Chicago City Hall Wedding

Written and Photography by Madi Ellis Photography

I LOVE a Chicago city hall wedding, and capturing Porcha + Chris’s big day was no exception. From saying “I do” downtown to beach portraits, our time together was super fun!

Their Story

“We met on Hinge December 2020” Porcha told me. “The first question he asked me was what kind of wine I liked. I thought it was a little strange to ask me that after the first 5 minutes of our phone conversation… but when we met for our first date at South Shore Brew, he had brought me 2 bottles of wine! Since it was during the start of the pandemic and there was no dine-in available, we ended up walking to the lakefront in 30 degree weather. By the end of our first date, we both knew that this would be something special!

Fast forward to June 2021, when he proposed. We both were like, ‘what is the point of waiting to get married?’ We decided on a city hall wedding in November of 2021 because we could then celebrate the holidays and go into 2022 as husband and wife!”

City Hall

I met Porcha + Chris at 8am on crisp Saturday morning. After a quick first look and some portraits, we hopped in line for their 9am appointment. Pro tip: get to your appointment early! We were second in line at 8:30 and they didn’t even let us in until 9:20am or so. After getting our names checked off the list, we went downstairs to sit in the waiting area. We were all so excited! And before we knew it, Porcha + Chris kissed through their masks as they were announced husband + wife!

South Shore Brew

Before we met up that day, I had talked to the couple about their portrait locations. They told me that downtown didn’t really mean a lot to them and that they would love to go down to South Shore below Hyde Park to visit their favorite coffee shop where they met. I loved the idea, so we put it into the plan! We got some cute shots in South Shore Brew, then followed the path they took on their first date. It was definitely chilly, but these two newlyweds knew how to keep each other warm!

I had so much fun with these two. Their Chicago city hall wedding was special because they made sure it reflected what they wanted as a couple. These two have big plans in the works, I can’t wait to see what life brings them! :)

Wedding Pro’s:
Photographer: Madi Ellis Photography
Location: South Shore Brew Coffee