieces. Â Being short in stature, these centerpieces facilitate easy communication and clear sight lines in order for your guests to chat!

Bill Chisnell does awesome floral work! Â He did all the flowers for Liz and Jeff’s wedding at the Mansion at Maple Heights…

The white roses and lilies in the next photo were so amazingly fragrant!

One of my brides hired the brilliantly talented Ken Milko from Flowers in the Attic in Penn Hills……I love everything this man creates! Â You can see more of his work here.

BEST OF 2013: TAKING CARE OF OUR BRIDES

When I am photographing a wedding, I like to have everything as perfect as it can be. Â I always make sure we have time to adjust dresses, fix hair, and straighten ties so the photos can be as flawless as possible. Â I am definitely a stickler for details! Â And it’s not only me….my second shooters are key in the primping and perfecting process, as well.

This is Katia explaining to a bride how she wants her to pose….

Tristan is an expert dress-fluffer….

Do you have a little annoying string on your dress that won’t stay tucked away? Â No problem!

YIKES! Â Jen wasÂ veryÂ trusting! Â And yes, she gave me FULL permission to do this, so don’t go getting your panties tied up in a knot….

Annoying hair that keeps getting in your face? Â (I’ll tuck it behind your ear….not cut it off HAHA!)

Katia guards the dress while shooting all the little details on it…

…and here she is helping one of my brides with her hair! Â This girl is multi-talented, I tell you!

And we CANNOT forget the time that the limo DID NOT show up to take the bride and bridesmaids to the church! Â Here is one of my brides in the front seat of a taxi (the rest of us were crammed in the back). Â Our limo driver was nowhere to be found, so I hailed a cab….and our driver, Fonda rescued us! Â We made it to the church with time to spare!!

AND…. Fonda serenaded us as she drove us to the church!!!! Â Fonda, you’re the BEST! Â

BEST OF 2013: TALL RECEPTION CENTERPIECES

It’s always fun to add some dimension to the tables at your wedding reception. Â Not every table has to have a tall centerpiece….most brides scatter them throughout the room.

WEDDINGS AT LINGROW FARM

Have you always imagined your wedding being held outdoors with your reception in a beautiful barn? Â Western Pennsylvania has plenty of old barns and farms to choose from! Â Lingrow Farm is located in Leechburg and is a beautifully maintained farm…a perfect place for your family and friends to gather and celebrate your wedding!

The entrance into the barn/reception area…

The back of the barn….

There’s a great back porch where you could have cocktail hour!….

This is the bride’s view as she begins her decent down the aisle….

The grounds are beautifully maintained…

There are two different locations on the grounds where the bride and groom can get ready separately. Â The bride usually gets dressed in the farmhouse….

Beautifully decorated reception area….

Loving the white tablecloths against the dark brown chiavari chairs!

Simple and short hydrangeas make for a neutral tablescape….

AÂ big thank you to Aaron Varga for having me as his second shooter at this wedding!

BEST OF 2013: POSERS, PHOTOBOMBS, AND ANIMALS

I’ve been waiting MONTHS to share these photos with everyone. Â I take my job very seriously. Â But there are down times on wedding days where a little comic relief is needed. Â Like I’ve said before – I wouldn’t be a wedding photographer if there wasn’t any fun involved! Â I must say, these photos capture my personality pretty well. 🙂

I vaguely remember Tristan asking me to stay out of his way so he could get this shot. Â Guess I didn’t listen too closely! (and he did capture a clean shot after I realized he was shooting me haha!)

Katia was shooting the groomsmen as I finished up early with the bride and bridesmaids. Â I *love* the look on the bridesmaid’s face in this next shot….

OOPS! Â I walked into Katia’s shot yet again!

Sometimes other people walk into my shot not knowing I was there. Â This is a videographer who reeeeally wanted the same angle as me….

What? Â It’s not all about ME?!

To this day, I don’t think Georgina and Shira knew I was there HAHAHA!

Vanessa knew Tristan was there….Darren did NOT know I was there…..

Thanks, Tristan…

The violinist in these next two photos is my dear friend, Juan Jaramillo. Â He had no clue we were there.

Nope. Â I’m still there! Â HA!

Katia says: “Ah-lee-sah! Â How does theeese look?”

I call these next 12 photos “Unwanted Extreme Closeups”…..well, maybe a few were wanted….

I call this next one: “Cakes and Pies! Cakes and Pies!”

It seems that at most of my weddings there are animals. Â I am a huge animal lover, so I am okay with this.

This St. Bernard puppy slobbered the entire right side of my face right before this next shot was snapped….

And then I saw a dog who was the same breed as my Peggy. Â I of course asked if I could pet him, and he gave me his ball….

Teasing him….

But he would NOT let me pick him up!

Look at this old lady!

I’d like to call this next section: “Tristan: Not Amused”…..

I have no idea what possessed him to smile in these next two photos….

There are two more blooper posts to come! Â (The latter of which is entitled: “What Is Going On In These Photos?!”) Â Stay tuned!!!

BEST OF 2013: WEDDING CAKES

Wedding cakes come in all different shapes, flavors, colors, and sizes. Â Here in Pittsburgh, the best wedding cakes come from Oakmont Bakery, Fenoglietto’s, Dozen Bake Shop, Bethel Bakery, The Pie Place, Vanilla Pastry StudioÂ among many others. Â These are some of my favorite wedding cakes from this past year….

BEST OF 2013: WALKING DOWN THE AISLE

One of my favorite moments of a wedding day is when the bride walks down the aisle. Â I love seeing the rush of emotion on the face of the bride and groom. Â It is such a bittersweet moment for everyone involved! Â I will admit to having shed a tear once or twice, too. Â 🙂

It’s a moment filled with anticipation and excitement….

And it’s a great time to have a second shooter! Â My shot is above, Katia’s shot is below….

WEDDING RECEPTIONS AT THE ANDY WARHOL MUSEUM

The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh is a totally unique and one of a kind venue for your wedding reception!

BEST OF 2013: RINGS

Photographing all of the details at a wedding is one of my favorite things to do. Â I especially love getting creative with ring shots. Â Here are some of my favorites from this year….