atlanta wedding photographer - ALTMIX Photography

Aug 21

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jennifer & jake are married!

By Kate Altmix | Weddings | 8 Comments

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!

Jun 08

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heather & matt are married!

By Kate Altmix | Weddings | 12 Comments

as is probably the case with most anyone who meets them, heather and matt had us at ‘hello.’ their easy smiles, vibrant personalities and obvious love for people made us thrilled to know them and equally as excited to be part of their wedding!

the morning of their wedding i drained my coffee and walked into the salon expecting nothing less than the best day ever. high expectations? not with heather & matt- it was guaranteed. i was chatting with heather as her best friend took a starbucks and chic-fil-a order from each girl and while matt sped off to meet the guys for their frisbee golf game. <- that sentence alone should give you an idea of the level of awesome we were dealing with! well, that sentence, and their photobooth!

i think, for this one, i’ll cut up my chatter between the images- there’s so much to talk about! but let’s kick things off with a pretty picture of the bride- that seems the most perfect place to start! we arrived at the botanical gardens ready to dive into their tall grasses but as we turned in the rain got stronger and forced us indoors. luckily, everything is beautiful inside too and we were able to grab some great portraits with completely natural lighting, so like i said- the pretty bride!

heather wrapped this necklace, a family heirloom, around her bouquet to carry during the ceremony. i love the symbolism in carrying a piece of your family history as you begin your new family, wish i’d seen this sweet idea before my own wedding! [attn photogs- 6400 iso, baby! gotta do what i gotta do!]

heather wrote a tearjerker of a note to matt for him to read on the wedding day- it was so sweet the way he sought a bit of solitude to read her words:

the rain let up just enough for us to jump out from under the awning and grab a few quick images. and how perfect that heather was still holding her umbrella- if it hadn’t rained this shot would be umbrella.less and slightly less adorable. so, thank you rain, for helping in your own way!

also, are you as obsessed with heather’s hairpiece as i am!?

matt’s sister and her husband have a two month old baby girl who’s cuteness could not be left alone! she seemed always surrounded by cooing friends and family but i love how (my)matt found this sweet moment between her and her daddy and captured it in such a way that they seem all alone in their own world, he’s a genius. check out this little daddy’s-girl-in-the-making! ;)

wren, heather’s maid of honor, held up her dress as they waited to be motioned up the stairs to the ceremony. the last few moments of waiting is always one of the most exhilarating and yet introspective times of the wedding day and i am 100% always caught up in it at this moment too, love it!

sidenote: just realized we are sharing tons of black and whites from this wedding, love it!

heather & matt take pictures seriously and created a solid chunk of time for couple portraits at the botanical gardens after the ceremony- for which we LOVE them! the setting was perfect, their excitement was perfect and the rain held off- PERFECT! oh, and also, they are one good looking couple!! here are a few of our faves:

let’s pause for a moment to check out some of the sweetest details i’ve seen! i love how heather’s style came through in her wedding- couples often ask what they can do to make their wedding awesome and we always recommend infusing as much of their personal style into the day as possible- that is something heather knew instinctively! she snagged the uber-talented joy thigpen and the once wed crew to turn her dreams and ideas into a unique wedding bursting with personality enjoyed by everyone in attendance:

heather & matt’s reception was held in the large glass conservatory at the state botanical garden of georgia. it was the perfect location to compliment her style and all of the indoor foliage made for a stunning setting! …although i may have a bias as this is the exact spot matt and i celebrated our own wedding reception one year and nine months ago! it was so awesome to be back!

heather & matt, just as we post this you are heading to italy to enjoy a long and well-earned holiday- we cannot wait to see your pictures from the trip- especially with your new awesome camera! we had a great time getting to know you both and capturing your friends and family as they celebrated with you was a joy. we wish you the best italy, and marriage, has to offer, ciao!

Jan 28

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juli & blake are married!

By Kate Altmix | Weddings | 17 Comments

matt and i didn’t have the pleasure of meeting juli & blake until just two weeks before their wedding! a good friend of ours, kyle, had shot their engagement pictures and as he was already booked for their wedding, he told them about us! we went through the booking process without ever meeting up, so a couple of weeks ago when we finally met up for some coffee we were excited to get to know them! blake is in med school in savannah and juli has just started nursing school so it was on a quick pass through the city that we met them. their story is inspiring, full of patience and love and respect- and the way they interact is full of smiles and laughter. it is easy to see why, when we showed up to shoot, everyone was so excited for them to finally be married!

for me the morning started with the bridal luncheon where i learned about everyone there as juli toasted to each of her FIFTEEN bridesmaids. yes, FIFTEEN! it was awesome! after an impromptu yoga class led by an aunt, it was finally time to start getting ready. juli and her mom explained to me that her beautiful dress was created from the fabric of juli’s grandmother’s wedding dress and even fashioned with the original buttons- it was stunning. i took my time capturing all of the dress details in different ways just so i had an excuse to keep looking at it! :) let’s get started on the images with a couple of my favorite dress shots:

while the ladies were singing and applying makeup the men were already dressed (impressive!!) and matt was taking a few images with them outside in the parking lot. they found this crazy old bus and ran with it as a prop. you really never know what matt’s up to but i always love it in the end!

just before juli and her maids went outside for pictures we stopped in the foyer so she could have a moment with her dad as he saw her for the first time. the tears that immediately flooded to his eyes when he saw her brought tears to my own:

once outside it was time for a few portraits but since it was FREEZING everyone had to keep moving to stay warm! matt took images as i grabbed coats and handed them back between shots. luckily, juli and her ladies LOVE to dance so keeping body temperatures up wasn’t too much of a problem!

once we were back inside, the veil went on and what was about to happen seemed to become more real. glistening eyes and big smiles danced around the room as the girls encouraged and prayed over the life juli and blake were about to start.

then it was time! juli and her flower girl waited for just a few minutes before heading down the aisle.

officially a new family, juli & blake ran off with us for a few portraits at an old vet office down the street. they had made it very clear to us that couple portraits were the most important part of the day for them so we were ready! the location was stunning and even with just 20 minutes, juli & blake were at ease in front of the camera and up for anything. here are a few of our faves!

back at the reception, juli & blake danced their first dance as a married couple. they swayed to bright eyes: first day of my life, and it was perfect.

ok so another one of my favorite things about this wedding- they really embraced the fact that it was january. it was COLD. there were no leaves on the trees and they incorporated twigs into their decor and their portrait locations. they also had a hot tea bar at their reception- i was in love!

when it was finally time for them to leave their guests were the rowdiest we’ve EVER seen! everyone was blowing horns and yelling and waving and dancing- it was like a concert as everyone pressed closer to the getaway car! what a way to go out!

juli & blake, thank you so so much for including us in your wedding day. we had such a great time shooting for you and watching you start your new life! we look forward to keeping in touch and we wish you both the very best together!

atlanta wedding photographer - ALTMIX Photography - Page 8

jennifer & jake are married!

heather & matt are married!

juli & blake are married!