Our Real Detroit Wedding: February 23, 2018
“As I have said over and over again, Mike Staff Productions rocked. They made this part of my wedding planning so easy and bundling all three services was not only a cost savings, but also a no-brainier. I did not have to coordinate my videographer, photographer, and DJ – Mike Staff did it for me. More importantly, I had special music for our ceremony that my cousin recorded and because my DJ and videographer work together, I was able to have my actual ceremony music on my wedding video without any extra work from me. Mike Staff Productions takes a lot of the burden off of the bride and delivers a beautiful, top-notch, and professional product! I cannot say enough good things about Mike Staff and would recommend them to everyone and anyone! (Also, my sister used Mike Staff for all three services four years ago and feels the same way I do).” – Happy Bride, Lyndsey
Our Love Story
It was just before Fourth of July weekend when I “swiped right,” (that’s right, we met on Tinder) and exchanged phone numbers with Ryan. We exchanged a few short texts and explained that we both would be at our respective cottages for the holiday weekend. I promised Ryan that I would text him that weekend.
But I did not text Ryan right away. In fact, it wasn’t until late Saturday evening that Ryan’s phone alerted from a text from me. From that point forward we were both continuously glued to our phones for the remainder of the weekend. We agreed to meet on July 9th at Granite City brewery in Troy, Michigan. Ryan wore a “Top Gun” t-shirt and I knew it was all over from there (it’s my favorite movie and I have been known to blurt out “I want some butts!”; “Hey Goose you big Stud!”; and “Negative ghost rider.”; at random moments). We closed the bar down and never looked back.
Fast forward to January 12, 2018. We were headed up-north to Ryan’s cabin. When we arrived, Ryan indicated that he wanted to check out the lake to see how frozen it was (I was thinking, right now? are you serious?). We corralled our lab, Rocky, and our German Shepherd, Charlie, and headed down to the lake.
We walked onto the ice and were immediately blasted by what was -10 degree temperatures with 40 mph winds (conditions Ryan did not originally picture in his head). It was freezing. Although, it was a beautiful, clear sky, it was hard to focus on the stars with Charlie dragging me along the ice like a water-skier. Eventually, Ryan and I stopped at a clear spot on the ice where Ryan said, “Hey! look at this ice, you can see straight through to the bottom.” I began to look through the ice when, all of the sudden, Ryan reached into his pocket and said, “Now, check out this ice!” as he shown a flash light on the most perfect ring. He didn’t even make it down on one knee – wayyyyy too cold 🙂 I immediately turned into a lunatic and began to stutter, “Wait, What? . . . Are you sure?” Eventually I regained my ability to formulate a sentence and said, “Yes!”
Our Wedding Video
Everyone that I talked to that did not get a wedding video said they regret it. The way that Mike Staff Productions was able to pull little moments (that you may have even forgotten about) and put them into something that you can show your family, friends, children, and, if you’re are lucky, grandchildren, is impressive and meaningful. Pictures are great, but getting to see your day in live action — the way people laughed, hugged, danced, and the way the candlelight flickered or the snow glittered — is something that only a video can capture.
Ryan is a man of few words, but our Mike Staff Productions videographer got his reaction when he first saw me and watching his face light up is truly priceless for me.
Our Wedding Photography
My photographer Alex was dope! He was phenomenal. I probably shouldn’t say this, but he really could have been a fifth bridesmaid, he fit right in. My husband hates photos with every fiber of his being. When picking a photographer we were focused on finding one that shot more organic (versus posed) photos to accommodate Ryan’s disdain for photography.
Alex listened to this concern very intently when we spoke before my wedding and executed one of the most carefree and at ease wedding “photo sessions” I have ever seen done. Even Ryan said he was great. Alex understood right away the bond between my bridesmaids and myself and without even seeing the pictures I know he captured it. He was amazing and our photos are epic! He even captured me twirling like a real life Disney princess in the middle of the dance floor! C’mon now people, It does. not. get. any. better!
Our Wedding DJ
DJ Kevin was awesome! Hands down the best DJ ever. My cousin is the lead guitarist for Whitey Morgan and the 78s and recorded my ceremony music. Kevin actually knows my cousin and has covered gigs for him in the past, so I knew he was going to be great. Kevin had everyone on the dance floor with “Can’t Feel My Face” by the Weekend, but that’s because my bridesmaids and I LOVE that song (its a long story involving a girls trip to Canada, but nonetheless it is our JAM). Really though, everyone was on the dance floor all night long because my family contains a bunch of dancing fools. Our wedding was a party and Kevin kept the tunes coming. He was a quiet, not overly “showy” DJ that kept the place rockin’, which is exactly what we wanted.
I did not know what song Ryan and I were going to dance until two days before our wedding. I let Ryan pick the song: Stone Sour #3 (acoustic version). Ryan likes Rock music and I knew whatever song I picked he was going to veto, so I told him he was in charge of this one part of our wedding. When he picked this song and I listened to it for the first time, I cried . . . balled really. Fun fact: I was at work when I listened to this song and so several coworkers were concerned at my blubbering.
Our Wedding Vision
I love Disney, but I knew that my military veteran, turned police officer, husband-to-be was not going to let
me get away with a full-on Disney-themed wedding. Therefore, I knew I was going to have sneak it in. I wanted a wedding that combined both of us and spoke to our personalities. Given that some of our groomsmen were going to be in military dress, I knew the men were going to wear Navy. I love all things gold (what girl doesn’t?), so it was an easy decision to go with Navy and Gold (also, one of my bridesmaids used this color combination for her wedding, so I figured I could mooch some things off of her — BONUS!).
From there, I just began to form my overall vision: a romantic, candlelit, sparkly, winter wedding. I knew I wanted my girls in something that fit their big, bold, and hilarious personalities – so of course we went with full-length sequin gowns, DUH! Finally, I knew us girls needed something to keep us warm, but I also knew that I was sick of seeing pictures or bridesmaids with fur stoles around their shoulders. Then it dawned on me – what goes great with gold sequins? Leather. Thus, the hand painted leather jackets came into being. These are probably the favorite part of my wedding.
The Disney elements came easy – I worked with an excellent graphic designer who created that Beauty and Beast backdrop and my seating chart, which fit perfectly into my candlelit ambiance. Finally, I hired a lighting guy to change every dang bulb in the place to either (a) make it look like it was snowing inside (how cool is that!) or (b) to make it look like the lights were gas lanterns! My florist accented my navy and gold scheme with bordeaux and VOILA! Vision achieved.
Lyndsey and Ryan’s Wedding Vendors
- Venue: Paint Creek Country Club
- Florist: Flowers by Amore
- Backdrop / seating chart: Wheelhouse Graphix
- Wedding Dress: A’dorabelle Bridal
- Mike Staff Productions: Wedding DJ, Photography, Videography
Don’t trust your wedding to anyone else. Mike Staff Productions would be honored to bring your vision to life. Let’s get started!