hey friends! at the moment matt & i are in route to NYC for a week of elopement goodness with sara & george. we’re so excited to explore the city with them and hang with their families- though this does mean we’ll have very limited access to the WWW. we’ll be back in the office september 14th and we look forward to getting back touch with the internets at that time.
until then, check out what we’re up to HERE & HERE…
…and here’s a quick scan of their invites and reply cards because i loved them so much!
paige & jonathan are the real deal- best friends, madly in love and full of life! they’ve already been together for, get ready for this: 11 years! so i’m thinking that means they’ve worked through every little detail of life together and their marriage is looking good! they both love to just be together, their wedding day was relaxed as ever; they hung out as the final details came together and enjoyed their friends and families. jonathan cracks paige up on a regular basis with his dry humor- even with just a glance she seems to know what he’s about to say and starts smiling even before he says it! working with them was such a blessing for us- their wedding day went flawlessly and the mood was calm yet celebratory. does that even make sense?! anyone who’s met them knows what i’m trying to say. bottom line is, they are an awesome couple and thanks to that- here are some awesome images:
paige’s long time friend and bridesmaid, mary anne, created magic with makeup! paige looked just radiant yet natural:
paige allotted plenty of time into her schedule for images of just her and jonathan so, of course, we had big plans! they were bringing their puppies (two little schnauzers!) and we were going to have a rockin time shooting their little family under the trees! but then the rain came down, the pups stayed home and our scouted spots were no longer an option. instead we explored the inside of the church as well as opening the doors and shooting just inside the threshold to keep us all dry. i’m so excited with how these came out! a little different for us but it was great- stretched our creativity! take this, rain:
‘they’ say rain is good luck on a wedding day so i thought it only appropriate to make sure to capture it somehow! thankfully, plenty of people had left umbrellas outside the church for me to borrow ;) i love how the water clings to the tulle!
back inside for a few touchups before the ceremony! when asked how they were feeling, everyone’s answer was the same, ‘ready!’ no nerves, no tears, everyone was just ready for paige and jonathan to tie the knot! the excitement was catching and i couldn’t help but feel a part of the day!
it rained throughout the ceremony and it was a beautiful calming sound. cool water trickled down the church windows making the ceremony feel even more intimate, warm and happy. maybe rain is good for a wedding day after all!
the reception began with the first dance and paige and jonathan certainly set the mood for the rest of the reception! they couldn’t have been happier, both grinning as wide as they could, they couldn’t take their eyes off one another:
the reception took place at the massee lane gardens, the historic home of the american camellia society and one of the world’s largest collections of Boehm porcelain. the figurines lined parts of the wall in the reception gallery and they created quite an eye-catching background!
as the reception wound down and one of the last dances began, the bridal party started disappearing in small groups and then reappearing, smiling suspiciously, to the dance floor. one of the groomsmen elbowed me and pointed, with his eyes, at the can he was shaking behind his back. i noticed others, dancing sightly awkwardly with one arm behind their back and when it happened, matt and i were ready. silly string went EVERYWHERE. this next series makes me laugh out loud: :)
paige & jonathan, we wish you guys the very best! thank you so much for including us in your wedding day; it was awesome to see everything come together and to be part of the excitement!
after the craziness of moving and painting and unpacking and pulling our life together in this new place we were excited to take a break and get back to shooting weddings! we could not have been more lucky that the next wedding on the calendar was in one of our favorite cities, asheville, and the wedding of some of our favorite clients ever, jen & jake! we were so excited to see them again and their wedding? well, we knew it would be one of a kind and it was! the morning started as many of my saturday mornings do- at a salon where jen and i chatted about her wedding, her guests and the vows she was trying to memorize while her stylist created a perfectly unique hairstyle that i was increasingly intrigued by- it was awesome! so you may notice there are a few extra pictures featuring jen’s perfectly tousled yet perfectly styled hair. ;)
from there we headed to her venue, hidden river, where i immediately fell in love! seriously, if you’re at all interested in an outdoor wedding in a valley backed by green pastures and blue misty mountains, this might just be your spot! we made our way to the reception area where jennifer and her family spent a little bit of time pulling all of the handmade details together and setting the tables- little handfilled honey jars for placecard holders, fresh lavender and rosemary and even little pots and seeds for the guests to enjoy on their windowsill at home! everything was so well thought out and sweet, i was excited for the guests to enjoy it all!
but really, as usual, i’m getting ahead of myself and i just need to get started on the images! first a few getting ready details:
jennifer is an amazing person to photograph, so calm and peaceful and at ease. AND SO BEAUTIFUL!
i love this next series of jen tucking her handwritten vows into her bouquet.
jennifer’s dad was the first person she introduced me to when i arrived at her house in the morning. jen has two sisters and i think that makes this man a saint! here he is when he first sees jen all dressed and ready; sunglasses can’t even begin to mask all of that emotion! ;) such a touching moment.
the ladies were taken down to the ceremony in a carriage- jen, her parents and her adorable flower girl were on the last trip so they watched as the others drove off!
they could see the ceremony in the valley from their cottage on the mountain- i love this image of jen’s dad talking with his granddaughter about what was happening down there just before they all were driven to the site themselves.
the rain started to sprinkle just as matt and i began to take their portraits and picked up towards the end but there was no stopping these two! they were up for making a beautiful rain image happen regardless of damp hair and i love them for it- this next image is one of my favorites ever!
jen had ideas for her formal portraits…that included mustaches- which were beyond perfect and hilarious!
couldn’t help but show some of our favorite details, of course!
jennifer & jake had a local band, Fiddlewitch, play at their reception! this was no usual band, not only did they play some incredible bluegrass but they also threw in some awesome contra dancing numbers too! i’ve never been contra dancing before but all of the guests seemed to be having an awesome time, maybe we’ll try it one day!
jennifer & jake, this was one amazing day! the setting was perfect and your love for one another and for each of your guests was so evident, we were so blessed to be there. we wish you both the best and we really do hope to see you guys next time we’re up in athens!
