portland wedding photographer | Jessica Hill Photography

Wedding

Lei Lei & Michael
A Traditional Chinese Wedding

Lei Lei and Michael are celebrating their first year as a married couple and their wedding is one I love looking back on! It was a celebration steeped in beautiful tradition, rich color and delicious food! Before their Western marriage at the Portland Community Church, Lei Lei and Michael hosted a traditional Chinese tea ceremony with family and friends. Throughout the day, the event sported bursts of bright red symbolizing good fortune, joy, and happiness. During the ceremony Lei Lei wore an elegant gown from Charlotte’s Weddings and looked stunning. After the ceremony the large celebration was hosted at HK Cafe complete with lobster, shrimp and delicious cupcakes! The celebration continued into the night with games, speeches, and singing! Michael sang a song to Lei Lei and it was incredible! It was a magnificent night and one that no one will soon forget. Congratulations Lei Lei and Michael.

Wedding

Sheila & Michael
A Gorge Crest Vineyard Wedding

Wildflowers, deep green forests, sprawling vineyards, and views of Mount Hood? Yes please! Sheila and Michael’s wedding at Gorge Crest Vineyard really had it all, but these two only had eyes for each other. Sheila was absolutely stunning in her vintage-inspired gown and her bouquet by Blum Floral, which perfectly complimented the couple’s elegant style. Thanks to coordination from the amazing Katy with Bridal Bliss, the day ran smoothly, from Sheila and Michael’s first look to their first steps as husband and wife. Guests enjoyed vibrant and delicious food from White Pepper and lawn games (gotta love giant Jenga!) Loved the personal details, including photos of the couple at each age corresponding to the table number. After the ceremony, the couple stole away for a little dance among the rows of vines and shared a quiet moment together to take it all in. Absolutely adored this relaxed yet elegant wedding in the mountains! Happy one year to this kind and wonderful couple!

Events

Ellerey & Dan
A Coopers Hall Rehearsal Dinner

A rehearsal dinner full of joy and happiness delicious food and celebrated love! Ellery & Dan light up a room with their positive and fun energy and playful love. We all have a blast together and after their UofP & waterfall engagements, I knew it was going to be an incredibly fun, elegant yet chill weekend! Cooper’s Hall, an urban winery in Southeast Portland, hosts incredible weddings and rehearsal dinners. From the menu concept (printed on the paper bread bags!) to the fresh orange poppies & vines by Blum set against the industrial backdrop, this event was pure heaven! Hilarious toasts, great wine and lots of laughter, of course with Bridal Bliss on coordination & Blum on florals, it was a totally perfect & stylish dinner.

Wedding

Kelsey & Tyler
A St. Patrick and Sentinel Hotel Wedding

Remember weddings? (Insert cry face emoji here!!!) This one was unforgettable and I’m so honored that it was just featured on the Oregon Bride Magazine Blog!!! Kelsey and Tyler’s day was a classic and extremely elegant wedding! They said their vows under the beautiful vaulted ceilings of St. Patrick Catholic Church, followed with a celebratory reception at The Sentinel Hotel. with traditional & timeless white florals by Amanda Karam Floral Company and an absolutely gorgeous Vera Wang gown paired with nude Louboutin pumps and a long veil. I loved the grandeur Kelsey and Tyler brought to the decor while sprinkling in reminders of their alma mater, OSU, where their relationship blossomed. The first night of her freshman year at Oregon State, Kelsey met Tyler, but it wasn’t until a month before graduation that they started dating! Fast forward three years and Tyler proposed at one of their favorite spots on the Deschutes River in Sunriver, Oregon. The entire day was expertly planned by Bridal Bliss, even down to a ride in a oh-so rad classic car that belongs to Kelsey’s dad on their way to the reception. Congratulations to the both of them and many happy memories to come!

Baby

Sara & Monica
A Mt Tabor Maternity Session

After photographing Sara and Monica’s wedding in 2016, I was so excited to hear that they were expecting! It was even more exciting to find out that they wanted to do a maternity shoot to celebrate this very special time. With views of Portland in the distance we captured beautiful photos at Mt. Tabor on the SE side of the city. Monica looked radiant in a floral blue dress against a backdrop of warm autumn colors. Sara and Monica are expecting a baby girl (yeah baby Irene- who I’ve since had the honor of photographing!) and decided to bring along their pup, Sasha, to complete their first family photoshoot. I absolutely loved the ultrasound photo and those teeny tiny baby booties! I couldn’t be happier for Sara and Monica and know that they are going to be two of the best moms to this little girl. Thank you for allowing me the pleasure of photographing another amazing time in both of your lives!

Wedding

Merrin & Jay
The Evergreen Portland

Merrin and Jay had a wedding for the books. Merrin and Jay and I first connected at Timberline Lodge for their engagements and we had a total blast in the snow at sunset and over a post-shoot beer at the Skyway, one of their favorite places to stop on the way to the Mt. Hood. This smart and kind couple love the outdoors, hiking and each other and felt like immediate friends. They chose the Hi-Lo as their hotel of choice for their getting ready (with the talented Kiss & Makeup on the job!) and first look location and I immediately fell in love with the historic architecture mixed with the hip styling of this new downtown Portland hotel. Their wedding ceremony and reception took place at one of my favorite SE Portland venues, The Evergreen. CK Events coordinated perfectly, along with Arranged for You Florals, who created the beautiful florals. I especially loved their chartreuse velvet napkins and Spring garden vibes. Event Team Entertainment always makes the party pop and kept a rocking dance floor all night. What a fun and memorable wedding and I’m so honored that I was there to document the memories!

Features

Redd on Salmon
Featured Wedding Inspiration

The Redd on Salmon St. in Portland Oregon is one of my new favorite wedding venues with urban elegance and industrial elements, tall ceilings, natural light and an ideal location in SE Portland. I hope to photograph here a lot more in the coming year! This styled inspirational wedding shoot was for the Art of Weddings Venue Crawl. Bringing luxe texture, clean modern lines and unique colors (gotta love a blue wedding dress!) to this styled shoot we took a newly renovated industrial space and turned it into an elegant wedding with elevated design and edgy romance. Honored to have it recently featured on the Tacari wedding blog. Credit to the talented vendors that helped make this event & shoot happen: Venue – The Redd on Salmon Street | Styling & Event Planner – Gather Events | Floral Design – Swoon Floral Design | Gown Designer – Elizabeth Dye | Makeup Artist – Kirstie Wight Makeup | Rentals – The Party Plac e & Vintage Meets Modern | Cake Designer – Dream Cakes | Rings – Chinchar Maloney | Cocktails – Silver Julep | Lighting – Greenlight Creative | Paper Goods – Paper Jam Press | Photo Booth – Snap Bar

Engagement

Julie & Joe
A Downtown Portland Engagement

Destination Portland! Julie and Joe decided on Portland for their winter wedding planned for this month at the iconic Benson Hotel. After meeting at their church they knew they had finally found “the one” and decided to create a fun adventure for their friends and family in Portland! They are so sweet and kind and oh so in love! We really wanted to celebrate the city of roses in all of its glory for their engagement session so we decided on Coava coffee in downtown, the Park Blocks Rose Garden and of course, the Arlene Schnitzer Portland Sign on Broadway! We had a blast walking around the city and finding the golden nooks and crannies that this fair city has to offer! Julie and Joe laughed the entire time and I can’t wait to celebrate these two and their amazing love later this month!

Engagement

McKenzie & Paul
A Wilsonville, Oregon engagement

When McKenzie and Paul first met, they shook hands and felt it… You know that thing you feel when you instantly connect with someone? Well as soon as they told me their story I knew I wanted to focus on their hands and the connections they make. I had the absolute pleasure of meeting McKenzie and Paul and they feel like old friends, the ones you can go ages without seeing, but then as soon as you see each other you’re right back to where you were all those years ago and it feels like not a day has passed. They are wise, kind, talented, generous and not to mention total babes! They invited me to document their home for a day in their life while they cooked breakfast together in their beautiful Wilsonville home and drank coffee. I love how intimate and cozy at-home photos are, as the couple could just be themselves. Paul then played piano (*and oh my goodness he is talented as he was a professional piano player for years!) on his antique grand piano that was recently restored after a fire. We then took their Harley to the local park for some photos at dusk and wondered to an ancient oak tree. Paul picked flowers for McKenzie (unprompted!) and we had a blast running around in the fields making art and finding light. The dusk light was this gorgeous shade of pink and I love this engagement session and this couple. Needless to say I am oh-so excited and inspired for their elegant wedding this weekend at the historic Sentinel hotel!