Bethany + John Michael - Alabama Wedding

I was so excited that Bethany and John Michael chose me to be their wedding photographer. Bethany is such a special person to me, and it's been wonderful to watch her fall in love with John Michael. I didn't meet John Michael until the day of the wedding, but I could immediately tell that he loves Bethany, and loves her two babies. I think their new life together will be filled with love. 

Bethany's dress was so beautiful! I love seeing the different personalities that wedding dresses reflect. 

Little River, being just like mommy and putting on make up in front of the mirror before photos. Luckily, she just played with the brushes and didn't actually try to apply any. 

Bethany and John Michael didn't want to see each other before the wedding, but they wanted an opportunity to pray together. I love that these two took a moment to just be together with God before everything got hectic. 

She's so pretty!

Journey did an excellent job walking his mom down the aisle. 

Marry someone who looks at you like this. 

After making vows to Bethany, John Michael knelt down and spoke to Journey and River. It was a private moment, and we didn't hear what was said, but this moment got me right in the feeler. If this doesn't get you, you can't get got. 

The kids are suddenly disinterested. Haha!

The brand new family!

Sarah + Leo - Jackson, TN Wedding

I thought it was so cool that Sarah got ready for her wedding in her childhood bedroom. Usually brides are getting ready in some random hotel room, or bridal suite at a wedding venue. It was really special to see Sarah prepare for her wedding in her room with an adorable ballerina wallpaper border.  

This is Leo. I thought his tie was really awesome.

A few weeks before this wedding Kyle and I were in downtown Jackson. He mentioned how pretty the building for the First United Methodist Church was, and how it would be really cool if we could shoot there some time. We speculated about what the inside looked like and talked about using the porch for photos. In preparation for this wedding I double checked the locations and announced happily to Kyle that we would get to shoot at the church! It really is a lovely building. 

I love seeing the bride and groom looking at each other while the bride walks down the aisle. :) So sweet.

Sarah and Leo are from very different backgrounds, and I thought it was so beautiful how they blended their religious practices for the ceremony. The were married in a Methodist church, under a chuppah. They exchanged vows, and also signed a ketubah. They recited The Lord's Prayer, and also listened to a recitation of the Seven Blessings. I love attending wedding ceremonies that include religious traditions other than my own. I always leave wanting to know more, and I always learn something valuable from the way other people do things. 

Sarah and Leo's wedding was definitely the rainiest I've shot yet. Naturally, the second we were scheduled to be taking photos outside, the sky opened up and it started storming. These two just went right along with it. Luckily, I remembered to bring along my clear dome umbrellas. I never wanted to do an entire wedding portrait session using these umbrellas, but when the day came that I needed to do just that, I was very glad I had them. If Sarah and Leo were freaked out that it was pouring rain at their wedding, they didn't let it show. 

Green Frog Farms is beautiful, so even with less than desirable weather I think we got some keepers. 

Look how happy they are! They don't care that it's raining.

Jam is officially my favorite wedding favor idea of all time. Jam is one of my five major food groups. Giving it away at weddings is an excellent idea. All people should do it. 

Jewish weddings are awesome because at the end of the day they throw people up in the air. The horah is awesome to watch. I can't think of a better/more exciting/more terrifying way to celebrate getting married. I can't decide if I'd be willing to try this or not. It's definitely a trust exercise. No one was harmed in the making of this photograph.

These two had to put up with a ton of rain on their wedding day, but not everyone get's to celebrate their marriage with a double rainbow. 

Rachel + Josh - Mountain Magnolia Inn Wedding

Wow, this wedding season really started off on the right foot for me this year. Josh and Rachel's wedding was incredible and I'm so excited to share it here with you. I met Rachel around eight years ago through her sister, and my college roommate, Hannah. Rachel told me way on way back then that she wanted me to be her wedding photographer when she got married. She first told me this after I'd shot maybe three weddings, so hearing that someone else actually wanted to hire me was both astounding and exciting. I can't express how thankful I am that after all those years Rachel stuck to her choice. When she got engaged, I got a message. It was happening. 

This time last year Rachel was in the process of hiking the Appalachian Trail. While hiking the trail she came across this adorable Girlmore Girls-esque inn in the mountains of North Carolina. She fell in love with it and decided that when Josh proposed she would want to have their wedding there. I can totally see why, because I also fell in love with the Mountain Magnolia Inn. It was adorable, intimate, and had the best bacon ever at breakfast.

Those are my requirements to like something. Adorable. Bacon.

This blog post is going to be way too long, and I'm not apologizing. It's worth it.

Now you can fall in love with the Rachel's dress. Oh my word. I wanted to take it home.

There are a dozen photos of the getting ready process that include Rachel being a complete goof ball. I decided to save them for her. But if you know Rachel just imagine some funny faces here while you're scrolling through. 

A super sweet bridesmaids reaction to seeing her fully put together. 

You wouldn't believe it, but this beautiful bouquet was put together by one of the bridesmaids! Right? That's talent. 

Poor Josh, he had to wait all day to see her! Every time I came in to his room to check on him he jumped up and asked if we were ready for him. He was PUMPED for this first look. 

This wedding was the very first trial run of Kyle being my second shooter. He was going to be at the wedding anyway, so we figured we'd give it a try. Well, he took this photo, and I thought it was pretty wonderful. 

The ceremony was held under this fabulous and beautiful tree. If you've read any of my other blog posts you probably know how I feel about unique trees. Give me a cool tree, I'm happy. Adorable. Bacon. Tree.

I'm pretty sure this adorable photo is of Hannah looking at her husband. Either that or she's looking at her mom. Either way I love it. 

Rachel laughed the whole time she said her vows. I don't think she was laughing AT anything, I think she was just straight up giddy to the point she couldn't contain it. 

I wrote a blog post a while back about the moment right after the ceremony and how I missed it during my very first wedding. I don't make that mistake anymore because... THIS. These faces! Blissfully happy and also like WHAT IS GOING ON?

Instead of a unity candle, or sand, or whatever Rachel and Josh did UNITY ICE CREAM. 

RIGHT?

They had ice cream instead of cake at the reception and one of the flavors is a combination of their each of their favorites. And then I died because I was so happy.

And then, when getting my ice cream, I dropped the entire cup I had just been served into the pot of hot fudge and the ice cream girls had to rescue it for me. I had some hot fudge on my dress for the rest of the night. So, basically just a normal day for me.

Josh trying to figure out how dancing happens?

This was the sweetest father-daughter dance ever. They danced to this hilarious song about fishing that apparently Rachel and her dad used to listen to when she was a kid. These two had the best time dancing to this song. 

To See or Not to See

Let's talk about First Looks.

I've been shooting weddings for years now, and it's easy for me to forget that my clients have never done this before. To me a First Look is a standard wedding element. I know the pros and cons, the situations that require it, and the situations that leave more flexibility. Of course I do. It's my job. My clients don't know. Of course they don't! They've never planned a wedding before. I had a face palm moment at one of my weddings last year when I strongly encouraged the couple to do a First Look. Later, it came to my attention that they didn't know what I was talking about!

That's why I want to share this today. I want my clients (and others) to be educated about their options and feel supremely confident in the choice they make either to do a First Look, or not to. 

WHY I LOVE FIRST LOOKS:

1. The schedule

If the couple chooses to see each other before the ceremony that means ALL of the photos can get knocked out before the ceremony starts. To some that might not seem like a big deal. Why not just do them after? Well, it takes a lot of time to get wedding party photos, family photos, and portraits of the bride and groom. All of that time is time taken away from enjoying the reception with friends and family! When the ceremony is over and the bride and groom just want to get to sit down and eat dinner it's easy to rush though photos and not give them the time they deserve. I've had past clients look back and say "I wish we'd spent more time on this, but I just wanted to get to the reception and sit, eat, and see my guests". 

Another schedule element is the time of day. A wedding in December? Where I live that means the sun is setting around 4:30. If the ceremony starts at 5:00, your time in the sun is gone before you even start. Those beautiful natural light photos definitely can't be achieved after the sun has been down for an hour and a half. For winter weddings I have to strongly suggest doing a first look.

2. It calms nerves

The anticipation is crazy on a wedding day! In my experience (both as a photographer and a bride) it really helps calm nerves to be able to see your partner throughout the day. Instead of letting that sick, nervous anticipation build up all day the bride and groom get to spend the majority of the day hanging out with their best friend.

3. It's intimate

First Looks are significantly more intimate that seeing each other during the walk down the aisle. The couple is alone, with the exception of a sneaky photographer. No one has to worry about someone stepping into the aisle to get an iphone photo and blocking the view of the other person. It's ok to cry, laugh, react however. No one is watching. When the couple finally sees each other they get to TALK and TOUCH! They can spend a moment completely alone before the chaos ensues. They can ask how the other person is feeling, if they're nervous. At the ceremony there's no moment to just bask in it. The bride walks out, and then the ceremony is under way. After the ceremony everyone wants to talk to the couple, hug them, get photos with them. Oh, and they still have to go take the professional photos. There's no time to simply be alone together for a minute until it's all completely over.

Still DON'T want to do a First Look? That's ok. It's not for everybody - and it doesn't have to be. For those of you who want to keep it traditional I have some ideas I'll share with you soon! Stay tuned!