if ever there was a couple that i wish we could shrink down to miniature size and keep them with us all the time, it’s got to be these two. we must be the luckiest photographers in the world, because i swear to you that all of our couples are 100%, unequivocally, fantastically and wonderfully in love with each other. and THEN there’s marianne&ian, who took that bar and then smashed it to pieces.

we see a lot of happy faces on wedding days, and this crowd did not disappoint. there was a ton of laughter, a few tears (of joy, of course!), and possibly the most fantastic wedding cake of all time. to top it all off, they got married at cantigny gardens in wheaton, which we can’t recommend enough! these guys really know how to put on a show, and the whole wedding was flawless - down to the smallest details.

to marianne&ian - this will sound silly, but i’m all teary looking at your photos! you guys are fantastic, and we wish you nothing but joy and happiness. thank you so much for letting us be a part of your day!

marianne has one of the most genuine laughs ever.


best. shoe. shot. of. all. time.














no lie - they had this awesome ray of light on them the whole time they said their vows.


















ian is a HUUUGE fishing buff, so marianne tracked down this awesome cake topper! made this cake topper herself!! i’m in love with it!!














song credit: love is all you need by lynen david hall

leave them lots of comments so they can win a free 8×10! and if you want to be one of the cool kids that knows the second their full gallery is released - sign up at their proofing gallery! the password is marianne’s maiden name.

-gina

gina&tony

 
 

Date Posted: July 15, 2010
Filed under: Promos, Weddings by gina&tony
Tags: cantigny gardens, ceremony, chicago engagement photographers, chicago portrait photographers, chicago wedding photographers, couple, super awesome light, wheaton illinois
7 People Showed the Love - Leave a comment! »

1. people helping people

so first - natural disasters are very NOT awesome. but people helping people is very awesome.

unless you completely avoid the news, you’ve probably heard about the horrific earthquake that rocked haiti on tuesday. the devastation has been massive and the loss of life is heartbreaking. in spite of all the sadness, seeing the world band together to help a country in need is a silver lining.

if you haven’t already found a way to help, please consider making a donation, however small, to one of these relief organizations. every little bit helps.

american red cross
unicef
doctors without borders

2. boudoir, boudoir, boudoir!

ladies, if you’ve been looking for something special to do for your other half - we’ve got the answer! we’re super excited to announce our new boudoir sessions!! sessions are shot exclusively by me (gina), and begin at $300.

boudoir albums make perfect gifts for valentine’s day, your guy’s wedding present, or anniversary present! (the first anniversary is “paper” after all. :D) since we’re aiming to keep this blog PG, you can email us for more info at boudoir@gntphoto.com.

and because the only thing that could make this more awesome is a great deal - all gina&tony brides will get 10% off their chosen boudoir print package!

3. the bulls

anyone who knows tony, knows he comes from a pretty die-hard chicago sports fan family. so getting to go to a pro chicago game, no matter what the sport, is pretty freakin’ awesome. what’s even more awesome, is when one of our brides happens to work for the united center (home of the bulls and the blackhawks) and is able to hook us up with some really sweet seats! monday night we got to go to the bulls vs. pistons game, and it was so much fun. there’s nothing quite like sitting in a huge sea of people and cheering on your favorite team.

so here’s a big THANK YOU to elaine!! and here are a few fun photos we took:

the view from our amazing seats.






tony’s brother nick and our friend rachel representing the home team!








the matadors taking it all off.








the final score.

hope your week is awesome!

-gina

gina&tony

 
 

Date Posted: January 14, 2010
Filed under: Personal, Promos by gina&tony
Tags: american red cross, chicago boudoir photographers, chicago bulls, chicago engagement photographers, chicago portrait photographers, chicago wedding photographers, doctors without borders, haiti, just for fun, promotion, things that are awesome, unicef, united center chicago, yele haiti
6 People Showed the Love - Leave a comment! »

so tony and i have been talking a lot recently about wanting to give back to the community this holiday and have finally figured out something we’re really excited about! between now and christmas, we will be donating one can of food for every new fan we get on our facebook page! we will be donating all of the food to the northern illinois food bank. the nifb is awesome, because not only do they collect and disburse food for the hungry, they also sponsor a lot of programs to help solve the hunger crisis.

so if you’re not already our fan on facebook, click here and become one! and make sure you tell your family and friends. you’ll be helping a lot of families this holiday season!

-gina

gina&tony

 
 

Date Posted: December 10, 2009
Filed under: Personal, Promos by gina&tony
Tags: chicago engagement photographers, chicago portrait photographers, chicago wedding photographers, christmas, facebook, food donation
1 Person Showed the Love - Leave a comment! »

(ok really we’re behind a few weeks… but who’s counting, right?)

1. smitten kitchen

this week i discovered the wonder that is smitten kitchen. blog world, i kid you not, i spent over 4 hours drooling over this site. it is phenomenal.

most people that know us, know that tony is the cook. not me. (for VERY good reasons.) but boy do i love to eat. and more than that, i love pretty pictures of food. this blog is like food porn for me. it’s an addiction, and i just can’t tear myself away. i’m convinced that we’re going to throw all sorts of fancy dinner parties for our friends serving things like short ribs bourguignon and grasshopper brownies. the woman even has a recipe for homemade marshmallows. (yes, you read that right. HOMEMADE marshmallows.)

so if you like making food… or eating food… or just looking at pictures of really good food that you’ll probably never make correctly (aka, me), take a few minutes hours and check out this blog.

2. holiday cards!

um yeah, so i woke up the other day and had a “holy-crap-it’s-already-october-what-the-heck-happened-to-the-year?!” moment. i’m sure you’ve had it too. and while the thought of cold already pains me on the inside, we’re starting to offer holiday sessions! (which are pretty awesome.) they come with a huge discount on some really nifty, custom printed holiday cards. you can check out the deets on our promotions page.

and not to worry! if you’ve already had a session this year, we’ll be having a huge holiday card sale in november. we wouldn’t forget about you guys.

3. photos of photos!

ok, if your name starts with an ‘h’ and ends with an ‘arvey’ you best close your eyes mister. everyone else feel free to check it out!

the fabulous linda sent us a photo of her new staircase photo arrangement of - you guessed it - their awesome family photos! i gotta say linda, i LOVE what you’ve done with the place. thanks for offering up some inspiration!

hope this post filled your life with a little more awesome this week!

-gina

gina&tony

 
 

Date Posted: October 12, 2009
Filed under: Personal, Promos by gina&tony
Tags: chicago engagement photographers, chicago portrait photographers, chicago wedding photographers, cooking, family, food photography, holiday cards, promotions, smitten kitchen, things that are awesome
1 Person Showed the Love - Leave a comment! »