Rachel + Josh - North Carolina Wedding Preview

Stephanie Pearson May 9, 2016

Immediately after this wedding was over I was so excited to share some previews with you! This might just be my new favorite wedding I've ever photographed. Rachel and Josh are so wonderful for each other and their wedding celebration was perfect. I can't wait to tell you all about them and their special day with a full blog post later on. I couldn't help myself and I absolutely had to share a few with you.

Things Will Not Go As Planned

Stephanie Pearson May 6, 2016

I remember that before my wedding I was absolutely sick over guests who I found out wouldn't be able to make it. I cried so many times when I received a "no" RSVP from someone I cared about. I remember thinking that if I didn't have this certain kind of food, or napkin, or flower, or whatever, it would all just be ruined. I remember spending way too much time thinking about if something went wrong. I found wedding planning to be incredibly stressful.

Well...

Lots of people I invited couldn't come to the wedding, it was too far away for most of my friends. I left my iPod (the source of the ceremony music) sitting in my car for several hours (IN JUNE IN TEXAS) and the poor thing got overheated and couldn't play my music on time and my ceremony started like fifteen minutes late. I spent a couple hours creating a toss bouquet for the reception and forgot all about it and left without tossing it. My adorable navy blue pumps that I bought as my "something blue" were apparently very low quality and the blue started to peel off of the shoes. My wedding shoes were literally falling apart and looked like they had leprosy. Kyle and I didn't arrange for anyone to bring our car around so when we did our "exit" there was no car for us to get in to.

Things WILL go wrong.

And it won't matter at all.

All of this happened on my wedding day and none of it bothered me. It was an amazing day. I didn't cry or freak out or panic. I didn't sit and dwell on how it had all fallen apart. It was an awesome wedding. My friends, family, and I had a great time. Things went wrong, and none of it mattered.

The lesson here: STOP FREAKING OUT! This is supposed to be fun! Pick your battles, don't sweat the small stuff, soak up this awesome time in your life, and plan an amazing wedding. Plan your perfect day. Then when the plan falls apart know in your heart that it is STILL the perfect day.

Authentically Me

Stephanie Pearson May 4, 2016

For the last couple months I've been on this kick about authenticity. I know that in my own life I wear masks and pretend a lot more than I'd sometimes like to admit. I think we all do. We do these things to protect ourselves, which is fine. I've realized recently that I don't need to protect myself like I once did. I'm finally in a place in life where the people around me are people I can trust, people I've chosen to walk through life with me, people who love me. There's no longer a need to have my guard up. So... I'm working on taking it down.

I'm doing this by saying things that feel weird. Hey, friend who has been in my life for ten years, I love you. We've never said that to each other, but it's true so I'm saying it now. Hey, new friend, you're really important to me and I care about you. I like that you're in my life. Hey, stranger, I think you're really pretty (insert Mean Girls quote here: So you agree? You think you're really pretty). Hey, you hurt my feelings and I'm not going to act like I'm fine and bottle it all up instead of talking to you about it.

It's been strange, for sure. I'm not great at saying things that aren't coated it in a thick layer of irony. It's uncharacteristic of me to say something and not try to finish it off with a joke to ease the tension. In this time, though, I've definitely noticed that people actually LOVE it when you're honest with them - even if that honesty makes them uncomfortable for a second.

To See or Not to See - Continued

Stephanie Pearson May 2, 2016

Last week I shared a blog about the reasons why I love doing a First Look. You can see that blog post here. I do LOVE first looks, but I also understand that they are not for everyone. I don't want my couples to do anything they aren't comfortable with. So, as promised in the other post, here are some options for the couple who wants amazing photos, but doesn't want to see each other before the ceremony.

1. The Extended Cocktail Hour
IDEAL FOR: summer, long receptions, late ceremony start time around 6 or 7

Not seeing each other before the ceremony can really strain the schedule. Trying to fit all of the family photos, bridal party photos, and couple portraits in the time between the ceremony and reception can be tough. An extended cocktail hour where guests can mingle, drink, and snack on some finger foods is a perfect solution. Rather than sitting at tables and waiting for the couple to arrive, this allows guests to do something fun to fill that time. The couple can spend more time on photos this way before people start to get antsy. Also, if the ceremony started around 6 or 7 this is the best light of the day in the summer months!

2. The Fake Leave
IDEAL FOR: summer, shorter receptions, early ceremony start time around 2 or 3

I actually used this one twice last wedding season! How do we fit family photos, bridal party photos, and couple portraits in the time between the ceremony and reception? DON'T. With this plan the couple takes quick family and bridal party photos, then heads straight to the reception. When all of the reception activities are over, the couple does their exit and leaves the wedding like normal. Instead of driving off to the honeymoon destination, the couple will give guests time to clear out (stop by Sonic and grab a drink... make out in the car... whatever you want to do to pass the time) and circle back around and meet me. We can either meet back at the wedding venue, or meet at some other decided upon photo location. There's no rush, no guests are waiting on you, no pressure. Also, if the ceremony started around 2 or 3, this should put the post reception photos right around the best light of the day in the summer months.

3. Day After Session
IDEAL FOR: anyone at any time

It might sound weird, but this is a thing that people are doing now! If a First Look or one of the options mentioned above isn't ideal for you - maybe skip the wedding day couple portraits all together. Like The Fake Leave, the couple would grab quick family and bridal party photos immediately following the ceremony. Then the couple would go enjoy the reception. Either the next day, or some day after the couple has arrived back from the honeymoon they can get all decked out in their wedding clothes again and have a special, private, stress free photo session wherever they want.

I'd love to get feedback! Are there any other wedding topics you'd like to read about? Any other questions you need answers? Let me know in a comment below!

Meadow Hills Styled Shoot

Stephanie Pearson April 29, 2016

Last week I was so thankful to photograph a beautiful styled shoot that was put together with some amazing Tennessee wedding vendors. Here's a tiny preview from the shoot and the amazing vendors involved! Hopefully I'll be sharing the full shoot with you soon!