When my cousin Michelle asked me if I’d like to photograph her wedding in Tampa I was completely humbled. Not only was she giving me (and my best friend and 2nd photographer, Jenna) the opportunity to escape Ohio in the dead of winter, she was giving me the best compliment. Michelle is beautiful, smart, caring and hilarious- and it just felt so special that she’d trust me to capture such an important day in her life. Sure, I’m her cousin but we see each other like every five years and I would’ve completely understood if she’d went with a local photographer (of which their are many talents to choose from). All this not to flatter but to say with complete sincerity, Thanks Cuz. Jenna and I had such an incredible day with you and the family…

Michelle and Dusk met like most people do these days, online:

Michelle: I met Dusk on Tinder. I was watching an episode of New Girl and the main character, Jess, downloaded the Tinder equivalent dating app on the show. My roommate, who had been in a relationship for a couple of years, was watching the show with me and was curious about the dating app situation so I downloaded Tinder and was showing her what it was. I swiped for a few people, but I only talked to Dusk.

Dusk: We had been talking over Tinder for a while and we were finally going to meet in person and have dinner at Bella’s Italian Grille in Tampa. I put on a full suit and I was insanely nervous as I sat outside the restaurant for an hour waiting for her to show up.

Michelle: I was 15 minutes late because I locked my keys in my car at a gas station on the way and he was sitting in front of the restaurant wearing a button up, tie, and dress pants when I finally got there.

Dusk: By the time she got there, my nerves had calmed down and we sat and ate calzones, talking about how she thought she could get away with murder and how I didn’t want an appetizer because I wasn’t rich like Warren Buffett.

Michelle: I thought he was very handsome and I could tell he put in effort to look nice for me. It was very sweet. I was anxious going into the date, but our conversation flowed naturally and all of that melted away.

Dusk: After dinner we sat outside by the dumpsters for another couple hours, continuing to make each other laugh until we were tired enough to go back to our homes.

Michelle: We actually talked in the parking lot for a long while before leaving. I immediately felt very comfortable with him.

Dusk: We started officially dating 3 or 4 days later.

And then they got married…

The entire day felt like one big adrenaline rush…

I had a lot of anxiety about having everyone there focused so intensely on me,

but it was a lot less scary on the actual day and I had a BLAST.

I was beside myself with emotion most of the day.

I don’t think I saw Michelle cry once, but it seemed like every 5 mins I was getting choked up.

For the First Look especially, I was an absolute mess.

Ultimately, I loved that we did the first look because I felt like from that point on I had my best friend there to go through the rest of the day with me.

Michelle has a way of making you feel like everything is alright, even when, on paper, it seems like it shouldn’t be.

Dusk always brings me a sense of calm.

If you’ve ever met Michelle, you already know.

She’s such a special, warm, loving person that I couldn’t help but fall madly in love with her pretty much immediately.

Dusk is truly my best friend in every sense of the word.

He listens to me, without judgment, when I just need to vent and he almost always takes my side.

He does challenge me when it’s necessary, but I always feel like he’s on my team.

Also, if you haven’t gathered, we can be quite odd – exceptionally so when we’re together – but that oddness is truly our own and it’s hilarious and wonderful.

I admire Dusk’s drive, intelligence, and his attention to detail! I wish I had half the motivation that he has. He knows what he wants and he doesn’t let anything get in the way.

I admire Michelle’s emotional intelligence.

She has an unparalleled sense of how others feel and because of that I feel like she is going to be a truly great mother.

The whole day was perfect in my eyes.

Michelle was beautiful, the food was great…

I married my best friend.

First Look: Historic Ybor City; Ceremony and Reception: Cavu

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