Crystal Tea Room Wedding|Caitlin and Mike

A dapper military man and his bride in a Pnina Tornai dress?

Their ceremony at one of my favorite churches in Philly? Add in a reception at the beautiful Crystal Tea Room in Center City? Yup...I knew this was going going to be a great day! Even with the extreme heat outside, Caitlin and Mike's wedding at the Crystal Tea Room had a feel of elegance,class, tradition and fun.

Caitlin and her girls got ready at the Hyatt at the Bellevue. We had beautiful light in her suite and captured some lovely moments with her Mom, sister Keira and her girls. When it came time for Keira to put Caitlin's veil on, I had remembered that the veil was a gift from the designer herself, Pnina Tornai. Cait met Pnina at Kleinfields in New York and "after some conversation, we exchanged that I was having a military wedding. Pnina Tornai was part of the military for one year in Israel and felt compassion for those who served. Pnina then gifted me a wedding veil."

Once the girls were dressed, we had decided ahead of time that everyone would go downstairs to Tavern On Broad for a celebratory shot. Tavern on Broad is where Mike and Caitlin met so it was a no brainer to pay a little visit to the place where it all began for our Bride and Groom.

While the girls were in Center City, Mike and the guys got ready down in Old City. They were close enough to the church and were able to walk to the ceremony and take some photos along the way. It was hot, very hot. The heat index was over 100 degrees! Still, Mike looked dashing in his Dress Blues. Throughout the entire day, he never once complained about the heat. His jacket was very thick...he had to be burning up but he never let you know it.

The ceremony was held at the majestic St. Augustine Roman Catholic Church. As I said earlier, this is one of my favorite churches and is always a pleasure to document a ceremony there.
After the ceremony, we took a ride around the city for some photos with Mike and Caitlin. The combination of Caitlin's gorgeous dress and Mike's Dress Blues is one thing I love about military weddings. There's something very cinematic and romantic about that combination.

It was then time to head to The Crystal Tea Room for the rest of the evening. Miguel, who runs the show at the Tea Room, took care of everyone the only was he knows how and that's making sure that the party is rockin'! Speaking of rockin', the Sid Miller Band did an awesome job of keeping the dance floor packed all night! And thanks to Caitlin's coordinator Gina Sole for keeping everything organized and running smoothly throughout the day!!

Finally, congratulations to Caitlin and Mike...it was both a pleasure and honor to document your Crystal Tea Room Wedding day. Also, many thanks to Mike, his fellow Marines and military friends/family for their service. Thanks for all you do!