Children’s Museum Wedding

Shannon and Larry’s Children’s Museum wedding took place on a clear and warm(ish) December afternoon. It was a great way to close out a wedding season!

A bride with a beaded hairband holds her arms around the shoulders of her groom who is wearing a light green tie and a black suit.

I was really excited about their wedding because we’re all friends from the running club we belong to. Turns out, that club is a great place for couples to meet. Just ask Danna and Hector.

Getting Ready

A bride smiles with her eyes closed as a makeup artist applies mascara. A wedding dress hangs from a picture frame with a blue abstract painting.

Shannon and her girls had a suite at the Residence Inn on the North Shore. There are plenty of options for hotels near the Children’s Museum, so it’s easy to find a place as long as the Steelers aren’t in town.

A bride is reflected in a floor length mirror as her friend stands behind her and buttons up her dress.

The full-length mirror and window light made for a lovely scene.

A groom stands on the north shore of the Allegheny River with Gateway Center visible in the background.

Part of the reason they got ready on the North Shore was the fabulous view for their first look and the portraits to follow. I asked Larry to face downtown while Shannon approached.

A bride approaches her groom as they have a first look on the north shore of the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh near PNC Park.

I love the look on her face!

A groom whistles in approval as he turns to see his bride during their first look near PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

Larry’s reaction 🤩

A bride and groom kiss next to the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh.

Portraits

With the first look done, we walked around the North Shore for a little while before heading up to the Children’s Museum.

A bride and groom close their eyes and hug with the warm afternoon sunlight behind them.

It gets dark so early in December but the quality of the sunlight is just wonderful.

A bride and groom hold hands and smile at each other on the near PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

The photos came naturally. I didn’t have to do much in the way of posing. I mean, during portrait sessions I’ll offer suggestions when they’re needed. It seems like the process of just taking a walk gives us the opportunity to make authentic portraits. It’s great if you have time to do that and Shannon made sure that we had it built into the timeline.

A bride and groom lean on a railing as they talk near the water steps on the North Shore of the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh.

How great was it that we had the whole North Shore to ourselves?!?

A bride holds her arms around the neck of her groom from behind and kisses his cheek.

The water steps near PNC Park were drained for the winter. So yeah, let’s go climb them!

The Children’s Museum

A bride wears a blue green wrap as she and her groom sit on steps in front of blue green doors before their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding

After we were done on the North Shore, we headed over for their Children’s Museum wedding. One photo that Shannon really wanted was with the blue doors on the old Allegheny Post Office part of the Children’s Museum. She’d kind of based her color scheme on them.

A bride and groom make muscles and funny faces in front of a blue wall before their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

As a result of getting to the place before everyone else we were able to go through the exhibits and have some fun 😄

A bride and groom laugh as they sit together inside of a tent before their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

Poor Lisa was curled up into a little ball out of sight in the corner of the tent while she held my light.

A bride and groom goof around as they sit in a Smart Car and play with their images projected on a screen before their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

The Ceremony

A bride walks into her Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding accompanied by her parents.

Shannon walks in with her mom and dad. They had their ceremony in the lobby. It was the first time I’d photographed a ceremony in that space and it turned out to be a really good spot. This is the same area where Anne and Andy had their reception at another Children’s Museum wedding I photographed. Seems like a pretty versatile space.

A bride and groom make faces as their officiant talks during their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

Rev. Mark from A Simple Vow officiated the ceremony.

A bride and groom laugh while exchanging rings during their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

Lots of laughs!

A bride reaches up to give a high five to a guest in a blue dress as she and her groom walk together after their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

High five!

Reception Time!

A bride and her bridesmaids munch the donuts from their bouquets.

You might have noticed Shannon’s bouquet in an earlier photo. Yes, those are donuts! Potomac Bakery in Dormont made them for the ladies. I am definitely a fan of this idea. I mean, what if you get hungry during the ceremony? Well, problem solved!

A tower of cupcakes on a table at a wedding in the big red room at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh.

Instead of a cake, Shannon and Larry had cupcakes from MayBakes on every table.

An overall view of the big red room at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum set up for a wedding and a table filled with plates of cookies.

The reception took place in the Big Red Room where dinner was catered by Big Burrito. There were cookies in addition to donuts and cupcakes. These guys know how to party!

A bride and groom are reflected in a glass door as they have their first dance in the big red room at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum.

First dance.

A woman in a short black dress laughs as she dances with a tall man wearing a blue suit during a Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

Everybody danced thanks to DJ Joe Reinhart!

A montage of guests who recorded themselves on the video booth at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum.

The collage from the video booth was a lot of fun!

A little girl in a red dress dances as adults around her clap their hands during a wedding at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum.

A bride dances in the middle of guests gathered around her during her Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

A man and a barefoot woman dance during a Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

A bride and groom kiss during the reception of their Children's Museum Pittsburgh Wedding.

I hope you enjoyed these photos. I certainly enjoyed making them 🙂