Pittsburgh Wedding, Boudoir, Senior Photographer

Elena and Andrew | Mansions on Fifth Wedding

Imagine the charm of an old house (or in this case mansion), with flowering spring gardens, and magnificent stone architecture. This was the setting for Elena and Andrew’s wedding, which was held at The Mansions on Fifth in Shadyside.

Yes, Elena and Andrew are a striking couple, but they are also kind, courteous and incredibly in love. When Elena looks at Andrew, you can see her soft and sweet adoration for him. And the exact same can be said about Andrew when he looks at Elena.

Ironically, Andrew grew up in the neighborhood where I currently live, so in between picture taking, we had a chance to chat about our love for this little neighborhood, and the people that live there.

Here’s to Elena and Andrew, and their beautiful new life together! Scroll down to see some of my favorites from their wedding day…

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Emily and Eric | Hartwood Acres Maternity Session

I have known Emily for a few years; she has been a client of mine since 2019, and I was elated to hear about her pregnancy, and also that she wanted me to take pictures of her, her bump, and her husband Eric during this special time in their lives! Hartwood Acres was the perfect backdrop; not only for the lovely architecture, but also the vibrant spring gardens. Here are some of my favorites of this lovely lady, her bean, and Eric.

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Lila and Alex | First United Methodist Church Wedding

“We will literally have friends and family from all over the world tuning in for the livestream” Lila says to me as we discussed their wedding day plans. They not only hired us for their wedding photography, but also hired us for a new offering of LLP; live streaming the ceremony so others who can’t attend can still watch from it in the moment from afar! Which, I can go into more detail later, but briefly, we are able to not only livestream an event, but also record it and include thumbnails of the viewers as they watch the ceremony, and the comments that they make during it.

It shouldn’t have surprised me, but it was incredibly touching to connect Lila and Alex’s friends and family with them on their wedding day. People from all over America, England, France, and even Lebanon tuned in to the live stream to watch Lila and Alex say their “I Dos.”

While Alex was waiting for the ceremony to begin, I pointed him to take a look at the livestream on our computer, and he was able to see and talk to his viewers on the spot. After the ceremony, both Lila and Alex said some words to them, also. A day following the ceremony, Lila texted me to tell me that she cried (happy tears) when she watched the recording of the live stream, and that she got to see her uncle who lives in Lebanon watch and react to their ceremony. I also watched the recording of the live stream, and not even knowing the viewers, got teary-eyed when I thought how incredibly special it is to have a recording of your live streamed ceremony to look back on for the rest of your life.

On top of being absolutely kind, generous, and gracious, Lila and Alex are a model couple to take pictures of! Lila chose to wear her mother’s wedding dress and veil that day; she was absolutely stunning! And can we talk about their precious Pomeranian, Penelope?! A.) She has the most precious pink-colored tail (animal safe dye), and, B.) I begged my parents for a Pomeranian when I was little and never was allowed one, so I am super envious of this precious pup!

Theirs was a perfect day, and they ended it with an intimate dinner at Altius (my favorite restaurant!)

Here are some moments from Lila and Alex’s wedding day…

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Eileen and Duncan | Corbin Art Center Wedding

We stepped off of the airplane at 2AM Pittsburgh time, and I was little out of whack because of the time zone change in Spokane, Washington. This, coupled with the fact that I was in a state of half-sleep when I was on the plane. But, the excitement of photographing the wedding to come overrode any morsel of feeling tired, and so we decided to grab a bite to eat before calling it a night.

It is a treat when I get to travel to photograph a wedding because it gives me a reason to experience another city, state, or even country (I have a serious case of wanderlust!) And, it is an even bigger bonus when the wedding is of a relative, and in this case, my lovely cousin Eileen. Since she grew up on the West Coast, I didn’t have the opportunity to see Eileen often, so spending time with her, her (now) husband Duncan, my Aunt, and my Uncle during this trip was really something special!

What is also special; the absolutely perfect way that Eileen and Duncan complement each other. They can be chill one minute, then completely silly the next. Duncan has a hysterical sense of humor; I’ve never seen Eileen laugh so hard! They also share a love for craft beer and wine. Duncan chose his favorite craft beers to be served at the reception, and Eileen chose her favorite sparkling wine (all of which are delightful, I can attest!) We even got the chance to photograph in the historic hotel that Eileen and Duncan were staying in that night; The Davenport Hotel. Duncan’s father actually helped to restore this magnificent hotel, and there is an actual picture of him during these renovations on the hotel’s wall.

Keep scrolling to see how Eileen and Duncan’s wedding day unfolded…

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<alt>corbin art center wedding spokane washington, by lavender leigh photography</alt> Corbin Art Center Wedding

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Jamie and Dave | Pittsburgh Airport Marriott Wedding

She has a smile that is as bright as the sun, with a dash of energy and excitement to go along with it. He has a big heart, and an obvious and endless love for his bride.

I first met Jamie and Dave at The Abbey in Lawrenceville, just days before the pandemic craziness hit. We were having so much fun talking that we spent well over an hour having coffee and getting to know each other! Leaving our meeting, I felt so fortunate to have met such a fun-loving and humorous couple. To this day, they still refer to Barry as “Back-Up Barry,” which is a nickname that I gave to him years ago after tripping over his feet while we photograph. Jamie and Dave found the back story to this nickname priceless, so they continue to refer to him this way!

Jamie and Dave’s wedding day took place during April’s beautiful spring splendor. We not only had the chance to photograph with the newly-blossomed trees downtown, but we also photographed in the Garrison Place alleyway, where Dave proposed to Jamie. Watching this couple interact with their friends and family on their wedding day, each person that they spoke to lit up their face. You could see how much love that they had for every single person, and when Jamie and Dave interacted with each other, somehow their smiles and energy magnified, if that was even possible.

So without further ado, keep scrolling down to see how Jamie and Dave’s wedding day unfolded…