Erika & Kenneth's Longue Vue Club Wedding

Erika & KJ are surrounded by so much love in their lives. The way KJ takes care of Erika is such a beautiful picture of the gentleman he will continue as their marriage strengthens and deepens with time. I think one of the most beautiful assets to a relationship is the ability to light up the world and that is Erika. She radiates light and joy. Their people are their people and there’s nothing better than your own personal hype squad. Seeing their gentle spirits vow to one another for a lifetime, was incredibly beautiful to not only be a part of to witness but to document. Their beautiful day began the same way it ended, surrounded by those they love the most, settled in at Longue Vue Club, a stunning, European inspired wedding venue just east of downtown Pittsburgh. The old-world stone architecture is surrounded by breathtaking views of the golf course with rolling hills and picturesque views, overlooking the city of bridges. We snuck up to the infamous tree at the top of the course and took in every last bit of daylight as the golden sky began to settle. We took the long way back to the club before E&K danced the night away with their people.

Photography: Abbie Tyler Photography
Venue: Longue Vue Club
Hair: Izzazu Salon
Makeup: Valarie Panei
Dress Designer: Pronovias
Dress Boutique: Elizabeth Johns
Shoes: Badgley Mischka
Rings: Blue Nile
Bridesmaids Dresses: Bella Bridesmaids
Groom’s Tuxedo: Suit Supply
Groomsmen Tuxedos: The Black Tuxedo
Cake: Oakmont Bakery
Band: The Bachelor Boys Band
Videography: Just Hitched Wedding Films

Father of the bride first look: Longue Vue Club Wedding captured by Abbie Tyler Photography

Amanda & Evan | Mellon Park Pittsburgh Engagement |

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Amanda and I attend Pure Barre together (I just wish my PB arms looked as good as hers… trust me you will too) ;) and I fell in love with her sweet and bubbly personality from the very beginning. I got to meet Evan at the engagement session and his charismatic personality and witty sense of humor is the best. The emotion, joy and love these two shared during their session is one that gives me #allthefeels.

I photographed their session on both digital and film mediums. When I got the medium format film scans back from Photo Vision I was truly stopped in my tracks. I love getting the opportunity to slow time down time using film and document this beautiful season behind my lens for Amanda & Evan. I’m so excited to do it all again for their wedding day in 2020!

Hair and makeup by the amazing owners of Glam To Go.

Brittany & Logan's Sewickley Maternity Session

As of today I’ve officially moved into the third trimester. Everything feels so real yet surreal at the same time. I had the honor of documenting this sweet season of expecting for Brittany & Logan recently and no better way to celebrate than sharing them on the blog!

Brittany reached out early on in her pregnancy, just about the time I had just found out I was pregnant. I’ve always loved doing maternity sessions. Making mama’s feel beautiful during a season of change from the inside out and to document one of the most beautiful blessings of creating a life right inside of our bodies. It’s even more special when I get to experience this season with my clients. I couldn’t wait to share the news with Brittany, and as we walked around the fields at their Sewickley Heights maternity session we lagged and laughed behind Logan, just a little out of breath and got to talk about all of the fun things from names and nurseries to the uncomfortable side effects that pregnancy can bring. It’s been so much fun following Brittany’s journey through pregnancy and I’m so excited to meet their baby girl in November!

I documented this entire session on film (<3) and am so excited to share these images with you from this beautiful, end of summer evening session.

Thanks to PhotoVision for the film scans.

Jordan & George

Over the weekend Jordan & George celebrated their one year anniversary and the perfect reason to share photos from their beautiful summer wedding at Oakmont Country Club. The emerald green bridesmaids dresses complimented by the blush free-flowing blooms from Mt. Lebanon Floral were just one of my favorite details of the day… and let me tell you, not a detail was missed. I loved photographing this beautiful day and it wouldn’t have been the same without the incredible team of vendors who made J&G’s dream wedding a reality. Happy first anniversary you two!!<3

Bride’s Dress / Hayley Paige
Bride’s Shoes / Jimmy Choo
Bridesmaids / Lula Kate
Groom / Joseph Orlando
Wedding Rings / Orr’s  Jewelers
Hair & Makeup / At Home Beauty
Stationery / Stephanie B. Design 
Florist / Mt. Lebanon Floral
Wedding Planner / Olive Rose Events
Wedding Venue / Oakmont Country Club
Entertainment / Gone Vogue
Videographer / Sho Films
Guest Fun / Slow Motion Video Booth

Rachel & Kylan, Hartwood Acres Engagement

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When I first met Rachel and her mother at our consultation, I knew immediately how much I loved her and her family. I’d followed her on Instagram thereafter and realized we have so much in common. Rachel bakes homemade pies and pasta regularly (I just wish I did this) and loves Gal Meets Glam. Just a few of my fav things to be honest. I’d anticipated meeting Kylan at their engagement session, just knowing how much Rachel and I could commonly share and knowing how much she loved him only to realize Kylan and I basically grew up down the street from one another and it’s likely his dad handed me my diploma when I graduated. Kylan is currently in med school and is equally dedicated to his school and career as he is his relationship with Rachel and watching someone put 100% into each is just so admirable.

It’s funny how God works like that, bringing people into our lives that we can so easily share common ground and relate with. And to be welcomed in to such a beautiful season of their lives is such a beautiful gift. Rachel and Kylan’s love for one another seeps out of their pores and lights them up from the inside out. The love and laughs they shared at the engagement session is just a little taste of the joy their wedding day will be this coming March and I’m so so honored and thrilled to document their best day ever!

Enjoy their beautiful, light filled, summer engagement session at Hartwood Acres (a place special to them) below!<3

Heidi & Tom's Carnegie Music Hall Wedding

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Heidi & Tom. Wow. I don’t even know where to begin with these two. They’re incredibly unique - in the best way possible! Their individual personalities draw so many friends and family to the depth of their souls - and together they’re dynamite. Witnessing Heidi & Tom bring together their friends & family to celebrate their marriage was an incredible blessing. They had running jokes up until the wedding day and the wedding was a continuous celebration of their love, joy and laughter. Something I know that will carry through a lifetime together.

Heidi & I go way back… we used to lifeguard together when I was 15…. and for the next 6 or so summers, we would celebrate our summer birthdays together. Crazy how God works like that. Bringing things full circle. Watching someone like Heidi, who I’ve known for so long, find her soulmate is just a gift in itself. And documenting her and Tom’s wedding was a day long heart explosion. I’m so excited to share their wedding story through the photographs I’ve created. And don’t miss out on the best part of the celebration at the very end…. glow sticks and all!

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The incredible vendor team who made it all happen:

Planning / Olive Rose Events
Floral design / Sapphire and Lace
Photography / Abbie Tyler Photography
Cake / Bethel Bakery
Dress / Bridal Beginning
Shoes / Badgley Mischka Bride
Beauty / Glam To Go
Stationary / Blush Paper Co.
Rentals / Vintage Alley Rentals
Venue / Carnegie Music Hall
Videography / Driftwood Stories

Second Photography / Jeannine Bonadio Photography

Italy Part II - Cinque Terre, Tuscany & Florence

Excited to bring you part II of our Italy travels!

CINQUE TERRE

We took the train from Rome to La Spezia and from La Spezia to Manarola (Cinque Terre) which was a four and a half hour train ride total with beautiful scenery and to be honest, our feet needed the break anyways! We bought affordable train tickets on raileurope.com.

Once we got on the train to Manarola we saw the warm sun reflecting on the bright blue water and that was so exciting!

Our hotel was on top of the hill in Manarola and I was exhausted by the time I made it to the top, little did I know it would be an up and down affair for our entire stay in Cinque Terre! We spent the first day in Manarola completely in awe of the picturesque views of the pastel colored stacked houses in the fisherman village, ate at Nessun Dorma which I found on Instagram because of it’s beautiful and perfect view of the village.

We watched the sun delicately set over the town over a bottle of wine and it was both peaceful and romantic. I can’t imagine what the town is like during the summer!

We had intentions of hiking to the other little towns of Cinque Terre the next morning but the connecting trails from Manarola were closed so we took the train instead. We stopped in Monterosso first which was directly on the water and super cute. We had intentions of stopping in Vernazza (and would still highly recommend) but the train doors refused to open at our stop (total fluke) so we decided to head to Corniglia first and walked the 50 flights of stairs to the top of the town and spent so much time envying this little village. Gelato at Alberto Gelateria was highly recommended and did not disappoint. I had chocolate pistachio and it was so yummy! We had dinner at Il Porticciolo which is family owned and felt really special in addition to their selection of incredibly fresh seafood made it a delicious and wonderful experience and I would highly recommend it!

TUSCANY

Next we headed into the tuscan hills and to be honest, I didn’t book our hotel until the day of because I couldn’t decide how far we would feel like traveling. My vision of Tuscany was super duper relaxing in the beautiful, serene hills surrounded by olive and cyprus trees so that exactly what we did at Villa Vignmaggio. A place I’d love to go again… especially to photograph a wedding! I felt like my heart was living on the outside of my body in Tuscany…. with my deepest feelings surfacing. I cannot imagine saying “I do” in such a place and I’m still blown away at the magic and capability such peaceful and serene places have on the human body. We were one of very few guests a the Villa (many were still closed and preparing to open for the season). We ate dinner in a very private atmosphere which ended up being our favorite meal of the entire trip. The pasta, meats, cheeses, olive oil, and bread were all made from their own land right on the property and it completely blew us away. I’d go back to Tuscany ever year (and specifically this Villa) for a relaxing vacation filled with the most amazing food selections. YUM!

FLORENCE

We worked a lot in Florence (and I can’t wait to share that with you soon!!!) but we also had a little bit of time to explore and my favorite places to visit were the Ponte Vecchio (viewing it from the first bridge over) which was only a few minutes walking from our Airbnb and the Duomo. We had a shoot at sunrise one morning and seeing the city at sunrise without the flocks of tourists was a real treat! I also really enjoyed walking around Florence at night, it felt so lively and fun! Just like in Rome, my absolutely favorite thing to do in Florence was to just get lost in the little streets and shops!

This concludes our travel photos from Italy. Seeing all of God’s beauty in new places is truly a special experience and I’m beyond thankful for this trip to Italy.<3

Hannah, Alex & baby S

Hannah & Alex are two of the most light-hearted souls and I could not be more excited for the two of them as they prepare to welcome their baby boy into the world at the beginning of May!

H&A also have hearts of gold and met white serving as EMT’s (I know this bc I had the honor of second shooting their wedding, cue all of the tears). Alex is in grad school and I’d never be able to tell you in a million years what it’s for because its way over my head. The footprint they’ve laid down for the son, is a big one to fill, but I have without a doubt, he’ll shine bright, just like his parents do!<3 I can’t wait to meet you little one!

Hannah’s incredible hair and makeup by the ever-so-lovely and talented See Jane Blush!

Italy Part I - Rome

I was going to do one big blog post until I realized I had a million photos of Rome (in addition to the other places we visited as well) so I decided to do Italy Part I and Part II.

I’m writing these blog posts in response to a ton of DM’s (legitimately) I received on Instagram with fellow brides (and more!) traveling to Italy this summer (wahoo)!! I could not be more excited for you — and if that’s not you, just keep this in your back pocket because if you haven’t been, I recommend adding it to your bucket list of places to visit!

We flew in/out of Rome and we ended up spending the most time in Rome as a whole compared to all of the other places we visited. I was really excited about the entire trip in general but I have to be honest, Rome took my by surprise. I knew Rome was going to be beautiful but I’m so glad we had time there to explore, see all of the beauty, and see things more than once with a couple of afternoon naps in between because #JETLAG.

My top recommendations in Rome include: all of the “BIG” things; Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Spanish Steps (were a little underwhelming for me because tourists covered the steps), Vatican City, Colosseum (at sunrise is a HUGE bonus and a friend of mine told me night is pretty too!). Be prepared to be swarmed by TONS of tourists in these locations but still worth seeing. Rome has uber which was a bonus when we were racing to the Colosseum at sunrise, but other than that we walked everywhere which was super easy and really fun!

One of my all time favorite things to do in Rome was to just get lost in the side streets (you’ll see below!), walk into cute little shops, and eat gelato as much as possible. My friend told me the best advice ever; the more brown the pistachio looks, the better (less green)!

My favorite neighborhood was Trastevere. The streets are so so cute and the vibe is so lively. We stumbled upon Trattoria Il Ponentino with hungry bellies and enjoyed the pear pizza among many things which were all incredible. We capped off each meal with espresso like true Italians.

Other food recommendations include Pierluigi and Giulia (nothing fancy but felt like the best homemade Italian meal and service). I swear we didn’t have one bad meal in Rome but my biggest piece of advice for eating is not eating in the touristy areas where there are tons of restaurants! You’ll get more authentic food outside of those areas!

On our last day, we stopped at the Pittsburgh Steelers Bar and felt right at home. The owner knows so much about PIttsburgh which made conversation easy and was a cool place to meet fellow travelers from home!

We stayed at Little Queen Navona and Little Queen Pantheon and would highly recommend both places and would rate 10/10 for safety, location, comfort, cleanliness and service and would easily stay there again!

Fair warning — there are about 100 pics (99 to be exact). The last photo was the VERY last photo left on my last film roll of the trip at St. Peter’s Basilica and one of my favs!

Erika and Ken's Engagement

Black Friday in Pittsburgh ended up being quite the opposite. We were blessed with abundant sunshine and instead of shopping, I spent the last hours of sunlight celebrating Erika and Ken’s undeniable love and incredibly sweet season being an engaged couple. The two of them are so down to earth and so easy to be around — I could not be more excited for their summer wedding this July! Love you two!<3

Paris in the fall!

I’d been tracking flights to Paris for a while and when I found some great deals, I knew we couldn’t pass it up… and I’m so glad we didn’t! We had a pretty quick trip — 5 days in Paris and let me tell you… it was worth it! While I probably could have stayed a whole month (or longer!), I’d totally do our trip all over again!

I’m not sure I have a top favorite thing we did…… because it was all equally great. We stayed at a little boutique hotel in Saint Germain which just happened to be my favorite neighborhood. We scootered around the city to Notre Dame, Le Cremieux, and Sacre Coeur and while it was quite the hike on scooters, I kind of felt like a local navigating the city. We had espresso and croissants and chocolate rolls for breakfast each morning and I swear, American croissants will never be the same. We enjoyed charcuterie and cheese, baguettes (lots of baguettes) and fine wine as the days went on with a side of Angelina’s hot chocolate and macaroons. YUM! Our hotel was only about a half mile walk to the Louvre and the Tuileries Gardens so we made our way over there several times and it was incredibly beautiful. Crepes in the park were recommended by a friend and I’d be lying if I said we only got them once. I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to meet a fellow photographer and her her hubby to photograph them in the city of love and enjoy a couple of meals with our new friends! I can’t wait to go back to Paris…. what a magical place!<3

Megan and Ben's Wedding

Megan and Ben. Two of the most joyful souls. Two hearts on fire for the world. Two hearts on fire for each other. Two adventurous souls who became one.

Megan and Ben were surrounded by so much love. And it showed how much love they poured into each person at their wedding. From the wedding vendors. To the guests. And of course, their parents, family and bridal party.

Megan’s vision from day one was so beautiful to hear about — and seeing it executed with the help of bumble burgh Events Co. was pure magic. They completely transformed the reception space into a modern romance celebration which was exactly what Megan and Ben had envisioned.

The fall color palette was what my wedding dreams were made of. Soft neutrals complimented by darker shades of purples. And not to mention all of my favorite flowers, too. Peonies, dahlias, and garden roses….swoon!

Megan and Ben are still enjoying their honeymoon in Portugal and I have no doubt they’ll leave with new friends, full bellies, and cheeks that hurt from smiling so much.

Love you two to the moon!<3

Vendors // Photography, Abbie Tyler Photography / Planning, bumble burghs Event Co. / Dress. Bridal Beginning / Shoes, Badgley Mischka / Makeup, See Jane Blush / Hair, DiVora Hair Studio / Bridesmaids Dresses, Bari Jay / Floral design, Bloom Brigade / Venue and food, Cambria Suites Pittsburgh / Band, Radio Tokyo / Lighting, Grey Phoenix / Calligraphy, Initial Impressions Calligraphy / Linens, The Linden Garden Tabletop / Robes, Le Rose

Rachel & Josh, University Club Wedding

When I walked into the hotel room and saw Rachel’s dress hanging in front of the floor to cieling windows at the Fairmont, I almost fell over.

The intricacy, the detail, the romance, the sophistication, the playful nod, everything that the dress is, was how the entire day felt.

Josh and Rachel live in Chicago and meeting them for the first time here in Pittsburgh for their engagement session was a treat. I left feeling like I had known them for years. Their wedding day was filled with joy and laughter and it filled my cup right up to the very top.

All of the wedding vendors that Rachel and Josh carefully chose, came together and truly brought the magic.

A day I’m so thankful to have been a part of.<3

Photography, Abbie Tyler Photo / Planning, Hello Productions / Venue & Coordination, University Club Weddings / Makeup, Emily Artistry / Hair, Alyssa Francesca Glam Booth / Hotel, The Fairmont / Dress, Bridal Beginning / Shoes, Jimmy Choo / Flowers, The Farmer’s Daughter / Rentals, All Occasions / Rentals, Party Mosaic / Rentals, Lendable Linens / Rentals, Eventioneers / Rentals, Marbella Rental / Rentals, Pippas Pieces / Cake, Bella Christie / Custom Logo, Jessica Rahimzadeh / Calligraphy, Judith Brown Calligraphy / Videographer, John Fuller / Second Photographer, Andrew Kim

Alexi & Brian, Engaged

Everything about Alexi & Brian makes my soul sing. Alexi showed up to our session in the Hillary Gal Meets Glam dress, one that I've literally had in my online shopping cart all summer and one of my all time favorite blogs to follow. The two of them asked if we could get Millie's for the photos because they LOVE food. Come to realize, Brian said he loves Alexi most because she's always down for ice cream... kindred spirits!? And lastly, they're both Leo's. So basically, the three of us are a match made in heaven, just kidding, they are. And I'm so so so excited for their spring wedding next May! This day was so joy-filled and I'm so excited to share it!

Note: this blog post is *just* the cherry on top of the icing today. The first image in the gallery below was featured on @galmeetsglam Instagram account today!

Enjoy!<3

Alyssa & Roberto's Wedding

I've waited a lonnng time for this wedding and it was well worth the wait! Alyssa & Roberto are two of the sweetest souls. Roberto popped the question during Alyssa's first trip to his homeland, South Africa, on a Safari. 

They began planning for their Pittsburgh wedding and had only hoped all of their loved ones across the world would be able to make it. And it happened. Family and friends from South Africa and Portugal came to Pittsburgh to celebrate with Alyssa and Roberto and watching both families come together, as one, was one of my absolute favorite parts of the day.

From the moment I walked into the doors at Alyssa's parents home, to the second I closed the reception doors to head home, I was filled from head to toe with so so so much love, joy and gratitude.

Truly honored to have been a part of this incredible day.

Alyssa & Roberto are currently honeymooning in San Francisco, Singapore and Bali. When they get home, they have a whole new adventure awaiting.... they're moving to Ireland! Wishing you so many years of love & joy and can't wait to cross paths..... on my visit to Ireland! ;)

Love you two beyond words!

 

Vendors // Photography, Abbie Tyler Photography // Planning, Exhale Events // Hair, Brooke Rockwell Designs // Makeup, Lyndsie Hinch // Dress, Justin Alexander from One Enchanted Evening // Shoes, Badgley Mischka // Bridesmaids Dresses, Adrianna Papell // Groom, Calvin Klein // Flowers, Blossoms by Jillian // Food, Carson's Catering // Cake, Tasty Bakery // DJ, DJ Sam Crawford // Vintage Rentals, Pippa's Pieces // Videographer, John Fuller // Second Photographer, Anna Laero Photography