Wedding Photographers & Videographers at St. Joseph Church (Bellwood), Bellwood

A wedding at St. Joseph Church in Bellwood brings you to the parish church on East Third Street, a small-town church with its own Angelus bell. Plan to visit with your photographer and videographer well before your wedding day: see the aisle, the spot where you'll stand for your vows and the pews where your families will sit, and decide together which moments matter most for your wedding photos and your wedding film.

The ceremony is what the parish offers couples. The parish has a church hall, which it uses for religious instruction and parish social activities, but it doesn't advertise the hall for wedding receptions, so plan your reception at a separate venue unless the office tells you otherwise. Ask, too, whether there's a room where you can wait before the processional, and where your photographer and videographer may stand during the ceremony.

Start early. Engaged couples must contact the parish office at least six to eight months ahead, and the parish calls nine months to a year ideal. The formal preparation must be finished no closer than two months before the big day, and couples also take part in the diocesan Marriage Preparation Program, offered in person and online. Saturday Mass is at 4:00 p.m., so ask which Saturday times are open. For your wedding video, ask how the vows can be recorded clearly.

• Call the parish office at 814-742-7075 nine months to a year ahead if you can.
• Finish your preparation at least two months before the wedding.
• Ask about the parish's photo and video guidelines when you meet.

A little about St. Joseph Church

St. Joseph's first church in Bellwood was gutted by fire on Easter Sunday in 1919. Parishioners built a new church, dedicated on November 28, 1920, and the Angelus bell was blessed in 1952, the first bell to ring there since the fire.